TNs: My Goodfellow Journey Begins (04/22 update: first Goodfellow Chard)

As some of you already know, Marcus recently kindly put-together a mixed case for me, per my request to “do your best to impress me and have me coming back for more.” Additionally, I took advantage of the Monopole Cru offer Marcus kindly put-together for us. So, in total, 18 bottles, spanning 16 bottlings, as I doubled-up on two of the offerings. At 18 bottles, Goodfellow immediately jumps into my Top 10 winery holdings, by quantity — imo, this reflects a meaningful effort to give these wines a legit chance to impress me. I told Marcus my intention with these incoming wines, largely, is to drink them in the near future. By “near future,” I’m thinking over the next year.

I am well-aware the reputation of these wines is that they needs lots of time and air to show well, and I intend to keep that in mind as I taste through them. The first two bottles I opened were the 2018 Heritage No. 11 from the Durant Vineyard and the 2016 Whistling Ridge. They were tasted side-by-side, over the course of a week, with 5 check-ins apiece. I tried to be as accurate, detailed, and honest as possible in my notes, and I think they largely speak for themselves.

I think I will continue to put my forthcoming Goodfellow TNs in this thread, as opposed to creating separate ones for each wine, as I normally would do, as I figure there may be lots of helpful conversation and debate that ultimately comes-about in this thread, with cross-references to our various tastings. I do plan to do blind tastings, and intend to structure them in a way that will allow us to compare vintages across a bottling or bottlings across a vintage. So, without further ado, my first two Goodfellow Pinots!




2018 Goodfellow Family Cellars Pinot Noir Heritage No. 11 Durant Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills (10/26/2021)
– decanted 7.25 hrs. before initial taste –
– tasted non-blind over 1.25 hrs on Day 1 –
– Day 2: tasted non-blind over 1.25 hrs, starting at the 31.25 hrs mark –
– Day 3: tasted non-blind over approx. 1 hr., starting at the 55.5 hrs mark –
– Day 5 (100 hrs) & Day 7: tasted non-blind over 45 to 60 minutes –

NOSE: very tight; dark red berries; clean; hint of melon (honeydew?). DAY 2: still tight, but a bit more giving than on Day 1; now a faint wet cement mineral note. DAY 3: still tight. DAY 5: clean; floral; red-fruited with a now-emerging cool little orange oil note. DAY 7: non-descript red fruits with touch of caramel, with a dash of “Vosne spice” adding complexity.

BODY: dark ruby color of medium-shallw depth; medium-light bodied.

TASTE: tight; lightly tannic; touch bitter – lightly green/weedy (g/w); fine tannins are noticeable; lightly floral. DAY 2: still tannic; g/w element still there; noticeable oak; medium+ to high acidity; still tight. DAY 3: even more tight today, but at least g/w element is receding. DAY 5: still reserved, but opening more; g/w mostly gone. DAY 7: quite enjoyable, but now starting to show a touch oxidized. A and I both liked this wine, but that’s mostly on the strength of potential; as it drinks today, it’s certainly on the quiet and stern side of things. Strong HOLD recommendation.


2016 Goodfellow Family Cellars Pinot Noir Whistling Ridge Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge (10/26/2021)
– decanted 7.25 hrs. before initial taste –
– tasted non-blind over 1.25 hrs on Day 1 –
– Day 2: tasted non-blind over 1.25 hrs, starting at the 31.25 hrs mark –
– Day 3: tasted non-blind over approx. 1 hr., starting at the 55.5 hrs mark –
– Day 5 (100 hrs) & Day 7: tasted non-blind over 45 to 60 minutes –

NOSE: tight; brooding; red-fruited, but at times also veered darker; “darker” Nose than the '18 Heritage No. 11; hints of smoked beef sticks and cumin seed. DAY 2: dense, non-descript dark red fruits; background funk (brett?). DAY 3: slowly opening — almost moderately expressive now. DAY 5: same aromas as Day 3, but a touch more expressive. DAY 7: starting to smell oxidized, otherwise same as before.

BODY: dark ruby color of medium-shallw depth; medium-light bodied.

TASTE: a bit bitter; red currant; a bit “darker” than the '18 Heritage No. 11; 13.4% alc. not noticeable. DAY 2: I’m now sold on there being some low-level brett, although Ashley doesn’t think it’s brett; faint oak; earthy; medium+ acidity; still tight. DAY 3: still funky; not showy. DAY 5: finally open; still funky, with an underlying earthiness and gentle mineral note that strikes me as a hypothetical NSG/Gevrey hybrid. DAY 7: hint of caramel now, but otherwise same as Day 5. This needs time — it’s very subtle right now. It wasn’t until Day 5 did this wine open up in any sort of meaningful fashion. Strong HOLD recommendation.

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I like Marcus’ wines. In fact, I had a Whistling Ridge Vineyard PN just last night. But IMO, while the fruit speaks of Oregon, the wines are “built” like Burgundy and require a lot of time sideways to show their full potential. YMMV.

Thanks for the notes.

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Perfect timing, I had my first ever Goodfellow last night, the 2019 Heritage #16 Lewman Vineyard pinot.

I did not, however, give it the thoughtful and attentive look that you gave your bottles, and rather I grabbed it on the way out the door to a local restaurant and my wife and I just had it pop & pour and over 90 minutes or so at the table. Plus, in my haste, I grabbed a 2019 when the others I had bought (intending to give them an earlier look and make decisions about buying in the future) were 2017s. So not great process on my part.

It was a little grapey and too-young right at first, but it pretty quickly came into an enjoyable spot. Cool, clear and minerally, like a red wine made from a cold mountain stream. Nice hints of pine. Definitely zero funk, brett, or anything like that. I’m going from memory as I didn’t take notes at the time, but your post prompted me to chime in.

We both enjoyed it, albeit certainly in a youthful and primary stage. I’ll try to give one of the 2017s a more thoughtful visit and then rejoin the thread, though it probably will be a few weeks until I can get to it for various reasons.

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Thanks for the notes. So far I haven’t popped any of the Heritage bottlings, but the straight Durants have been drinking well on PnP.

By chance did you try either wine at all on PnP? I wonder if a 7 hr decant caused them to shut down more than they would have been on PnP. I never know how to handle new wines, so I always try to taste them on PnP just to see whether the subsequent decanting helps.

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Awesome TNs Brian, thanks for sharing

Chris, I think you were accidentally well served by grabbing the 2019 over 2017. From what other tasterss and Marcus have noted, the 2017 Goodfellows seems to be be starting to shut down.

You’re impression is pretty similar to Marcus’ who prefers to drink them over several days rather than decanting them.

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[whistle.gif]

And worth it.

RT

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Lewman appears to be drinking better earlier.

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Love these wines! I think they are some of the best domestic Pinot Noir, barred none!

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Hi Justin,

Good question. Yes, I did take a couple small tastes of each upon uncorking — they were both super tight, and slowly opened up from there, to the extent that they did.

Hi Corey,

Thanks for chiming-in. [cheers.gif] Question for you: Have you yet had a Goodfellow PN that was, in your opinion, in its prime window (or showing its full potential)? If “yes,” when was that, and what bottling was it?

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Included in my box was two bottles each of the '18 Lewman and the '19 Heritage No. 16 from Lewman; those are the two I doubled-down on. Do you have recent experience with either, Michael?

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Not Corey, but the '11 and '12 Souris are both in great places right now and a '13 Whistling Ridge last year was starting to open up nicely. I tend to have a higher tolerance for structure than some people, though, so YMMV.

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I posted notes on 18 lewman earlier this year I believe.

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2018 Goodfellow Lewman Vineyard

Much more open than the 17 temperance hill. I decanted it and it helped but this was pretty open for business. Pure cherry fruits and a bit of earth. This is again clearly not burgundy but more elegant and lovely than other Oregon PN I’ve had. Excited to try the heritage wines!

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There you go

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Not just elegant, but Marcus’ wines also have structure, which so many California Pinot Noirs lack.

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Never be afraid to open a Goodfellow the night before and let it sit open in the bottle in the cellar 24 hours before drinking. Also, don’t ever be afraid to pop and pour a Goodfellow. :slight_smile:

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So in summary: drink Goodfellow!

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2018 Lewman may be starting to shut down, per Cellartracker. YMMV.

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2 1/2 cases arrived on Thu so I need to get busy.
Like Brian, my first purchase (I have tried the wines tho)

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