Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesMedium ruby, the 2019 Pinot Noir Evenstad Reserve has pure, layered aromas of cranberry, pomegranate and raspberry with accents of tobacco leaves, graphite, mushroom and forest floor. The medium-bodied palate is harmoniously structured and seamless with delicate, perfumed fruit and a very long, spicy finish. This strikes a fine balance between a fruity, savory and earthy character.
The 2019 Pinot Noir Evenstad Reserve is forward and lifted with baking spice, clove, and cranberry. The palate is medium-bodied, with fine tannins, wonderful concentration, and notes of dried roses, pure cherry, and lingering oak spice.
A “Goldilocks wine” where everything, down to the restrained alcohol, is just right. Blackcap raspberries, dried rose petals, beeswax and a touch of Madagascar vanilla draw the nose deeper into the glass. Bright red cherry and tangerine flavors create a juicy and pleasurable sweet-tart flavor combination.
A graceful, compelling red, offering an array of raspberry, strawberry, rose petal and toasty spice flavors that fan out on the lingering, supple finish.
Ken and Grace Evenstad founded Domaine Serene Vineyards and Winery in 1989 when they purchased 42 acres of just-logged land in the Dundee Hills of Oregon and built a five-level, gravity flow winery to produce ultra-premium Pinot Noir. Today, Domaine Serene produces wines from six individual vineyard estates in the Willamette Valley planted exclusively to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Each estate offers a diversity of soils, clones, rootstocks, microclimates, slopes, and elevations that add distinguishing complexity and elegance to the wines.
The Evenstads now own over 1,000 acres, more than 360 of which are planted to vine in three AVAs of the Willamette Valley and are actively preserving Oregon White Oak trees and the biodiversity of the region. They have achieved LIVE certification, the highest certification in the world for sustainable viticulture. Domaine Serene’s wines have won many accolades and awards, including 200 wines scoring 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator. Their 2013 Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir was recognized as #3 Wine in the World, while the 2014 Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay received 95 points and was ranked the #2 Wine in the World according to Wine Spectator. Over the years, Domaine Serene has opened three Oregon Wine Lounges in Portland, Bend, and Lake Oswego that offer wine club members, locals, and visitors an elevated wine experience.
Home of some of the planet’s most amazingly elegant and expressive Pinot noir, the Willamette Valley is a pastoral, mixed landscape of green, bucolic rolling hills, dramatic forestlands and small, independent, friendly wine growers. As a leader in environmental stewardship, the valley has some of the nation’s most protective land use policies, with two-thirds of its vineyards farmed sustainably and over half, organically. While the valley claims a cool, continental climate, and is heavily influenced by the cold, moist winds of the Pacific Ocean, its warm and dry summers allow for the steady, even ripening of Pinot noir.
The potential of Willamette Valley Pinot noir continues to attract the investment of serious growers and winemakers both locally and from abroad, as naturally the finished wines bring accolades from professionals and enthusiasts. With a range of styles from delicate dried cherry, raspberry and hibiscus to stronger notes of truffle, mocha, plum and spice, a fine Willamette Valley Pinot noir is a perfect expression of both character and grace.