2007 A SHITTY OREGON VINTAGE? - Lou’s (4/11/2013#
Last night a group of us met to taste the 2007 vintage Pinot Noir’s from Oregon. Lou has been organizing a five year retrospective since 2005 for these wines. Of course, 2007 was blasted by many of the critics which created a counter response from some who really appreciate the vintage for what it offered. I have not had very many, so this was a good chance to taste thru a cross section of them. The group was unanimous in that we did not like what was offered. If anything, my scores, as low as they are, were a bit higher than most. Of course, that doesn’t mean no one made good wines. The Thomas was a clear winner followed by Sineann. Just a bit back was Domaine Serene, but after that the wines dropped off precipitously. Many of the group rated no wines at the outstanding level #although I had two).
All the Pinots were consumed blind over the course of three hours. TK brought in some wines that he had been showing the last day that had been open 24 hours, but the rest were pop and pour. Bread and cheeses were served.
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1991 Mayacamas Vineyards Chardonnay - USA, California, Napa Valley, Mt. Veeder
This bottle had been opened the night before. Deep golden in color. The nose was still dominated by oak; fresh cut and vanilla. Also some lemon curd. On the palate, there is plenty of lemon fruit left. Slightly harsh on the finish. This shows some age, but if you like this style, it still has plenty to offer after 20+ years. A bit too much oak for my preferences. -
2011 Maysara Winery Pinot Noir Roseena - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, McMinnville
Copper/ruby in color. The nose is smoky with some rhubarb. On the palate, nice acidity. Cherries with a bitter finish. I bet this was better last summer. (86 pts.) -
2011 Soléna Pinot Gris - USA, Oregon
This was served blind. Silvery gold in color. The nose had an alka-seltzer quality to it which was nice actually. Minerally. On the palate, this has a thick, oily texture. Slightly sweet. Nice citrus flavors. I guessed Pinot Gris, but I think there must be some Gewurz blended in. It comes thru on the texture and the palate. Never had this, so I don’t know for sure. Very nice wine. (90 pts.)
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2007 Sineann Pinot Noir Resonance Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
This was my WOTN and finished 2nd in the tasting with 3 first place votes. There were some who did not like it. Ruby/purple in color. The nose has cherries and a powdered cherry drink quality (others called it dusty). On the palate, one of two with no signs of under ripe fruit. Nice slick texture. Good cherry fruit. Drinking well, but still offering further maturity. Bob Wood would role his eyes and say “Surprise, Loren likes Sineann”, but I did. (92 pts.) -
2007 Scott Paul Cellars Pinot Noir La Paulée - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Light ruby in color, clear and bright. The nose has rhubarb, light cherries and a slightly green quality. Nice texture. Cherries on the palate with a slightly bitter finish, though not unpleasant. It had a somewhat manipulated quality that while hard to explain, kept it from an outstanding rating. (89 pts.) -
2007 Domaine Serene Pinot Noir Yamhill Cuvée - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Ruby/purple in color. The nose is almost non-existent. Nothing off, but nothing really going on either. Smells like wine. On the palate, this is tart with some cherry fruit. Innocuous. Generic. A couple of people liked this more than I. (84 pts.) -
2007 Thomas Pinot Noir Dundee Hills - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
The groups WOTN. The interesting thing is we could all pretty much guess is was the Thomas by the color. Pale ruby and thin. At the same time, this wine has more body than expected. Someone mentioned oak, which I did not get, but perhaps that is where the body came from. The nose has light cherries and a bit of a celery note to it. On the palate, this has layered cherries with some cherry candy. The palate tastes fully ripe, something most of these wines could not say. With 3 firsts and 3 seconds, this was the run away winner in the tasting. (91 pts.) -
2007 Matello Pinot Noir Souris - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Dull ruby/brown in color. The nose had a bit of cherry powdered drink on it. Thin cherries on the palate. A vegetal streak. Bitter tart finish. Drinkable. (83 pts.) -
2007 Expression Pinot Noir 44° Eola - Amity Hills - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
Easily the last place wine for the group and me. Purple/ruby in color. The nose is dominated by sulphur on opening. It did slightly blow off leaving funk and cherries. On the palate, this is tingly acidity with funk and green peppers. Some cherries. Not sure what is going on here. This did improve with air. (79 pts.) -
2007 Patricia Green Cellars Pinot Noir Notorious - USA, Oregon, Yamhill County
Ruby/purple in color. The nose is nice with sweet cherries. On the palate, there is some cherry fruit, but it tastes under ripe, bordering on green flavors if not quite there. Tart acidity. Its a nice wine, but this is not inexpensive either. (86 pts.) -
2006 Brittan Vineyards Pinot Noir Basalt Block - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, McMinnville
This stood out like a sore thumb. Turns out KS brought the wrong vintage. Purple in color with some brown/ruby this looked old (it actually tasted younger). The nose has cinnamon and cherries. On the palate, this is sweet. In retrospect, perhaps it is not RS, but just the vintage, but at the time, this was sickly sweet to me. Cherry fruit. The mid-palate is hollow as is the finish though which turns bitter after losing the fruit. Maybe our palates were just too screwed up by the differences here to appreciate the wine. (82 pts.) -
2007 Owen Roe Pinot Noir Eola - Amity Hills - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
Ruby/purple in color. The nose has cherries, cherry drink mix, and a slight funk to it. Light and thin on the palate. Bitter cherry juice. A bit of vegetal notes. (81 pts.)
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2011 Adegas Valmiñor Albariño Rías Baixas Edición especial 10 años - Spain, Galicia, Rías Baixas
This had been open the night before. Still drinking very well though. Light golden in color. A lovely nose of clean, sea air with some citrus. A bit fatter on the palate than I like my Albarinos, but still nice. There is a refreshing tart acidity that helps cut thru the texture. Like to try a fresh bottle of this. -
2009 Vinnico Priorat Tosalet Old Vines - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
This also had been opened the night before. Purple/ruby in color. The nose has strawberries and cherries with some cocoa powder. On the palate, it turns more to milk chocolate covered strawberries although not sweet in any way. This has held up well over night which would suggest that it could use some cellar time.
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2007 Sineann Gewürztraminer The Precious - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Iced tea in color, seems darker than I remembered it. The nose is very nice with orange peels and caramel. On the palate, this seems a bit past prime, but still nice. Slightly cloying, it could use a bit more cut to it. Still, an ounce was a nice way to finish the tasting. (89 pts.)
Bob Wood was, of course, remembered and I am sorry he wont be here to “concur” in my notes# At least I feel that liking both Thomas and Sineann would drive him crazy# At least none of us wore cargo shorts# We are looking forward to next years 2008’s#
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