Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
From the first sniff to the last sip, this sensational effort seduces, with deep, rich, slightly roasted flavors of dense black fruits. The black cherry core is so intense it veers into cassis, with veins of espresso, Kahlúa and cacao. It's a powerful wine, perfectly framed and balanced by ripe tannins. It's ready to drink now, but certainly a wine you may confidently cellar for at least another decade.
Editors' Choice
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From a three-acre block planted behind the winery at a high density in 1993, the 2014 Pinot Noir Roosevelt, which is matured in barrel for 12 months (70% new) has quite a complex bouquet with scents of lavender and potpourri infusing the black fruit. The palate is silky smooth on the entry with supple tannin, gorgeous red cherry and blackberry fruit mixed with white pepper, clove and bay leaf. It gently fans out to a very convincing finish that neatly disguises the new oak. Again, it will require 4-5 years in bottle to really show what it can do.
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Wine Spectator
Dark and spicy, sleek and inviting for the black cherry, licorice, tomato leaf and clotted cream notes that come together harmoniously on the expressive finish. Drink now through 2024.
One of the founding wineries of the Willamette Valley, family-owned and operated Elk Cove Vineyards was the first vineyard in what is now the Yamhill-Carlton AVA. Second-generation Owner/Winemaker and fifth-generation Oregon farmer Adam Campbell sources fruit from Elk Cove's six 100% estate-grown, sustainably farmed vineyard sites located across the northern Willamette Valley, specializing in Pinot Noir and cool-climate white wines. Elk Cove is named for the local herd of Roosevelt elk and the protective bowl shape of the property. Its tasting room is tucked into the foothills of the Coast Range, with spectacular views of the surrounding vineyards and mountains.
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.