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October, 2009 Member Newsletter |
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SALUD! On Tap for November
Let's say you want to participate in a fantastic wine event, one held in the winter, and one focused on some of the best pinot noir in the world. And, you want it to be for a good cause. And involve food. Plus, you want to mingle with lots and lots of winemakers.
And just to make this wine event PERFECT, you want to meet your favorite wine personality and drink some wine with him (that's ME, get it?) Does that sound good?
You're in luck! That's what the Salud! Wine Auction is all about.
A slew of Oregon wineries produce a special bottling of pinot noir. Some of it is sold off a big-board auction, where all the winemakers pour samples. That takes place at Domaine Drouhin on day one. The next day, everyone puts on formal wear for another tasting, a bid dinner, and a silent and oral auction. More wine, plus speeches.
But the main thing is the wine. Each participating winery does a special cuvee. Bidding is always strong for these unique wines, but this year there is an added bonus: The wines are from the 2008 vintage! That means they are the best wines from what many think is the best vintage ever in Oregon.
Icing on the cake? The proceeds go to provide health care for the migrant workers that are vital to the proper operation of Oregon vineyards.
If you want to be a part of this charitable spectacle and to enjoy all the benefits listed above and even more, check out this link. Oregon's wine industry will be grateful, and you will have a great time. See you there!
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 Harvest 2009
Big clusters, ripe grapes, hang time
(At right: Ponzi harvest) As I write this on Tuesday, October 6 the weather is terrific - sunny days with temperatures just around 70F, and cool nights. The grapes are hanging, allowing for all-important phenolic development to catch up with the sugars. While some whites and young vine fruit are in, much of the pinot noir will be coming in over the two weeks.
The grapes were pushed ahead somewhat by a record-setting heat wave in August. The the more important heat spike was in mid-September, with a few days in the 90F+ range. "That gave us high sugars, " says Dick Shea, of Shea Vineyards Winery. "The brix was up, without flavors being ready."
"Some folks panicked a bit, and picked just on brix," confirms Jim Anderson, co-owner of Patricia Green Cellars. "But the flavors are not there yet. If folks picked early on brix, they won't be happy with the results."
Just in time, a burst of rain hosed down the Valley starting on Tuesday, September 29th. The rain was accompanied by lower temps that have stayed in place after the sun came out. "The brix is frozen right now, and we are getting excellent hang time," says Shea. "We are up to 115 days or so at this point. And even though the clusters are big, we have had some dehydration, which has concentrated the flavors." He predicts Shea Vineyard will be fully harvested by Tuesday, October 13.
"It is a weird year of high sugars and high acid," says Anderson. "But the weather is perfect now for flavor development. We'll pick some this week, and quite a bit more this weekend and next week."
Both winemakers predict wines with ripe flavors and alcohols in the 14 - 15% range, but leavened by natural acidity. "It's looking good," says Shea. "It is somewhat like a combination of '03 and '06, which were both extremely popular with consumers."
To summarize, Oregon's '09 vintage is very, very good indeed. |
 2006 Ponzi Pinot Noir ReservePrice: $66 Drinkability: Decant now Availability: Still a little left
Ponzi is one of Oregon's pioneer wine families. Founded by Dick and Nancy Ponzi in the 1970s, they have been making Oregon pinot noir for nearly thirty years (this year might be thirty, in fact).
Dick Ponzi was also a beer pioneer, and was the founder of Bridgeport Brewing (long since sold) one of Oregon's first microbreweries. Later, the family opened up the Ponzi Wine Bar and Dundee Bistro, which is still one of the few wine country dining spots worth a damn.
Ponzi also broke marketing ground for Oregon wine. I recall when their fantastic 1992 Pinot Noir Reserve was released at $24 / bottle. Locals were shocked! Outraged! That Ponzi thought their wines were so special. Later, they signed a brokerage contract with a national firm, becoming one of the first Oregon pinots to reach a national audience. That early-entry tactic has led to strong name recognition for the brand.
Some years ago, Dick turned over winemaking to his daughter Lousia. The Ponzis are part of a generational transfer of responsibility that is quite common among the early Oregon wineries. For some reason, a high percentage of kids who grow up on the wine business take it on as their own later.
But on to the wine. The Reserve bottling is their top cuvee in 2006 (in some years, they bottle the very-expensive Abbetina bottling). The wine is a whopper, and is only now approaching drinkability. It's big, dense, spicy, and marked with significant new oak. With some air, the wine opens to show dark pinot fruit that has great texture, complexity and length, with fruit and spice accented by wood flavors and minerality. It is exceptionally long. It is big enough to age, and should be decanted to drink now.
This wine received a Wine Advocate 93 points, with these notes: "The 2006 Pinot Noir Reserve is dark ruby-colored with an alluring perfume of pain grille, spice box, black cherry, and black raspberry. This is followed by a generous, full-bodied wine with mouth-coating fruit, a velvety texture, layers of flavor, and enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years. The rich, persistent finish goes on for nearly one minute. Give it 3-4 years to evolve and drink it from 2012 to 2022. Ponzi Vineyards remains a reference point for American Pinot Noir with winemaker Luisa Ponzi at the top of her game."
 2007 Brick House Pinot Noir Les Dijonais
Price: $40 Drinkability: Decant and enjoy! Availability: Good for now
Brick House winery is on a property arrayed around an old Brick House. The extensive vineyard is organically grown. Nowadays, wineries around the world trumpet how green they are - some do it because they believe in it, some do it because they think you'll buy their wine as a result. Doug Tunell did it early, and from a desire to make the best wine possible.
Consider the organic grape farm. No fertilizers are used if you want to achieve organic certification, for example. That would be bad for the grape vines anyway - it is usually a fight to control vigor, to make the vines work harder. It would make no sense to chemically stimulate them to produce more. That's just one example of why organic is better for grapes.
But note the difference between organic grapes and organic wine. Wine made with additions needed to preserve and wine disqualify it from being labeled as organic, even though the grapes can be called organic. That's why there are so few truly organic wines, but nearly 80% of Oregon vineyards practice some sort of sustainable agriculture. Organic is just the beginning - there are certifications available for sustainability, being Salmon Safe, LIVE (low-input viticulture and enology) and others.
All that aside, the best thing about Brick House is the wine, obviously. From their introduction with the '94 vintage, this producer has enjoyed notable success with pinot noir, chardonnay and gamay noir.
This Les Dijonais bottling is one of the two top-shelf cuvees bottled each year. The name refers to the Dijon clones of pinot noir, which are used for this wine. (The other top wine is Cuvee du Toneliere, or cuvee of the barrel-maker). Among the pantheon of '07s still available on the market, this one stands out. It shows a gob of pretty and juicy red fruits in a medium-bodied format that provides a broad, lingering flavor palate. It's supple in texture, and very enjoyable now. Drink up!
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| PREMIUM CLUB WINES
 2008 Ayres Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Price: $21
Drinkability: Nice!
Availability: Good for now
I often roll my eyes at winery literature that waxes too lyrical, or that repeats the same made-up-story platitudes that everyone else uses to sell wine. Ayres has written their literature with just a little bit more honesty, and it's worth a look:
"Located on famed Ribbon Ridge in Oregon's Northern Willamette Valley, Ayres Vineyard is home to 14 acres of Pinot Noir, or approximately 27,000 vines. Twelve of those are currently in production: Dijon clones 667, 777, and 115. An additional acre of 667, and an acre each of 113 and Pommard will debut in future vintages.
"Winemaker Brad McLeroy enjoys a short commute to work. He walks out his back door and his tractor awaits his arrival. The daily attention to the fruit shows...our clusters are beautiful.
"And beautiful clusters make beautiful wine. It all starts with the vineyard, with the dirt in our backyard.
WE MAKE IT
"You will find yourself twelve feet underground in our winery. This way we are able to harness the earth's insulating abilities. Stable and predictable cellar temperatures allow for slow, steady, and gentle primary and secondary fermentations.
"Our underground winery also allows for perfect storage conditions. You will find our three Pinot Noir bottlings and our Pinot Blanc offering stored in an ideal environment.
WE LIVE IT
"Three generations live among the vines. Partners and family members, Don and Carol McClure and Brad and Kathleen McLeroy enjoy life on the vineyard every day. It is important for us to farm sustainably. This is our home. This is where our kids play. In the fall we eat fruit directly from the vines. It's an amazing and healthy place to call home.
WE LOVE IT
"It's that simple. We love where we are. We love what we do.
It's contagious and we would love to share the experience with you!"
See what I mean? That kind of direct writing is more appealing than most of the winery marketing pablum I read.
Ayres is notable for being a new producer making really good wine. Their first vintage was just a few years back, and they already have a strong reputation, and enjoy strong sales. Their tasty '07s are all gone, for example, while many more highly touted producers are still trying to dump their '06s.
Ayres is also notable for originally planting all Dijon clones of pinot noir. Those clones have an assertive fruit profile that has become very popular over the last fifteen years. I tend to prefer wines with a predominance of Pommard and Wadenswil clones of pinot noir, perhaps leavened by a dose of the potent Dijon clone flavor. However, while Pommard / Wadenswil make up the majority of the pre-1995 plantings of Oregon pinot, in the modern era the balance has tipped the other direction. Expect more exuberantly fruity wines in the future.
Despite their near-exclusive use of the Dijon Clones, the Ayres wines show excellent balance and great drinkability. They use a measured hand with extraction and the use of wood, and manage to produce wines with lots of fruit but that never cross over into fruit-bomb territory. This tasty, inexpensive '08 is a perfect example. The wine is fresh, lively and packed with more flavor that you would expect at this price point. It is approachable now, and will integrate more fully with just a few more months in bottle, and should be tasty and drinkable for five or more years. Overall, it is a fantastic entry-level pinot that showcases what the '08 vintage is all about.
 2008 Sineann Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Price: $30 Drinkability: Just starting to taste right Availability: Good for now The crux of my excitement over this wine is the character of the '08 vintage. The '08 Sineann wines are showing dark, glowing colors, fresh, juicy and lively flavors, and dense, detailed mid-palates that evolves into a near-endless finishes. Like other top '08s, these wines are exciting, vibrant, and will provide some immediate gratification, but will have the natural balance and fine structure to cellar very, very well.
What happened in '08 to bring about such great wines? Great weather in October was the key. It was warm during the day, but not hot, and cool at night. It didn't rain significantly until October 31st. The warm days and long hang time let ripe flavors develop, but did not send sugars out of control - these wines are no more than 13.5% alcohol. But that hang time resulted in amazing flavors. On top of that, the cool nights helped the grapes retain high natural acidity, which translates to balance and freshness.
I have just tasted through this lineup and the increasing price points reflect accurately the increasing intensity and complexity of the wines. At this level, Rosback's "Oregon" bottings (a blend of fruit sources from around the state) delivers most of the quality of his single-vineyard cuvees, but at a much lower price point. You can expect a big mouthful of wine, that hits all the right notes.
ONE NOTE - this wine was bottled recently. It should sit around for a month or even two to recover from bottling shock. After that, give one a try and see what you think! | |
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RESERVE CLUB WINES
 2006 Argyle Pinot Noir Spirithouse
Price: $75
Drinkability: Excellent, will age
Availability: Good for a short while only
This is my favorite wine of the Argyle lineup. It is a big, strapping wine, but it maintains a sense of purity and freshness. Part of that is the focused, juicy red fruit character, replete with bright acidity. It comes across the palate with a type of elegance, but then the wine expands in the mid-palate, revealing never-ending layers of flavor and an endless finish. Although it's tasty now, there is some structure lurking under all that bright fruit. So, drink now, but consider cellaring a bottle or two for 2-5 years as well.
Here are some notes on the wine from winemaker Rollin Soles: " This is a refined, sneaker of a wine! The aroma is bright with an appealing purity. Look for luscious red fruit, like raspberry and cherry made deeper by fresh earth, new leather, and a hint of black pepper spices. The flavor is pure and, dare I say it, "elitist". The red fruits are fresh and ripe, fresh earth integrates with spicy, almost floral, flavors. The juicy center is signature Spirithouse. The wine is youthful now, but will "sneak up" on you with the power and richness I have come to expect from this wine."
On top of that, check out this score: This wine received a Parker 94 Points! "The 2006 Pinot Noir Spirithouse Knudsen Vineyard is medium/dark ruby with a splendid aromatic array of mineral, earth, cedar, spice box, and red and black fruits, Silky smooth, layered, bordering on opulent, and very sexy, this Pinot Noir will evolve for 2-3 years and be at its best from 2010 to 2018."
 2006 Domaine Serene Pinot Noir Winery Hill
Price: $78
Drinkability: Approachable, better with some bottle age
Availability: Very little left
Here's a bit of a score! Not just that the wine got a whopper of a critical score (see below) but that it was a score to get a large enough quantity to supply our Reserve Club. Generally, this wine is sold to winery mailing list customers only, and even then it is allocated. But the slow wine economy has made this and other previously-rare wines more easily available.
This is a terrific, lush, new-world style wine that needs a bit of bottle age. Decant if you drink it now, or wait 1-3 years for best flavors.
Parker 94 Points! "The 2006 Pinot Noir Winery Hill Vineyard is sourced from Dijon clones planted in 2000 and 2001. It was fermented with 3.5% stems for additional spiciness. Dark ruby-colored, it offers up a spicy, cigar box perfume along with expressive blue and black fruits. On the palate it is quite dense and weighty with layers of savory dark fruit flavors bordering on opulence. This rich wine has a finish lasting for nearly a minute. Drink it from 2012 to 2020."
Following are notes on the wine, supplied by the winery:
VINEYARD
The beautiful Winery Hill Estate is one of Domaine Serene's three vineyard estates. Located in the Dundee Hills of Oregon, one mile north of the Evenstad Estate, it is home to Domaine Serene's winery and to the 20 acre Winery Hill Vineyard. The dry-farmed vineyard is planted to Dijon clones 114, 115, and 777 of Pinot Noir on yield-limiting rootstocks. At 800-850 feet in elevation, the vineyard soil is Jory type.
CROP YIELD & AGING
2.10 tons/acre. Aged 14 months in French oak barrels of which 96% were new.
VINTAGE NOTES
2006 is destined to be a classic. Nearly perfect conditions at bloom and a long warm growing season led to a warm harvest producing fully ripened and mature fruit of exceptional quality. A relatively mild spring, followed by warm and dry months and small heat spikes in June and September, allowed for additional hang-time and promoted flavor development and concentration. Continued warmth in September and October, despite a few periods of rain, resulted in a fast and furious harvest. The mild, late rains cooled the fruit, tempering the hot days and slowing sugar development. This resulted in optimal ripeness and maturity. Truly a "vintage made in the vineyard", our regimen of thinning to one cluster per shoot allowed us to achieve our average crop yield of 2 tons per acre, producing wines with rich, concentrated flavors and balance while maintaining the elegance and lush varietal character that Domaine Serene is famous for.
> Buy it from the OPNC web site | |
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Robert Wolfe
Oregon Pinot Noir Club · 1-800-847-4474 |
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