Been plowing through my Perkins Harter BD intro pack.
Opened the 2022 Rosé Bracken Vineyard tonight. Instantly I can see the connection between this and the Bracken Vineyard pinot noir in terms of its sensual character. Beautiful aromas of cherry cordial, cantaloupe, and creamsicle on the nose. While the wine appears ripe and juicy from the aromas the palate is anything but, being dry, crisp, and savory with some subtle stone fruit and cherry notes that linger on the finish. Very refreshing.
Posted from CellarTracker
Edit: should clarify that this specific sparkler (and others I’ve had from this producer) should not be thought as a champagne substitute, though several producers are making bubbles in a champagne style.
This experimental wine is supposed to be served chilled as a Lambrusco stand-in, not a Champagne substitute.
We opened the 2020 Sparkling Pinot Noir last night. Some reduction and citrus (to the point where I checked the label for Chardonnay - no) on the nose with just a hint a raspberry. On the palate, I found it slightly sweet for my palate (I tend toward no dosage champagnes) - like the love child of brut Champagne and Moscato. At the same time, it was welcoming and easy to drink. The bottle disappeared very quickly among the four of us. I’m glad that I have a couple more bottles in the cellar, though I’ll probably look to enjoy them in the next year or so.
Glad you enjoyed. That’s a 5g/L dosage so indeed would be rounder and sweeter if you are into a more searing edge. I went towards no dosage with the solera and I think I might ultimately settle at 0-3 g/L depending on vintage.
I posted these on social but just wanted to give a spring report that things are looking green up on the Eola Bench after a fairly rainy winter. Bud break might be a week or two early this year and yet we’ve got about four more weeks of frost risk to get through!
Wow, that quick less than half an hour
I heard the call after I posted. Walked out and sure enough - bang!
Time moves differently at Bracken
It’s been looking to be early for a bit now. We had fruit trees blossoming 2-3 weeks ahead of last year.
@Saul_Mutchnick is correct. Time does move differently here…
…and sometimes in regards to plant life as well. It’s a little challenging to find a good plant analog for grapevines up here considering the elevation/wind exposure variation and variation in soil depths/moisture/availability. Our willows were the first to show growth the first week of February. Hop bines also started stirring earlier than usual, just afterwards. Then the daffodils looked early but but stalled out. Our fruit trees are blooming now, right on time and a couple fruit trees are still looking fairly dormant.
On vines growth, we’re generally up a week behind Sojeau (100’ lower elevation on avg), but strange anomalies creep up like last season when we were picking on the same day here and at Sojeau due to the compressed harvest. Ken, Will, Denny, David Paige and I were texting some comparative photos around yesterday and on first break for 2019-present I have April 13, 15, 12, 1, 27, and now March 29th for this year - so in our short history these first critters are early. Denny reports the earliest break being in 2015 with March 23rd but that flowering held off until June 6th.
But as a matter of plant biology, there always seems to be some debate as to whether whether growth drives cell division or whether cell division drives plant growth - with inherent timing and growth rate mechanisms playing off each other. Bud emergence variation probably comes down to, in part, cell wall turgor - or its rigidity due to the absorption of liquid and its affect on growth rate. So this is a driving mechanism underlying growth that helps explain why water availability has a role to play in seasonal variation of growth, not just seasonal temp summation, photoperiods and plant nutrition. You know, from the environmental model standpoint.
But, if I were giving out species analog awards up here - this year my vote goes to the willows.
Uh oh, he used trigger word. 
Must be - I only have 11 bottles left!
ARGH!!!
2022 Perkins Harter Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills Bracken Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley (4/4/2024)
Drank over two days. Upon opening the nose was absolutely mesmerizing. The palate was quite tight but it opened up over the course of the evening, finding an incredible focus and precision. An incredibly vibrant, transparent, energetic wine.
On day two a bit of the energy and focus was lost (perhaps due to the relatively young age of the vines? Not sure how these things work), and the wine felt less compelling. Overall, I was very impressed and I’m looking forward to trying more!
Thanks for the great note.
So are you saying the moral of the story is to drink the whole bottle upon opening?!?! 
Thanks for the kind words and glad you enjoyed!
@Dave_McIsaac has the answer - bottoms up! Or go to a Coravin if you’re preferring the Day 1 tension. I never have big expectations for Day 2 on any wine…so that’s how I roll if the rest of a bottle is not likely to get Zamboni-ed by my better half, which it usually is.
The roots on Bracken’s vines are just starting to get a bit deeper, notable in the 22’s. We’re not seeing anywhere near full vine maturity yet - so indeed, the fruit is still less phenolic and therefore less likely to keep tension after O2 exposure. So possibly the lighter phenolics have a role to play in your Day 2 analysis compared to, say, the 22 Sojeau. But, note that I’m also really sensitive to sulfur so I’m selfishly using lower doses (20-25ppm). Ultimately, that path also results in a more delicate wine - for better or worse. Cheers!
the answer
