TN: 2007 Seven of Hearts Pinot Noir Crawford-Beck Vineyard

• 2007 Seven of Hearts Pinot Noir Crawford-Beck Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills (1/12/2010)
  Opened this by mistake, thinking it was the Eola-Amity Hills blend. Beautifully balanced and firing on all cylinders, this medium weight, bright garnet pinot displays a refined nose of earth, berries, and a wispy hint of florals. On the palate, restrained red fruits, followed by cola, dusty spices, and sous bois - all presented in subtle, elegant harmony. Really nice wine. A whopping 49 cases produced.

Posted from CellarTracker

I remember tasting through his wines about 8 months ago and was very impressed. They certainly are one of the 2007 Pinot Noir producers that I recommend to my customers who are looking for under $20. Their Eola Amity bottling fits that price. I have also been impressed with Alloro Estate, Coeur de Terre, Beacon Hill, and Illahee for newer wineries. For the most part, the more I taste of 2007 the more I am impressed. So far one of the best I tasted last weekend was the 2007 Le Cadeau Equinoxe at $45.

Steve,

I couldn’t agree more on Byron’s wines. Classic Oregon wines that I think can stand up with any of the other big names.

I also had a chance to taste with him last fall and here was my assessment:

I had the opportunity to sit down with Byron Dooley of Seven of Hearts this weekend and taste through his entire line-up of outstanding wines.

We started off with three vintages of Chardonnay:

2006 reminded me of a Stony Hill Chardonnay, though it has gone through malo. 5 yr old barrels only on this one and it showed wonderful restraint while being complex and complete. A seamless wine that is drinking terrific now.

2007 was a bit more subdued on this day. I love the acidic backbone of this wine and it should be great with food. It seems like it needs a few more months to unwind but this should turn out to be a really nice wine.

2008 WOW! Just leaps from the glass with tons of wild flowers and stony fruits. Already drinking amazingly well this wine is an absolute steal for $26 or less. One of the better Oregon Chardonnay’s I’ve ever tasted.

On to the Pinot’s:

2007 Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills shows all the classic vintage characteristics. Offers up a wonderful nose of earthy fruits with moderate complexity and a satisfying finish. A QPR that could easily compete with the QPR winners from Evesham Wood, Scott Paul and Belle Pente for the $24 asking price.

2007 Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills The Cost Vineyard begins the climb in complexity and really reveals what cool climate Oregon Pinot Noir is all about. I could stick my nose in this wine for hours and take in all the lively fruit. Finishes clean and long and should aged very well over the short term.

2007 Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills Crawford Beck Vineyard just builds on The Cost. Fruits are slightly more earthy and the complexity and finish are terrific. While The Cost is a bit more high-toned this is more intellectual and something I could really fall in love with.

2007 Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills Reserve is a spicier, even more complex amalgamation of the previous two wines. This is going to take some more time to really strut its stuff but patience will be well rewarded. This is just classic Oregon Pinot Noir.

A sample of the 2008 just throws you into complete Pinot Noir bliss. Again, with many of the 2008’s I’ve tried thus far, this is flat out excellent. A great mix of the 2006 and 2007 vintages lead to higher-toned fruits while maintaining the restraint and femininity of what Pinot should be. When this comes out I’m backing up the truck.

If you like classic Oregon wines jump on the train folks. This is classic stuff that can complete with the best of its field. I’m a fan.

Michael, I picked this up for $27 at your store (with the 10% half case discount). We got a couple of these as well as a couple of the Eola-Amity bottling. Both represent very good QPR.

I agree with you and Phillip, the 2007 OR pinots we’ve had so far have been very enjoyable drinkers now, as well as showing good potential for aging. Speaking of which, do you still have any of the 07 Crawford-Beck in stock? What about the 08s?

As of Tuesday I still had a couple of bottles of the Crawford Beck. The distributor may still have some left as well. I did get to taste on Tuesday his 2008 Luminous Hills which will sell for about $27. Naturally it is showing very primary but the fruit was great.

What a pleasure it is to have one of your “finds” validated. It would have been really embarrassing if I’d raved about 7ofH and dragged Phil in there, only to have him think the wines were plonk.

Having tasted through the 07s, I thoroughly agree with all the notes posted above. I’m also a big fan of the Luminous Hills line of wine Byron is crafting from his own vineyard.
Exciting to have a ‘new’ talented, passionate winemaker afoot.

best,

Doug

Off topic, but how would you compare the Equinoxe to the '07 Le Cadeau Rocheux, if you have tasted it?