judgement of sweden - wines from oregon and washington state
Operaterassen, Stockholm
Tasted Thursday, March 20, 2014 by Omar Khayyam with 1,025 views
Introduction
What a great treat to be able to take an afternoon off from work and experience oregon wine here in Stockholm. Many thanks to Kenneth of fine wine sweden for putting this together.
I did not have time to try all the producers so focused for the most part on the more high end oregon producers although I am sure that some other tables offered better qpr. But life is short so why not drink the good juice?!
Flight 1 (52 Notes)
Closing
Following observations corroborated previously held beliefs of mine:
- DDO always delivers extremely reliable and enjoyable pinot noir. Two main caveats: the base wine is really high quality (as is the Laurene) but I am not convinced that the extra USD 20 for the laurene gives you that much more and the DDO chard (poor Arthur!), while always a correct and well made wine, has never fully convinced me, at least not in that price range.
- Chehalem white varietals are among the better in the valley of you like dry riesling and good chard. Their red wines may offer decent value (like the 2011 3 vineyards PN) if never reaching the top pinnacles.
- I like Stoller but I have a slight preference for when other winemakers handle the grape material (their own style is very modern and a little too sweet and soft for my tastes)
- Adelsheim is on/off for me. I don't know what it is, but it is such a classy establishment and I have had several wines that are outstanding there, but also some mediocre stuff. And the price of the Elisabeth's reserve USD 55 from their own website is not cheap.
And there were new revelations as well:
- Archery Summit was never the thing for me, too much of cali-power-pinot and extremely expensive at that. But somehow I kept hearing about how gifted and rigorous a wine maker Anna Matzinger was (she recently left Archery Summit, but I believe she made the 2010s). So who am I to not try this when offered in Sweden. And the 2010 Red Hill was just stunning, perhaps WOTN for me. Perhaps a cool vintage effect but, hey, I can live with that.
- Evening Land, a winery I thought overmarketed and overpriced (like airport champagne), surprised very much on the positive side - the La Source chardonnay and pinot noir are to die for! Grab it and run. drinkable now or much later.
- Omero! New winery that took me by storm. Great stuff. Someone in Sweden should pick them up before they start selling their wines at a profit!
2012 Elk Cove Vineyards Pinot Gris 82 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
off-dry, very tropical, white pepper, just a tad bit too lush for me.
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2012 Elk Cove Vineyards Riesling Estate 83 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
kabinett-style riesling, perhaps just a little simple in style but a lot of fruit and for those who enjoy a noticeable trace of residual sugar in their rieslings, this might do the trick
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2012 Elk Cove Vineyards Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 85 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
this is rich in fruit and forward, medium body, oaked nose and soft on the palate, but not without acidity.
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2012 Elk Cove Vineyards Pinot Noir Mount Richmond 86 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton
This is a notch up from the willamette valley offering but still same forwardness and soft fruit on the midpalate. has a charming nose.
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2011 Evening Land Vineyards Chardonnay Seven Springs Vineyard 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
Simple, graceful, stylish and very elegant.
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2011 Evening Land Vineyards Chardonnay La Source Seven Springs Vineyard 94 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
My oh my this is the stuff, wonderful sexy feeling, still not overly anything - easily mistaken for more noble burgundy bottling.
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2011 Evening Land Vineyards Pinot Noir Eola - Amity Hills 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
very fine nose, dark berries but freshness. Complex. dry.
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2011 Evening Land Vineyards Pinot Noir La Source Seven Springs Vineyard 93 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
spicy, dark berries, licorice, some pipe tobacco, earth very fresh, dry. great stuff, benchmark for eola style pinot: i.e. deep dark expression of pinot noir that could never be mistaken for anything but new world, at the same time fresh and clean and pure.
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2011 Evening Land Vineyards Pinot Noir Seven Springs Vineyard 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills
maybe the mid-palate is a little softer than the la source version, but the nose is great and I think these guys made some fine wine in 2011, which, admittedly was a year of varied results in the valley.
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2012 King Estate Pinot Gris Acrobat 80 Points
USA, Oregon
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2012 King Estate Pinot Gris Domaine 81 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
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2012 NxNW Riesling The Benches Vineyard 81 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Horse Heaven Hills
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2011 NxNW Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley 84 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley
very extracted, a green stemmy (not uninteresting) note, some pepper, very fruit forward although not jammy.
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2012 Acrobat Pinot Noir 85 Points
USA, Oregon
very charming and wide open nose with a lot of pinosity, soft palate though, but great value!
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2012 King Estate Pinot Noir Oregon 84 Points
USA, Oregon
same charming nose as for the acrobat version, but much more new oak (a little rancid butter streak on the nose), this just does not have the stuffings to stand up to all that oak. lots of warm berries.
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2012 Erath Pinot Noir Estate Selection Willamette Valley 84 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Soft, lots of warm berries, forward style.
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2009 Northstar Merlot Columbia Valley 90 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley
Extremely serious merlot. Powerful. Structured, perhaps extracted but very fine. Will need much more time.
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2008 Col Solare 92 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley
Pepper, licorice, chocolate, black currants. Alcohol heat on the back burner detracts from an impression of an otherwise extremely well built and well structured wine which needs a porterhouse steak to match its power. I am guessing true alcohol levels could be around 15 % although it doesn't say on the bottle...
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1999 Hedges Family Estate Three Vineyards Red Mountain 88 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
This is still quite tannic and big (but dry not sweet), but otherwise mature and highly drinkable wine, perhaps one could even wait a few more years to see if the tannins mellow, there is still fruit and freshness here.
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2010 Hedges Family Estate Red Mountain 84 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
This has even more tannins than the 1999, which of course is to be expected of an 11 yrs younger wine, but the point is that this has less fruit. So not too hopeful about the future here. Furthermore, there is more new oak feel to this. But it is fresh and pure and dry and thinking with the right food (steak and cream sauce?) this might be nice and food friendly.
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2011 Descendants Liegeois Dupont Cuvée Marcel Dupont 87 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
Fine syrah - berry driven but pure expression.
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2008 Goedhart Family Syrah Bel' Villa Vineyard 87 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
well structured, classic syrah with more emphasis on leather, underbrush etc rather than jammy shiraz. but there is a note of bitterness (from the oak?) that I could have been without.
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2010 Goedhart Family Syrah Bel' Villa Vineyard 86 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
similar to the 2008 but perhaps even more lean and classic.
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2011 Ponzi Vineyards Riesling 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
This is excellent riesling full stop. perhaps not the most complexity - but pure bone dry and fresh and minerally.
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2013 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Gris 82 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
simple, gooseberries, soft fruit medium body.
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2011 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
fine nose, lots of berries, good freshness.
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2010 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
earth and mushrooms on the nose, long finish, elegant structure.
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2012 Chehalem Chardonnay INOX 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
A lot of body for a wine that according to the winery sees no oak and no batonnage and no malolactic fermentation. But it has sunny fruit and freshness - what more can you ask?
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2012 Chehalem Riesling Three Vineyard 87 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Dry, fine, fresh, balancing between tropical fruit expression and more mineral-driven riesling style.
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2010 Chehalem Chardonnay Ian's Reserve Stoller Vineyard 91 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
Very fine nose, the oak is there, vanilla and butter but it is skillfully applied and the freshness and long fine finish balance the whole thing well.
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2011 Chehalem Pinot Noir Three Vineyard 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
this has a great nose, wild strawberries, kirsch, raspberries, also acidity and structure, long.
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2011 Chehalem Pinot Noir Ridgecrest Vineyards 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge
forest floor, earth, dark berries, medium finish.
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2012 Cloudline Pinot Gris 82 Points
USA, Oregon
well, pinot gris that is neither exciting nor memorable or, for that matter faulty.
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2012 Cloudline Pinot Noir 84 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
fine open charming nose with some pinosity, but very soft on the palate.
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2012 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Chardonnay Arthur 86 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
Fine, elegant, pure, racy minerals and acidity. For some reason, I often find the DDO Arthur bottlings like a well made but boring chablis village without complexity. A little too pricey for that type of chard.
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2012 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir 93 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
nice stuff! Earth, spice, deep dark berries, warm fruit, sturdy legs on this one.
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2011 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir Laurène 89 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
bottled but not yet labelled and distributed. Has a good nose, perhaps on the light side of pinot (it was a lean year, I know) but there is structure beneath.
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2012 Stoller Pinot Noir Dundee Hills 86 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
closed nose, some noticeable oak, warm fruit, soft.
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2010 Stoller Pinot Noir Dundee Hills 92 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
very fine nose, elegant, funky, sous-bois, pinosity! balanced, this is good pinot.
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2008 Stoller Pinot Noir SV Estate Dundee Hills 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
charming nose with a lot of pinosity, soft on the palate and finish
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2012 Adelsheim Chardonnay Caitlin's Reserve 89 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
soft expression - clearly new world and some new oak applied to this, but very fine results.
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2011 Adelsheim Pinot Noir Elizabeth's Reserve 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains
earth, funk, mushrooms, dark berries, soft palate though
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2011 Adelsheim Pinot Noir Ribbon Springs 86 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge
darker nose than the elisabeth's reserve but also much more soft expression. modern style new world pinot.
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2011 Adelsheim Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 87 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
very nice and charming nose, soft palate though.
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2012 Archery Summit Pinot Gris Vireton 76 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
this is off-dry and tastes like canned fruit salad, except just diluted with water and wine.
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2010 Archery Summit Pinot Noir Arcus Estate 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
extremely big wine for a pinot noir. would have guessed shiraz or something similar. licorice, tobacco, blackberries, but there is freshness and structure. Just a matter of not comparing this to elegant pinot noir wines. And pair it with a grilled steak...
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2011 Archery Summit Pinot Noir Premier Cuvée 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
dark berries, all the elements are there, perhaps a little too much oak but still very nice stuff.
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2010 Archery Summit Pinot Noir Red Hills Estate 93 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
fantastic nose, with a lot of complexity, funk, earth, dark berries, very fine and well built. A big wine, but elegant and all in one piece.
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2011 Omero Cellars Pinot Noir 90 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
great nose, fragrant berries, silky expression, well balanced.
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2011 Omero Cellars Pinot Noir Coats & Whitney Vineyard 92 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
excellent pinosity and complexity. has some structure, but the point of this wine seems to be the silkiness of the texture. Good freshness though.
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2011 Omero Cellars Pinot Noir Omero Vineyard 91 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
great stuff - nose is perhaps just a little bit closed but still has that pinot magic sniffer feel to it.
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2011 Omero Cellars Pinot Noir 91 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge
charmingly open complex nose with spice, dark and red fruit, forest floor magic, silky texture like the other wines in the line-up, but still elegant and with good legs.
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