Winemaker Notes
The objective of Johan's flagship Pinot Noir is to create a bottling that is a direct translation of the growing season and the most accurate representation of their true terroir. They carefully select parcels of fruit from every rootstock/scion combination, aspect, vine age, and soil profile, creating a collage of the diverse expressions of the vineyard through the lens of Pinot Noir. The 2022 vintage was fermented using exclusively native yeast (both primary and malolactic), with some whole-cluster fermentation. The wine was aged for 11 months in French oak barrels, 4% of which were new.
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.