Thanksgiving 2024 Willamette Valley Visit

We visited the Dundee Bistro for lunch, and then a few tasting rooms / wineries (Eyrie, Durant, Bergstrom) with my wife, sister and brother in-law. Was a cold but clear day after Thanksgiving. Busy day in the valley, places were packed!

(bonus is we saw our Ducks beat the Huskies at Autzen the very next day!)

Stopped into the Eyrie tasting room to start our day, sitting at the counter. The Pinot Meunier was certainly interesting, and the Outrcrop is an interesting vineyard for them. As I type this a week+ after our visit I'm having an Eyrie 2008 Estate Pinot, so I know all of these babies are built to last.

• 2022 The Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Gris Estate 90 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Consumed at Eyrie's tasting room: Pear and green apple on the nose. Palate comes off as warm, tasty citrus. From some of the 1st Pinot Gris vines planted in North America.

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• 2021 The Eyrie Vineyards Chardonnay The Eyrie 91 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Consumed at Eyrie's tasting room: Nose is somewhat shy, perhaps partly reflective of the neutral oak profile. Lovely on the palate, nice texture with lemon and pink peach. From some of the original vines from the mid-1960s.

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• 2021 The Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir Estate 91 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Consumed at Eyrie's tasting room: 3rd time trying this this year, and showed differently, perhaps a reflection of trying several other wines at the same time. Nose was more savory and exuberant, palate came across more black-fruited versus earlier impressions of more red-fruit. Darker anise as well. From all five of the estate vineyards.

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• 2021 The Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Meunier 90 Points

  USA, Oregon

  Consumed at Eyrie's tasting room: Delicious. Vibrant fruit, high acidity and a lot of structure. Will last for quite some time. From the Sisters and Daphne vineyards.

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• 2021 The Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir Outcrop Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Consumed at Eyrie's tasting room: I get more meaty and slightly gamey notes on the nose here. Palate has mid+ weight, red/black fruit mix which comes across as much as skin as flesh. Long finish, time needed on this one. Apparently more marine soil here than the more traditional Dundee Hills Jory red volcanic; North facing, hear the original vineyard.

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We had time to spare before our appointment at Bergstrom, so as we drove there we looked for some place to pop into. We found Durant Vineyard, very cool spot. Parking lot was packed! We sat out in the heated tent outside of the main building, and bought a bottle of the Sauv Blanc.

• 2022 Durant Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Lark Vineyard 89 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Tasting at the winery. Nose gives off lemon and oyster shell. On the palate, a burst of fresh citrus; sweet creamy orange. Cut with some minerality, but slightly too sweet? Overall I enjoyed it for a boisterous and exuberant glass but a critique is the sweetness. Would be a fantastic summer pool wine.

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This was a fantastic higher-end tasting experience in the restored/renovated original Bergstrom house. The little mini food parings were incredible, and worked very well with the wines. These wines are getting more and more expensive, but no question there is some good winemaking going on here.

If you like nice experiences, good wine education and lovely food/wine pairings, book this one in advance of your visit to the valley.

• 2022 Bergström Pinot Noir La Spirale 91 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge

  Consumed at Bergstrom: Nose is bright, with notes of bread. Palate is juicy with cherry cola notes , refreshing with nice length. They bought this in 2018 and is the largest vineyard in their portfolio.

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• 2022 Bergström Pinot Noir Le Pré du Col Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge

  Consumed at Bergstrom: Somewhat shy notes with some earth/mushroom. Palate is quite good, very nice fruit, certainly structured. I learned Le Pre Du Col means "field on the hill". Little more shade here than some of their others.

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• 2022 Bergström Pinot Noir Silice 90 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains

  Consumed at Bergstrom: Nose is earthy and slightly funky at first, and then fruit comes out with a bit of air. Palate has a bright red fruit profile. Silice is in the Chehalem Mountains, full sun exposed, marine sediment.

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• 2022 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Consumed at Bergstrom: Nose is a nice mix of earth, florals and baking spice. Palate is red-berry driven, quite silky, nicely structured. This was the prettiest of the 4 Bergstrom Pinot's we tasted. Was enjoyable to drink this while staring at the vineyard this wine came from right out the window, which is 12 acres on a Southeast facing slope, with full sun exposure on Jory.

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• 2021 Gargantua Syrah Oregon 90 Points

  USA, Oregon

  Consumed at Bergstrom: I get some of that prototypical Syrah bacon fat on the nose here. Palate is juicy, with violets and nice acidity.

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Fantastic day, capped off with burgers at the Allison Inn that evening. Eyrie is a top 3 produce for me in Oregon, and the Bergstrom tasting with the mini food pairings was elite. WV is the best.