2018 Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir Oregon

Community Tasting Notes (5) Avg Score: 88 points

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  4/1/2024 - Sagan99 Likes this wine: 89 Points

  Like a fine wine, it's improving with age, and this seems to have caught a wave to more character and subsequent scores.
  TBC
  
  
  Previous notes check.
  
  PS Drink The Rainbow!!

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  5/6/2023 - Claret & CdP Gang Likes this wine:

  Au Bon Climat tasting, 30 min slow oxed, darker, tighter nose but opened up, ripe cherries, barnyard after time, elegant, not complex

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  10/10/2022 - Ben Christiansen wrote:

  Just a little bit green, a little bit savory as well. And then fairly lean on the palate.

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  9/30/2022 - Sagan99 Likes this wine: 88 Points

  ( With this bottle, I did a side by side tasting with the Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot. I could not find same vintage, but both were amazing- see those notes, too)
  The winner... Tie!
  Long term, ABC will have longer time frame to resolve the tannins.
  But, to drink earlier, no question the Drouhin is the one.
  I know it says it will last a while...
  In terms of rating, to me, the 90+ bar is reserved for great vintage Grand Cru Burgundies. It's a bias, maybe. But, they've reached that level of respect and quality over hundreds of years.
  With that, my 88 is truly spectacular. Maybe the next 5 bottles will get there?
  
  Pinot Noir 100%
  13.5% abv
  $50 in Canuckland
  
  Usual young Pinot beautifully clear ruby/purple colour.
  Nose of mostly red berries, with blueberries wafting in the right wind.
  Surprisingly tannic and structured
  Dry, medium body
  Medium 30 second finish
  
  This is way too young to drink this wine. I didn't decant this wine as I was comparing to Drouhin. But, it would do much better if aired for 3 hours in advance.
  
  I've some left and will come back to it again in a day.
  Addendum - apparently, I go away for a minute and my better half liked it so much, she drank the rest!
  That's ok... This is an awesome wine. Can't wait for a repeat in a year!
  
  PS- Drink the Rainbow!
  
  Winemaker note -
  
  TASTING NOTES
  Our first Oregon Pinot Noir release in 19 years had to be good. Our 2018 Oregon Pinot Noir is immensely drinkable at this stage. This young Pinot is complete, supple and delicious now, but will continue to improve for at least 10 years. It is loaded with aromas of ripe berries, both blackberries and strawberries. The underlying power and complexity are 'under the surface' currently, but will be apparent soon. The 25% of stem inclusion gives the wine a nice spice note, not seen in Oregon Pinots. The spice complements the barrel component to make a seamless, rich, mouth-watering wine.
  
  WINEMAKER NOTES
  The 2018 harvest in Oregon was very good. The summer was warm, with a cool fall. This 'cooling off' at the right time, retained more acid in the fully ripe Pinot Noir. We included some whole clusters in the fermentation. If the grapes ripen slowly, the stems are not bright green but have evolved to 'browning off '. Then we include some whole clusters in the tank. These lignified stems add more complexity and substance to the wine.
  
  ACCOLADES
  Robert Parker's Wine Advocate Score: 93
  "'I first made Oregon wine under the Au Bon Climat label in 1984,' says Jim Clendenen. 'This is from the first plantings at Larry Stone's new place with Dominique Lafon, Lingua Franca.' Pale ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Oregon offers a nose with concentrated aromas of liquid licorice, warm blackberries, star anise and exotic spices with touches of rosewater coming through—so layered! In the mouth, it's medium-bodied with slowly opening perfumed fruits in a chalky, super fresh frame, and it finishes layered and nuanced. Give it another year or two in bottle."
  
  Antonio Galloni's Vinous Score: 92
  "The 2018 Pinot Noir Oregon is a rich, heady wine. Rose petal, crushed flowers, dried herbs and anise open first. The stems (33%) are going to require a number of years to fully assimilate. That should not be an issue in time. The 2018 is a bit edgy today. The Oregon Pinot is sourced from Larry Stone's Lingua Franca vineyard, but because it is made and bottled in California, it must carry the generic 'Oregon' appellation."
  
  Wine and Spirits Magazine Score: 90
  
  WINE SPECIFICS
  HARVESTED: September 21, 2018
  ALCOHOL: 13.5%
  PH: 3.31
  ACIDITY: 6.3
  THE BACKSTORY
  Finally, we are back in Oregon. We have always loved the people and the grapes of Oregon, but finding the right vineyard was impossible. Our problem was Oregon is full of small, low yielding Pinot Noir vineyards. There were a few larger vineyards, but the quality was not up to our standards. Many small growers were willing sell us grapes, but the Willamette Valley is over 800 miles, so the price of shipping is extreme. In 2018 we got a call from the highly regarded Lingua Franca Vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills, the premier spot for Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley. We were offered a full truck load for the next few years. This is the first release in this new series of wines.
  
  The first Oregon Pinot Noir under the Au Bon Climat label was in 1985. This legendary wine was made by the traveling fermentation technique. The grapes were picked and crushed in Oregon and ended up in small fermenters in the back of a pickup truck. Every time the truck stopped, the grapes were punched down. The trip to Santa Maria took a couple of days. The wine turned out great, but we never used this technique ever again. Montinore Vineyards had extra grapes in both 1998 and 1999. Au Bon Climat released a few hundred cases and the wine was well received. We changed, and so did the farming at the vineyard. We chose not to make wine from Montinore in the following vintages.
  
  The 2018 harvest in Oregon was very good. The summer was warm, with a cool fall. This “cooling off” at the right time, retained more acid in the fully ripe Pinot Noir. We included some whole clusters in the fermentation. If the grapes ripen slowly, the stems are not bright green but have evolved to “browning off”. Then we include some whole clusters in the tank. These lignified stems add more complexity and substance to the wine.
  
  Our first Oregon Pinot Noir release in 19 years had to be good. Our 2018 Oregon Pinot Noir is immensely drinkable at this stage. This young Pinot is complete, supple and delicious now, but will continue to improve for at least 10 years. It is loaded with aromas of ripe berries, both blackberries and strawberries. The underlying power and complexity are “under the surface” currently, but will be apparent soon. The 25% of stem inclusion gives the wine a nice spice note, not seen in Oregon Pinots. The spice complements the barrel component to make a seamless, rich, mouth-watering wine. A natural pairing of salmon and Oregon Pinot is easy. But, for a real treat go for duck.

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  8/25/2021 - probraided wrote: 87 Points

  Liked it better in the tasting room. Not very impressive. Muted overall and pretty "sturdy". Surprising saddle leather component on the palate. Ok with food, otherwise not that interesting. Can get more joy from a $15 Bourgogne Rouge.

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