(* - since TomHill has “long/boring” copyrighted)
Tasting impressions rather than tasting notes from our Oregon visit last week. YMMV - a lot!
I was having too much fun to worry too much about writing notes last week in Oregon but I’ll do my best. First off I only spent a couple of days in the WV because, alas, it wasn’t just a wine vacation. (Actually all the trip was fun and beautiful and I regret nada.) For some impressions on food/restaurants with a little wine info and a link to pics go to http://www.wineberserkers.com/viewtopic.php?p=143844#p143844. (Todd, is there a way to link to a post, not a thread, ala the RPM board?) Where not listed the wines are Pinot Noir of course.
Started at Oregon Wines on Broadway after the long trip from NC that started at 4 am. Jenn, the funny and potty-mouthed winekeep, poured us “premium” PN tastes that the SO and I shared. Before that I wet my whistle with a lovely Westrey 2008 Pinot Gris that blew out the dust and cobwebs from my brain.
Broadley Shea Vyd Yamhill 2007 – This was my favorite of the night and one of top 07s of the trip. A wonderful nose of spice, tart fruit, smoke and a little earth was followed by a medium weight wine of great definition and clarity. On the palate, spicy, earthy, fairly rich, medium bodied with a bit of tannin. I expect this to be a treat for several years. Solid A, maybe 92 points
Ayoub Estate Dundee Hills 07 – I know this has a following but I found it a bit funky. A candy nose with maple syrup that I might have expected in an 06. Fairly dark, big and ripe with oak but I found an off funkiness in both the nose and palate. B-
Dusky Goose Dundee Hills 06 – Another highly sought wine that didn’t woo me. A little like the Ayoub, I found it oaky (with vanilla and oak spice), a little over-ripe and alcoholic with also a little funkiness. Not quite an enjoyable earthy/barnyard but somewhat off-putting. One-dimensional at this point. B/B-
Cristom Mt. Jefferson Cuvee Eola Hills 2006 – I found this light- to medium-bodied wine fairly attractive. Starts with a lovely spicy, bright fruit nose with some smoke (something I found in many of these wines). On the palate it’s light, tart with some good cherry/berry flavors. Pretty zippy and nice, would be nice with food. B+
Hamacher Willamette 2006 – At OWOB I found this pretty simple and direct, frankly unimpressive. Then I had it at the Carlton Winemakers Studio and came away much more impressed. Certainly a light, more elegant wine than most of the other 06s but I take it that’s a goal of the Eric’s. Nice B/B+
Antica Terra Eola-Amity Hills 06 – My SOs favorite and as a result I didn’t get much! The winemaker Maggie is apparently quite a hottie. No rating
Finished with:
Sineann Old Wine Zinfandel Columbia Valley WA 2008 - A dark brooding wine with nearly 15% alcohol from the “oldest vineyard in the NW.” Interesting and rich but it sure seems to have little relationship to Zins from CA. B?
We followed with an excellent dinner at Higgins and a lovely:
Amity Willamette Valley Pinot Blanc 2007 – Great color. Lovely, light, round with nice fruit and aromatics. Finishes with a good bite to it. Nice way to finish the day. B+
Next day we were off to Roseburg where wine wasn’t at the top of the priority list. Our B&B in Roseburg, C.H. Bailey House, was excellent but the Henry Merlot they nicely set out for us was just okay. At the forgettable restaurant we had:
Abacela Tempranillo Cuvee Umpqua Valley 2007 – A nice wine that made we wish they hadn’t run out of the Reserve. Fairly rich and earthy, somewhat Cab like with minimal tannins. B with points for QPR
Next to went up to the Willamette Valley with a side trip up the coast. First stop, right before 5 was at Solena:
Solena Pinot Gris Oregon 2008 – Nice, bright, tangy but with some richness to it. Dry and refreshing enough to buy. B+
Solena Domaine Danielle Laurent Yamhill-Carlton 2006 – From the estate vineyard. Dark, ripe (though not too) with Asian spice on the nose with blackberry fruit. Has some tannin, this rich wine has good fruit, spice and some loam/barnyard/mulch that gives it some complexity. Well made, a bit pricey but still worth a small buy. A-
The Guadalupe Yamhill-Carton 2006 was also nice but I was unimpressed with the Zinfandel.
We followed with dinner at the Joel Palmer House. I come down on the Palmer as a “must try” restaurant in the WV even if you aren’t a big mushroom fan. Shaky service but the meal was terrific. I asked for some advice and Chris, the chef/owner, came out and recommended from those I showed interest in:
Torii Mor Temperance Hill Eola Hills 2004 – The oldest Pinot we had on the trip was also the best and was tremendous with the meal. A great nose of Asian spice box, earth, and forest floor. The wine was medium weight but sublime with complex notes of earth and spice and mushrooms. Top notch. A/A+, maybe 95 points
The next day started at the Carlton Winemaker’s Studio:
Andrew Rich Rose 2007 (I think???) – We had a nice bright dark rose that I think was by Andrew Rich but I can’t find any reference to it anywhere. Whatevah, it was bright, tart and tasty. B
Lazy River Vineyard Private Lumpkin Riesling Willamette 2006 – I found this a bit one-dimensional with too much acid and not enough fruit. B-
Brittan Vineyards Basalt Block McMinnville Foothills 2006 – A pretty broad shouldered wine. I loved the nose that really filled the glass. On the palate, big fruit but not over-ripe, forest floor, earth and berries. Good complexity already, I think this wine has an excellent future ahead of it. Impressive. Solid A
Wahle Estate Family Vineyard Yamhill-Carlton 2006 - Another wine with some stuffing, I also found it a bit tannic at this point. Impressive fruit, again with a good future ahead of it. A-
Hamacher (see above)
A quick stop at the Ponzi Wine Bar where we had:
Ponzi Willamette Valley 2007 – A Wine Spectator 90, as the girl behind the counter was quick to point out, I found this a lightweight, simple wine of little character. She took the news well. C+
Ponzi Reserve Willamette Valley 2006 – Did she mention this was a WS 93? Yes, she did. This is actually a nice wine with good aromatics and fruit. Well done and I expect it to have a nice future. Quite pretty but I’m not 93 points or $50 impressed. B+
Somewhere or another we also had a delicious Arborbrook Pinot Gris Croft Vineyard 2008 that might have been the white wine of the trip. A beautiful wine. A-
Before going on to the big tasting day I’ll mention our last night’s meal at Jake’s Crawfish Portland where we had a nice dinner with terrific oysters. The wine list is terribly overpriced so I went with one of the cheaper wines. Fortunately I was quite surprised:
Dewey Kelly Ribbon Ridge 2006 – This is the second label of Ribbon Ridge Vineyards and goes for about $20. I wasn’t expecting much. Instead we got a delicious, ripe, medium-bodied Pinot. Goes down way easy but still has some earthy notes that combined with good fruit make for a tasty package. I’m thinking Ribbon Ridge is a pretty good place to grow Pinot! Solid B
After lunch at Tina’s we headed to Torii Mor, my SO’s favorite. The whites were good, nothing earth-shattering, but I didn’t spend too much time on them.
“Deux Verres” Reserve 2006 – From 9 different vineyards all over the WV map. This is a dark, fairly big wine. Nice spice on the nose and palate. Earthy, dark cherry with loam and spice on the nice finish. Still some tannin and good mouth feel. A- though the SO would give it an A hence 6 bottles on the way. Plus the label is really pretty so it’s got that going for it!
Olson Estate Vineyard Dundee Hills 2007 – Good fruit on the nose with dark cherries, smoke and earth. Some oak mingles with dark cherry/cranberry and earth. Needs some time to round out and I think will gain some complexity. At this point B+ with potential.
We also enjoyed and bought the Hawks View 06 and Dundee Hills Select 06 but I can’t say I remember them distinctly. One was quite earthy, mushroomy, wet forest. All in all a very good and ultimately expensive experience.
Then to McMinnville where we stopped by a wine bar where the wine was hit and miss. The Broadley 07 Estate was quite nice, not up to the Shea and the Montebruno 07 was light and attractive if nothing special. Otherwise….
Dinner at Nick’s (a bit of a disappointment) but…
Willakensie Pierre Leon Yamhill-Carlton 2006 – This was one of my favorites of the trip. I just loved this wine. Medium red, the nose is very spicy and organic, maybe a bit of oak showing. On the palate this is an earth not a sky wine with flavors of bacon, wet forest, and loam to go along with deep red fruit. Excellent depth and length with a fair bit of tannin. Nicely complex. I had this over 3 nights and every night it was an excellent experience. Yummy. Strong A with loads of life left.
The next day on to tasting with Brian O’Donnell at Belle Pente. We drove up to the beautiful winery on the hill and were met by various animals and Brian.
On to tasting:
Muscat Willamette Valley 2007 – The SO had tried a Muscat Ottonel grape off the vine at Sokol Blosser and liked it. She immediately said that this wine would be a terrific patio apéritif and she’s right. The Muscat “muskiness” is fairly tame but with excellent floral notes. Just delicious. B+
Riesling Willamette Valley 2006 – A fairly dry Alsatian style Riesling with a bit of age. Nice acid with a touch of sugar (I think Brian said about 0.8). Will be a great food wine and made it onto our order form. B
Pinot Gris Reserve Willamette Valley 2006 – A bit more of a statement wine with more, well, residual sugar, depth, mouth feel, ripeness – you get the picture. Enough acidity to be a good food wine with the right pairings. B+
Murto Vineyard Dundee Hills 2006 – This wine shows a rich earthiness more than a bright purity of fruit. Very spicy, a bit over the top in alcohol, with richness that begs for a couple of years on its side. A- with more potential
Belle Pente Estate Vineyard Yamhill-Carlton 2006 – Perhaps a step up a bit from the very good Murto, this wine is more Med spice rather than Asian spice. Quite rich and long. Deep dark fruit and some remaining tannin. A treat that will get better. A with potential
Belle Pente Estate Reserve Yamhill-Carlton 2006 – It just keeps getting better. What I said before? Just multiply it. Richer still but not overblown or over-ripe just more with structure. A high yummy factor and great potential. Strong A with potential
I’m glad to have a shipment to expect in the next month.
This is getting long….Next to Patricia Green and a meet up with Jim Anderson.
Willamette Reserve 2007 – Their reserve is actually their bottom end Pinot. A fairly lightweight wine with pure fruit but not special. Respectable B
Whistling Ridge Vineyard Ribbon Ridge 07 - Quite a step up. Lots of rich bright tart strawberry and cherry along with smoke and maybe some tobacco. Medium bodied with excellent depth. A- with potential
Estate Old Vine Vineyard Ribbon Ridge 07 - Another terrific medium weight wine. Perhaps more earth than the Whistling Ridge with lovely Asian spice. Some tannin remains and improvement is likely. A- with potential.
Next we got some 08, the only 08 reds we had during the trip.
Willamette Reserve 2008 - Wow, this is something special, back up the truck for this $25 wonder. This is certainly up there with the 07 vineyard designates and a great endorsement for 08 on Ribbon Ridge. While still primary it is already showing depth and great aromatics. A-/A
Balcombe Vineyard Dundee Hills 2008 - This is a little hard to pin down at this stage but it appears to have the potential for a delightful big fruit and mineral wine. Laser sharp but with some earth hints. A bit hard to read at this stage but we bought it and I’m betting is an A before things are said and done.
Notorious 2008 Ribbon Ridge and Dundee Hills (I think) 2008. All oak treatment that might scare some off but not my SO. She just in love with this brooding big Pinot. Ripe and rich, this is an exotic and very spicy wine that takes no prisoners and might just warrant its $70 entry fee. If everything falls into place who knows? A???
A wonderful day spent with two top winemakers and generally good guys, at least from our short visits. If I had to give a preference I’d have to go for Brian and Belle Pente for their pricing structure but you really can’t go wrong with these wines!
Looking back I seemed to prefer the 06s to the 07s (which could be for several reasons: age, taste preference, luck of the draw, etc) but I wouldn’t call it night and day. They are mostly two different animals and it depends a bit on what animal you want to BBQ tonight. We are in for a treat with the 08s if the Patty Green are any indication.
All in all, what a trip. The WV is a wonderful place to taste wine.