A visit to Matello

WINE TALK
1

The other day at a lunch, I asked Jim Anderson of Patricia Green to name a winery in the Willamette Valley I probably don’t know and should visit. He immediately said ‘Matello.’ This turned out to be a bomb of a reccie. We really enjoyed the wines and absolutely loved some (like the white field blend from Whistling Ridge Vineyard.)

A VISIT TO MATELLO - Mcminnville, Oregon (4/17/2014)

  • 2011 Matello Whistling Ridge Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge
    Deiss-like field blend co-fermented.
    Bright pineapple, tart and really crystalline. Clean finish and herbal notes. Really nice. I liked this a lot.
  • 2012 Matello Caprice - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton
    Industrial nose like Commes des Garcons #2. Good upfront acidity and fruit, but a bit small on the palate. Nice though.
  • 2012 Matello Chardonnay Durant Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
    Light nose with some yeasty notes and slight match. Very square and delineated in a correct fashion. Good tropical fruit acids and a palate-touch that builds in a very pleasing fashion. Not extravagant but nails core values.
  • 2011 Matello Chardonnay Whistling Ridge Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge
    Great mouth feel. Not-sweet peaches and layers off a Asian savory fruit vibe. A bit loose on structure (been open 4 days, to be fair). Overall quite good.
  • 2011 Matello Pinot Noir - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
    Grapefruit - tart with slight bitter. Great nervosity and vibe here. Good body, a bit short on finish.


  • 2012 Matello Pinot Noir Lazarus - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
    Big fruit on the nose and palate. Not hot and holds a nice precision. Really neat textures of soft jeweler’s rouge leading to a slight prickle. Dug the fruit going here as big w/o being sloppy.
  • 2012 Matello Pinot Noir Hommage - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
    WOW. Stylish and overt fruit, really standing proud. Currants and some smoke. Cloaked power and finishes with cloves, tart cherry. I really loved this.
  • 2011 Matello Pinot Noir Lazarus - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
    Very taut and square. Good strawberry notes on the palate and nose. Great balance between that fruit and the square profile. Neat.
  • 2011 Matello Pinot Noir Durant - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
    Bright acids and stemmy qualities in texture and taste. Some menthol notes in balance. Very pure and linear with a lovely grace.
  • 2011 Matello Pinot Noir Souris - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
    Rich, almost vanilla on nose. Roasted pie fruit. Has a very plunging velvet neckline profile A really great tension between that profile and a linear purity. Very good.

Posted from CellarTracker

2

I couldn’t agree more. I had the opportunity to visit and taste at Matello with Marcus Goodfellow last August. I tasted through most of his wines and found them to definitely be a highlight of my WV holiday. His pinots are exceptional with crisp acidity, excellent balance and good ageing potential.

3

I recently came across a couple of bottles of the 2009 Winter’s Hill. Might need to do a test drive.

4

Glad you found Matello. Marcus is making some nice wines. The others in his space are well worth your time - Grochau Cellars, Love & Squalor in particular. Note - these are all friends but I’m not into recommending things that aren’t good, so check the out.

5

Pardon me but what are textures of soft jeweler’s rouge? You mentioned this more than once and I don’t understand.

6

No matter what that “rouge” is, Marcus makes some delicious wines. Thoughtful of Jim to recommend Matello. I’ve always been impressed by the support and cooperation many OR producers share.

RT

7

Cooperation is better than confrontation. Grow the pie instead of fight over it, and improve the product. These smaller quality producers seem to sell all their wine. If I do not buy on release, it’s gone. The big dogs are moving in and I hope the smaller ones do not become the fire hydrant. [snort.gif]

8

(I accidentally cut-and-pasted the note for 2012 Lazarus into 2011. Fixed.)

Jeweler’s rouge is powdered ferric oxide. It is used to give a final polish. I find it has a very distinct texture I can almost taste and this wine had something that I could only approximate with that.

9

Great stuff. Thanks for sharing. Tasting with Marcus in February was a highlight tasting for me this year. His white sines slaughtered me. Yum.

J