Harvest moon over Willamette Valley

Willamette Valley, various wineries
Tasted Sunday, September 20, 2009 - Friday, September 25, 2009 by Omar Khayyam with 884 views

Introduction

Coming right around harvest time, Jon V. and I had the nice opportunity to talk to several winemakers and follow them in the fields; everyone was trying to time the weather and harvest; as we hit ground in Portland a real indian summer heat wave struck the wine country and the most nervous started picking right then (also some calmer minds who were sitting on already ripe fruit from vineyards with more sun exposure).

Others, including John Thomas, explained that the heat in combination with the wind from the gorge dried out the grapes and induced an illusion of ripeness and insisted that one needed to wait.

It was a brilliant experience, and the weather was so nice we decided to take a break from wine and went both to the coast and also hiked around mount hood. Then back for some more tasting and visits. We did a bit of barrel tasting, but given the emphasis on assemblage at many of the wineries we visited, it seems only fair to omit most of those tasting notes. I will say though, that the 2008s at their best look like they will be able to pair the ripeness of the 2006s with the structure and more classic pinot aromas of the better made 2007s.

Flight 1 - Argyle bubbly and other offerings (6 Notes)

  • 2006 Argyle Vintage Brut 82 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/20/2009)

    All grapes (58 % chardonnay and 42 % pinot noir) from Knudsen vineyard. Very aggressive mousse. Creamy. Not the most elegant sparkler, but good enough.

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  • 2006 Argyle Pinot Noir Black Brut 79 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/20/2009)

    a unique wine - bubbly red (100% pinot noir) inspired by aussie sparkling shiraz. A sharp note of yeast, still a light bodied wine with a full cherry candy nose.

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  • 2007 Argyle Brut Rosé 80 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

    (9/20/2009)

    Rhubarb preserve, black currant jelly. A flavorful palette of aromas dissipates too quickly in the mouth, leaving you to wonder where that powerful first nose went. Made with 52 % pinot meunier and 48 % pinot noir (red wine blended with white wine base).

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  • 1999 Argyle Extended Tirage Brut 89 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/20/2009)

    lovely - herbal nose with sweet challah bread richness good mousse. fine structure.

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  • 2007 Argyle Riesling Minus Five Artisan Series Lone Star Vineyard 77 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills

    (9/20/2009)

    nose is good - a waft of freshly made toffee floats through the air. But the taste veers towards cheap strawberry/peach kool aid at the end, perhaps aided by the problematic lack of acidity.

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  • 2006 Argyle Pinot Noir Nuthouse Willamette Valley 86 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/20/2009)

    warm weather pinot at it's most expressive; bacon fat, toffee, sweet fruit and some almost syrah like notes (cocoa?, moccha?); a broad and bold wine with medium finish.

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Flight 2 - Panther Creek tasting room (5 Notes)

Flight 3 - Tasting wine at WillaKenzie with Thibaud Mandet (11 Notes)

  • 2008 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Blanc 85 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    very fine nose - tulip stems and citrus. A fresh cut. Narrow. I bought some after having tasted this.

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  • 2008 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Gris 79 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    (9/21/2009)

    a bit fatigued. tropical fruit, but not nearly as defined in style and fresh as the pinot blanc which we tasted before. you could do a lot worse though.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Gamay Noir 80 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    (9/21/2009)

    always interesting to try a varietal wine that is so closely associated with a particular region somewhere else. Broad shouldered compared to all the pinot noirs, christmas spice, a bit of heat, rich red fruit. Not my style, but, a fun wine that might be a popular hit if they could sell it for a third of the current price (USD 25)...

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  • 2007 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Thibaud's Cuvee 81 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    fresh and bright red fruit.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Pierre Léon 86 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    (9/21/2009)

    well integrated with mix of black and red fruit. On the sweet side, but pretty good structure. The Willakenzie work horse and champion in one.

    Price is starting to creep up there at USD 38 (listed retail price), but this still is good value compared to other USD 30-50 mid-range priced pinot noirs from Oregon.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Aliette 88 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Elegant, but still true to vintage and region, i.e. a lot of ripe fruit. A step up compared with the Pierre Leon, although they seem to represent somewhat different styles.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Kiana 88 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    (9/21/2009)

    ripe red fruit with very fine balance (good acidity) - and a long finish.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Terres Basses 90 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Oh, my. This is a fantastic wine - has a bit of everything: broad and drink now delicious, at the same time, there is more of that evasive pinot perfume than in any of the other wines in the line-up and very fine structure.

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  • 2006 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Gris Late Harvest Flawed

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    not rating this wine - I think it was flawed. Still, enough of musk and honey to warrant a second attempt at some stage. Cowardly, I did not point this out to our hosts, but poured it in the bucket when they looked the other way...

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  • 2008 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Gris Late Harvest 91 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    barrel sample - simply delicious! They had three small barrels standing in a corner. I guess this is picked late and then frozen and pressed. We tasted it before filtering. and the flavor palette was just outstanding. honey, musk, candied orange peel, rose water loukum, and all the wonders of the world. dark yellow, almost orange in color.

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  • 2008 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Triple Black Slopes 90 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    90-92. We did a lot of barrel sampling this day but just have to give a head's up on this one. such fruit! a bold style pinot but with great structural promises, and this is so far from being ready to go. Expect great things. Same can be said for much of the other 08's we got to preview, and personally I thought some of the other barrels were even more enticing and fresh, but it is hard to judge before assemblage. At least this one is a single vineyard designate.

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Flight 4 - At the Carlton Winemakers Studio (6 Notes)

  • 2006 Hamacher Chardonnay H 84 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Light bodied, good fruit, some oak but not overpowering. I guess this used to be a NV but in my notes I have 2006 so I guess he started designating by vintage for the entry level as well.

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  • 2007 Hamacher Chardonnay Cuvée Forêts Diverses 91 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    I think this is my favourite white wine from Oregon. Marked by effortless grace with clean apple and hazelnut flavors; and just that soft touch of pie dough and butter fresh out of the oven. gorgeous.

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  • 2007 Hamacher Pinot Noir "H" 86 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    earth and strawberries, raspberries. Some smoke. Good fruit but short finish, a bit on the lighter side, without all the acidic structure one would like to see. But for entry level pinot... very nice

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  • 2006 Andrew Rich Coup D'Etat Columbia Valley 79 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    blueberry and raspberry with a decent nose. the wine dissapointed on the finish, with a lack of structure and balance.

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  • 2006 Andrew Rich Syrah 83 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Toned down compared to the southern rhone style in the same line up. Violets, licorice, coffee. nice tannic structure.

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  • 2007 Andrew Rich Gewürztraminer 91 Points

    USA, Oregon/Washington, Columbia Gorge

    (9/21/2009)

    honey, muscat grape, rose water candy. 2/3 of the fruit is from Washington State, 1/3 from Oregon. Late harvest, frozen and pressed. Still the best dessert wine I've encountered in Oregon.

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Flight 5 - Mixed flight at Jay McDonald's tasting room in Carlton (5 Notes)

  • 2006 EIEIO Chardonnay Cuvée E 85 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Jon got it just right: "lussebullar" - i.e. Swedish saffron/raisin rolls. Very generous, a good mix of stainless steel and oak. Thistle vineyard mainly, I believe.

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  • 2008 Ayres Vineyard Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 84 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Half Ribbon Ridge, half Eola Hills - a philosophy I heartily agree with, althuogh there seems to be different terroirs in the WV, much of the vines may be to young too fully express, why not go for an interesting blend?

    The nose was very good - very much on the pure red fruit side of the spectrum, but the follow-up was a bit weak, on the thin side although the color of the wine seemed to promise something more full bodied; fruit was overpowered by vanilla/butter flavors.

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  • 2007 Quercus Pinot Noir Harmonia 86 Points

    USA, Oregon

    (9/21/2009)

    For the price this is just right! Unfortunately, the owner/maker appears to be on the verge of retirement and it may be that this is the last. Momtazi, Bayliss + 6 othr vineyards, I believe. Some funk, but underneath pure red fruit. Narrow and elegant, maybe the finish is a bit too short. On the other hand...

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  • 2006 Utopia Pinot Noir Utopia Vineyard 85 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge

    (9/21/2009)

    Ribbon Ridge AVA. A bit flat perhaps, but otherwise classic pinot noir with fruit driven cherry and blackberry flavors. Too expensive for me at this quality, but a nice wine by all means.

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  • 2007 EIEIO Pinot Noir Cuvée O 90 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/21/2009)

    Some fun stems/stalks greeness in the middle of all this silk and satin, but predominantly a smooth and very well integrated opulent fruit and structure. weighty but very well crafted. lots of layers.

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Flight 6 - Tasting wine with Kelley Fox (4 Notes)

Flight 7 - At Domaine Drouhin (5 Notes)

  • 2007 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Chardonnay Arthur 87 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

    (9/24/2009)

    Nose: Stern and more unforgiving than all the other chardonnays we tasted this week. Pear and some more subtle floral notes over wet stones
    Mouth: crisp, fresh
    Finish: long
    For some reason, I have never been in love with Arthur, but I admire the style and would like to see if they will hold up and develop secondary flavors.

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  • 2007 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir 88 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/24/2009)

    Nose: fine, berries, floral tones, some earth
    mouth: good structure (more tannins than other 2007s, good acidity), a bit thin perhaps, but no real concern
    Finish: medium to long

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  • 2006 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir Laurène 86 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

    (9/24/2009)

    Nose: ripe fruit, baked blueberries, wet earth de luxe
    Mouth: really no acidity to speak of
    Finish: Medium

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  • 2002 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir 91 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/24/2009)

    Nose: Red fruit, iron ore, earth, raisins, and yet something still green
    Mouth: cherry explosion, good structure, still fresh
    Finish: Long

    I think the price today was more than double at release. But that's no more than right. It was showing like it was miles ahead of allmost all of the superweight 2006s and the elegant 2007s we tried on this journey.

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  • 2003 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir Laurène 90 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

    (9/24/2009)

    Nose: sweet black cherries, a lot of spice
    Mouth: satin texture (well integrated but high alcohol levels), fine structure for 03
    Finish: Long, firm and pleasant

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Flight 8 - Tasting wine with Laura Volkman (4 Notes)

Flight 9 - At Beaux Freres (3 Notes)

  • 2007 Beaux Frères Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 87 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    (9/24/2009)

    Smooth, lots of well integrated red berries. Not very firm structure; I miss this. A bit low on acidity, but delicious and silky in texture.

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  • 2007 Beaux Frères Pinot Noir The Beaux Frères Vineyard 89 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge

    (9/24/2009)

    More body than the Willamette Valley entry (well, whatever one should call it at USD 50...) level wine, still feminine expression with silky smooth texture. A little fragmented. Jammy baked fruit. Slurpy. and the most fruit forward of the 2007s I tried, but given the 70 % or so new oak this wine sees, I was impressed with how elegant that touch of oak was.

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  • 2007 Beaux Frères Pinot Noir The Upper Terrace 90 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge

    (9/24/2009)

    Very well integrated fruit, full bodied, great nose, silky, with mulberries and spice as the wine grows on me. I am missing a certain firmness and core, but what a seductive wine! drink now or long for it for years to come.

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