Winemaker Notes
The 2022 Duck Pond Willamette Valley Reserve Pinot Noir captures the essence of Oregon’s acclaimed terroir with elegance and precision. This handcrafted, small-batch Pinot Noir showcases a vibrant ruby hue, inviting aromas of dark cherries, wild blueberries, and hints of basil, beautifully layered with notes of toasted walnut and a whisper of vanilla. Crafted with meticulous care from select Willamette Valley vineyards, this wine embodies balance and finesse. Fermented in small tanks with whole cluster inclusion, aged for nine months in French oak, and certified by the Clean Label Project, this Pinot Noir is as thoughtful as it is refined. Perfectly paired with fine cuisine or simply savored on its own, it promises a complex, memorable tasting experience that will only deepen over time.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This special label of Duck Pond comes with a little extra intensity and depth. Shows good, concentrated aromas of red and black cherries, then tangy, just-ripe cranberry, cherry and cinnamon flavors on good acidity and light tannins.
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.