Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Ripe mulberries, cranberries, black tea, and orange zest all emerge from the 2021 Pinot Noir Apocrypha, a beautifully perfumed, floral, exotic Pinot Noir that's medium-bodied, has a solid spine of acidity, and ripe tannins that carry through the finish. It's not a blockbuster yet shines for its pretty, pure, complex style, and it will evolve for 8-10 years in cold cellars.
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Wine Spectator
Dark and appealingly brooding yet agile on its feet, with deep flavors of black cherry and plum that take on forest floor and oolong tea accents as this red gathers richness and tension toward medium-grained tannins. Drink now through 2033. 170 cases made.
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.