Winemaker Notes
Subtle spice and floral aromas—fresh, concentrated, vibrant red fruit—energetic, taught and forward driven—structured, will become very complex with extended aging.
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Pinot Noir Jessie James Vineyard has a medium ruby-purple color and a nose of red, blue and black berries accented by notes of iron, tea leaves and perfumed earth. The medium-bodied palate offers concentrated fruits in a firm, fresh frame, and it finishes long and uplifted.
-
Wine Enthusiast
From a vineyard shared with Beaux Frères, this complex wine brings flavorful berry, plum and cherry fruit, with a streak of bourbon vanilla. The wine was aged in a 50-50 mix of French and Oregon barrels, mostly neutral, and one wonders if any of those barrels had aged bourbon in the past. Supple and yet firm, the wine is concentrated and structured for aging. Drink through 2030.
Cellar Selection
-
Wine Spectator
Elegantly expressive and floral, with pretty raspberry, fresh violet and spice flavors that glide lithely on a vibrant finish. Drink now through 2028.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Running north to south, adjacent to the Willamette River, the Eola-Amity Hills AVA has shallow and well-drained soils created from ancient lava flows (called Jory), marine sediments, rocks and alluvial deposits. These soils force vine roots to dig deep, producing small grapes with great concentration.
Like in the McMinnville sub-AVA, cold Pacific air streams in via the Van Duzer Corridor and assists the maintenance of higher acidity in its grapes. This great concentration, combined with marked acidity, give the Eola-Amity Hills wines—namely Pinot noir—their distinct character. While the region covers 40,000 acres, no more than 1,400 acres are covered in vine.