Winemaker Notes
A vibrant core of ripe cherry and blueberry is layered with notes of cherry syrup, kirsch, sandalwood, cinnamon, and a touch of cocoa nib. The palate is broad and plush, with smooth, integrated tannins and a creamy, ripe fruit finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A graceful and elegantly complex Pinot, with expressive flavors of raspberry and cherry highlighted by fresh violet, spice and orange blossom notes.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2024 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley is a bright transparent red hue and leads with toasted incense, fresh cherry, a rosy perfume, and dusty earth. Medium-bodied, it has tangy freshness, refined tannins with real structure, bright acidity, cranberry, dusty earth, and iron-toned orange citrus. It captures a real sense of place while remaining mouthwatering and savory.
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Wine Enthusiast
With wildflower and loamy-soil aromas, this Pinot Noir conjures up memories of picnics in a meadow or a trip to the nursery for springtime gardening prep. The outdoorsy set of aromas is joined by a bowl of blackberries and a trace of saline. There’s nice balance here between alcohol, fruit, lemony acidity, and tannins that have a subtle grip. The wine’s flavors range from black cherries and bittersweet dark chocolate to root beer and thyme. This is a superb value for the price.
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.