Winemaker Notes
Aroma: Earth, mushroom, cedar, raspberry, spice, darkcherry, leather.
Flavor: Cherry, strawberry, caramel, tobacco, vanillaMouthfeel: Soft entry, velvety tannins, sweet smoky finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Just released, young and tight, this widely available (25,000 case) Oregon Pinot shows the strengths of the 2008 vintage. The cranberry and raspberry fruit has plenty of supporting acidity, while the barrel regimen—a mix of new, one-, two- and three-year-old French oak—brings in cedar, smoke and caramel highlights.
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.