My wife and I will taste the 13 and 14 blind, side by side tonight and get back. Not going to add 15 to the mix.
Okay – here are my impressions. I have to say that I found my results consistent with some of my earlier recollections and inconsistent with others. That’s not to say what I’m about to write is correct or will agree with others, but that it’s at least updated from recollections from earlier bottles tasted over a few years, wherein the wine may have changed and my memory may have failed me.
I have to say that the general impression of the wines (weight, acidity) are generally consistent with the vintage generalizations (counter to what I claimed yesterday from my memory of individual bottles not tasted side by side). The 2014 was rounder while the 2013 was more tart, bright and forward. However, the 2014 seemed more nicely integrated and smooth, with a polished finish while the 2013 seemed a touch forward on the entry with a slight harshness/brightness making itself known.
Those were the real differences we could discern, but for the most part the wines were more similar than different in many characteristics. Both were a deep to medium red in color, and showed cherry, strawberry, and plum on the nose and palate. The 2013 showed a bit of reduction in the nose while the 2014 showed a bit of sulfur on the palate. The 2013 had a touch more grapefruit, and the 2014 had a fuller, richer body.
I think we both came away giving the edge to the 2014 for being a touch more polished at this point, but both were really enjoyable. I don’t know if any of this makes sense and I apologize for inconsistencies between my memory of the wines and what we tasted tonight, but that’s where we landed. Cheers all! Keep it civil 
Thought I would chip in here. Times have been unusual in Oregon starting in 2013. 5 above average/hot vintages out of 6 with 2016 being the only non-“warm” vintage despite being the earliest of all 6 vintages. I would say that there is a new learning curve we are all going through here. I have talked about the new concept of ripe with several winemakers over the past few years. I think we are adapting, improving and getting better every year. The 2013 “Berserker Cuvée” was an utterly unique wine that was simply barrels I felt were unique and excellent but didn’t have a particular home. I love that wine. Another winemaker described it to me as “tasting like the cave (a real cave, not a winery cave)” and that meant a lot to me. The 2014 was the follow up with an uptick in site selection but certainly a warmer vintage. They’re wines that can appeal to a breadth of palates but the 14 probably is going to be more universal. That’s okay. The 2015 Marine Sedimenatary would be a riff on the 2 Berserker wines (it’s really the other way around) so I figured folks whomnhad enjoyed the previous two would find something interesting in this wine. 15 is the warmest vintage in Oregon’s history (unless 2018 topped it) and as much as I think embracing the concept of the vintage is important one still has to work within the context of the nature of the grape. Being said I expect this bottling to have and show tannin, muscle and dark fruit in its youth. That’s the nature of MS soil in a very particular way. I think this wine will do absolutely fine with time and the other two wines will be delicious over at least the next 10 years. I have said that these are wines that should not be treated as wines that were sold at the prices that they were sold at but I get that there is a lot of enthusiasm around them and I appreciate people drinking them young and posting information on them.
I appreciate people here supporting the endeavors we have had on these wines. Truly. It’s a lovely community that has made some cool stuff possible. I think there are good, honest wines and I am glad that real wine lovers are enjoying and conversing about them. I hope it continues. I know that what we were doing then was only scratching the surface as to what we are capable of in this new paradigm that we find ourselves in.
Again, I appreciate the support of everyone who purchased these wines and hope folks have found this a good two way street. There is a lot of wine in 2018. It, in my early regard, is ALL of exceptional to amazing quality. Maybe we can work something out for people here again.
Jim, that would be great! Have really enjoyed the ‘14 and ‘15 opportunities you provided. IMO, they are really nice wines that drink well beyond the price you asked.
Jim–we didn’t get to chat all that much last time you were in town. It would be very interesting to know how you are handling the heat, and the “new concept of ripe”. It has certainly been an issue in Washington for a while with other grape varieties, and certainly is an issue now all over the wine world. Some folks have become very good at it (eg Ben Smith in our neck of the woods), others can’t handle it. It’s strange how in the last 30 years in wine we’ve gone from hoping and praying for a warmer, riper vintage, to hoping and praying for a cool, not so damn ripe year.
Yes, strange indeed. I would say the main reaction has been in vineyard management. While we do not grow our all of our fruit we do have great relationships with our non-Estate growers and we are looking to get in agreement with them on how to manage sites in drier, warmer year round growing cycles. I think these conversations were beginning back in 2014/15 and have gone to a whole other level of seriousness and implementation of the outcomes of said discussions now.
I think 2014/15 were good learning experiences. I think we, on the whole, did very well at making balanced wines within the context of what we had to work with. I don’t think the wines are overwrought and I think they have balance and are generally excellent wines. That being said I saw room for adjustment and improvement. I think we have done both in the vineyard and the winery.
Believe me, I would rather not spend as much time thinking and agonizing over decisions as I do these past couple of vintages. I would love a 2005, 2001 or 2016 to be the norm. It’s a warmer and different world out there and we have attempted to work in our own sites and with others to proactively take on those changing aspects so that the wines are not only keeping pace but getting better in this new paradigm. Sounds like a sale pitch I guess but it is what what we are doing.
Yeah–around here it’s vineyard management, and the Russian Roulette of deciding how early you can pick and still get the maturity you want.
I have looked through the discussion above and agree that the '15 Marine Sedimentary is fantastic. People with far more Oregon Pinot experience than I have extolled the virtues of this wine even in the short time since it was shipped. I think it is dark, brooding, sorta mushroomy, but hard to put down because it is so layered and nuanced – interesting to drink now, but will reward patience.
My tasting note is irrelevant. I just felt it important to thank Jim and PGC for this awesome hook-up. ![[worship.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/9/99a8907a1d5b3c023582052741dc72dc9823c044.gif "worship"){kind=small}
Jim you said,
“I would love a 2005, 2001 or 2016 to be the norm.”
What are the unique characteristics of these years that set them apart from some of the recent warm vintages?
This wine is SO good. Thanks Jim. Beautiful seamless pinot with lots of red/black fruit, acidity and mineral notes. Vibrant. Gorgeous. Just needs time for the nose to really blossom. I would have had trouble blind picking this out as New World. Stunning value. Lucky to have this.
Thanks. Always nice to have people appreciate stuff. While I am always partial to vineyard designated Pinots I do like the MS bottling a lot and have fun putting the elements together. The ‘16 is much edgier which I like. I will have more components to work with in ‘18 having picked up 2+ acres from another Ribbon Ridge site.
On the '15 MS, I popped one when they arrived and think it has great potential that won’t be realized for 5-8 years, maybe more. It seemed to have more of everything than the '14 Berserkers Cuvee, which I love. I’m sending mine away to rest for several years. I really appreciate these special wines for this community. I’ve introduced PG wines to several people using the '14 Berserkers Cuvee because it’s such a great story.
I opened another of many '14 Berserker Cuvee’s last night, my first in several months. It’s an angry wine. I still don’t think it’s “bigger” than the '13, just tighter, more structured, and more intense. Those qualities don’t necessarily equate to size. The '13 comes across as fleshier and riper. After an hour, the profile went from tight, slightly shrill, and whole-cluster stemmy to showing some nice fruit peeking out from the outer winding of the 'forementioned barbed wire. My wife and son tried some in the first ten minutes that it had been poured and declared it undrinkable. They drink quite a bit of my Oregon pinot when I open a bottle and liked the '13. The '13 is simply a much friendlier wine.