What Goodfellow/Matello are you drinking?

WINE TALK
81

You’re impressions for the Pinots on day 2 would fall in line with the nature of the 08 and 09 vintages.

82

Ron, I’m not sure why but I suddenly had the urge to go rent a vintage Alpha Romeo convertible.

I really am enjoying the evolution of both of the 2013 WV wines. As you said, you have to be into that sort of thing, but they’re filling in and very lively right now.

83

…as M. Trimpi suggests, it’s a cheap trick. I started with Matello in 2002, but after 10 years, I realized that I really enjoyed talking more about the vineyards and less about what Matello means and how to pronounce it.

Having just added a second generation, is seems smart to rename the winery after the family name. Matello is only about 4 wines at the moment, the rest are all under the Goodfellow label.

84

Ma-tay-oh :slight_smile:

85

Ron, you get the Hemingway award.

86

neener

Yes, I know it actually rhymes with “cello”…

87

Oh yes, the Hemingway award is for the writing that completely sums up the situation in the briefest possible composition.

88

I popped a 2014 Goodfellow WV Pinot last night and was surprised how light-bodied and acidic it was, considering the vintage. Honestly, I found it to be quite screechy with a bitter finish and hard to really enjoy. It did have some nice fruit on the attack, but it faded pretty fast. A couple other CT notes seemed to have this experience as well. Should I be holding these for a few more years?

89

I think you can certainly hold for a while. The other night we opened the 2013, 2014, and 2015 Goodfellow WVs side by side. They weren’t worlds apart stylistically, and were strikingly similar, but on day 2 we agreed we liked the 2013 the best. I was pleasantly surprised at the lightness exhibited by 2014 and 2015. To each their own.

90

We had a 2015 Goodfellow WV Chardonnay last night. This punches way above its weight. Fantastic lemon/green apple flavors, slightly reduced, spicy, excellent acidity. I’m glad to have a case of it. For $25, this is a steal.

91

[quote=“P Intag”]I popped a 2014 Goodfellow WV Pinot last night and was surprised how light-bodied and acidic it was, considering the vintage. Honestly, I found it to be quite screechy with a bitter finish and hard to really enjoy. It did have some nice fruit on the attack, but it faded pretty fast. A couple other CT notes seemed to have this experience as well. Should I be holding these for a few more years?[/quote

Thanks for trying out the 2014 Willamette Valley. I would definitely recommend waiting a few years even for the Willamette Valley bottling. For the most part, my rule of thumb is 4-5 years for the Willamette Valley, 6-8 years for the volcanic soils, and 7-10 years for the sedimentary wines. That doesn’t mean you can’t open them sooner, but if you do I really recommend a good bit of air and/or old school French food(duck confit, braised lamb or short ribs, slow roasted pork, etc.) The range really represents warmer vintage to cooler, the 2014 WV is a more forward bottle than usual for me and should come around sooner. That said, I really, really like the WV bottling around the 10 year point. 04 is great right now, as is 07. 08 needs time, and the 09 is perhaps from a ripe enough vintage that now is a good point for it as well.

Based a little bit on your reaction, you may want to check out the 14 Durant Vineyard bottling. It’s old vines, volcanic soils, very long in the palate, and while both structured and retaining good acidity it’s a more rounded wine as well.

Last thought, I think of our wines as a bit of an acquired taste. They do grow on you.

92

Amen brother!

93

Thanks for your insight, Marcus. There was still a glass left in the bottle (vacuvin’d overnight) last night. It seems to have picked up a little weight and softened a bit to go along with diminished bitterness on the finish. I found it much more enjoyable than the pop 'n pour. Still, this is definitely a Pinot for acid freaks and was a little bit above my acidity wheelhouse (though, I’d rather have a little too much acidity than not enough). I’ll bury my other bottle deep into my wine fridge for at least a couple more years.
This was an interesting contrast to the 2014 Elk Cove WV I opened a few weeks ago which was had an abundance of plush fruit and not enough acidity - very different wines. Just goes to show that wine making decisions can have more influence on the presentation of the wine than the vintage characteristics.

94

Paul,

Marcus definitely makes wines that are brighter than average for Oregon. The style leans a lot more towards Burgundy than California. “Pinot for acid freaks”?..some might say “Pinot for purists”. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I tend to pair my wine with food which moderates perceived acidity. I’ve never found his wines screeching. Elk Cove Pinots are a completely different beast. There’s a lot of middle ground between the two to explore.

RT

95

Based on my limited experience with Oregon Pinot, I’d say that PGC falls into that “middle ground”. I’ve also really enjoyed the McKinlay’s that I’ve tried. I’ll try to get more of Marcus’ wines going forward, as well. So, I guess Elk Cove has a reputation for more fruit-driven Pinot?

96

PGC and McKinlay are two of my personal favorites as well. It’s especially nice to see McKinlay mentioned, there are a LOT of PGC fans but Matt Kinne’s wines seem to fly under the radar for most people.
As mentioned, I’m with Rich regarding food but I would encourage you to try some of the Goodfellow vineyard designates. While the true pH in them is often lower, they also have more fruit around the acidity. You might avoid the Whistling Ridge PN though, it’s a wine that often carries bitterness in it’s youth. Those compounds are what elevate it with 7-10 years of cellaring though.

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97

I have been drinking too many Pinots lately, so opened a '12 Deux Vert syrah the other night, and while I like these and other WV syrahs a lot, I just had to open another PN. The debbil made me do it! [snort.gif]

98

I agree that Marcus probably wouldn’t want to market his wine as Pinot for acid freaks but just between the two of us, who else consistently provides a bigger hit of acid than Marcus? Maybe Teutonic, but I’m not aware of too many others that more consistently satisfy my acid craving. There is a lot more than the acid going on, and plenty of flavor and texture, but who else consistently produces is higher acid wines?

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99

I don’t drink much Burg - pretty much priced out these days :frowning: - but I like even village wines with 10+ years of age. It sounds like I need the same mindset with your Pinot. I’m still trying to get my footing with Oregon Pinot - it’s becoming quite a journey! And I appreciate the collective knowledge of the Berserkers.

100

So I’m delving into some of Marcus’ “other wines” this weekend - sitting here as I type this with a glass of the 2015 Whistling Ridge Blanc, and I also tried the 2014 WV Chard and the 2013 Deux Vert this afternoon (both of the latter two bottles being opened last night).

So my thoughts - well, without hopefully coming across here as too critical, while I think the 2014 entry-level Chard is fine for what it is, unless you have a problem with spending more than $25 for a domestic Chardonnay, I think the additional tariff for either the Durant or the Richard’s Cuvee is definitely worth it.

This Blanc wine, though, is certainly one that makes you think - if someone poured it for me blind, I think I would be totally clueless as to what it was, but without knowing the details of the blend, I would say that the Riesling speaks more clearly/loudly in this particular blend.

Finally, the 2013 Deux Vert - another interesting wine, and very lightly colored for a wine that is 94% Syrah - color-wise, I could have mistaken this wine for a Nerello Mascalese. I liked it, but to be honest, I can’t say I would have placed it in the northern Rhone if I was drinking it blind.

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