Pretty much hijacked Kelly’s wine here, but I promise to buy more of her’s as I really like the Mirabai. I may even upgrade to a few Maresh while I’m at it although at about double the price not very many.
I had the opportunity to try the 2013 Kelley Fox Pinot Maresh Vineyard a few weeks back… and it’s quite delicious. My favorite domestic Pinot Noir I’ve tasted this year. It definitely has the hallmarks of Maresh Vineyard, which for my taste is among the very top vineyards in Oregon for Pinot Noir, if not the top, and Kelley captures it all beautifully. KatrinaBI’s notes in this thread pretty much match my tasting experience.
I also tried the 2014 Kelley Fox Momtazi Vineyard Pinot Noir. This was a very well-made wine-- I’ve yet to find any exceptions from Kelley across the years-- though quite different from the Maresh. Kelley’s goal with her vineyard designated wines is to capture the vineyard’s hallmarks, and she does that brilliantly. The Momtazi is darker, tilting toward more black fruits, and with a little more spice vs. the Maresh. Kelley commented that, broadly speaking, of course, many of her European customers (many in the UK) particularly enjoy the Momtazi, and that many US customers often prefer the Maresh. I say try 'em both and draw your own conclusions.
I also had the opportunity to try her 2015 Ahurani Pinot Noir. This is a new bottling for the 2015 vintage, also based on fruit from Momtazi, though at a slightly lower price point. This was only very recently released via her e-mail list (anyone can sign up), and she mentioned it’s already been selling well. I found this distinctly different from the 2014 Momtazi, which I’d chalk up to it being quite young, just released, and perhaps not yet settled/dialed in – and/or due to my own palate. I didn’t take detailed notes on any of these wines, so unfortunately I can’t be much more specific here.
Finally, Kelley herself is uniquely wonderful and genuine. I had the chance to chat with her while tasting, as well as with her brother Gerson, who recently joined the team to help on the business side. I thoroughly enjoyed the wines and learned a lot. Kelley is exceedingly and infectiously passionate about her vineyard sources and her craft - and it shows in her wines.
Glad to see this thread as I recently bought 4 2015 ahurani, 2 2014 maresh and 2 2014 momtazi. These will slumber for a while.
Thanks for the info, Eric. Interesting that the Europeans prefer the Momtazi and the US customers the Maresh. For some reason I would have thought it would be the other way around. I opened a bottle of the Ahurani a couple weeks ago and posted a note in the WB Charity thread but may as well copy here too.
2015 Kelley Fox Pinot Noir Ahurani This new cuvee of Kelley Fox is a full, deep garnet. It marries a sappy ripe red cherry top-note to a deliciously mealy (buckwheat) undertow. The mealy, savory element kicks in early on the palate serving as a dynamic counterpoint to the fruit. (The grainy aspect is something I’ve encountered in some of Schloss Gobelsburg’s Gruners but not before in a red wine). The overall effect is of a wine that manages both to be both approachable and complex at the same time and really singular in foregrounding the fruit/grain rather than a fruit/acid tension (though of course the wine has ample lifting acids too). Another distinctively delicious wine from Kelley Fox.