The first major planting of grapes in Oregon took place in the early 1960's. But it was the early 1970's when a few vintners (most notably, Joe Ponzi of Ponzi Vineyards) came to believe that the soil and climate of the Willamite Valley were ideal for the production of the Pinot Noir grape. They traveled frequently to the Burgundy region of France in search of vine cuttings and to learn the French techniques for wine making.
I remember drinking Oregon Pinot Noir in the early 1980's and it was, to be honest, not so hot. It turned out that many of the French techniques (throwing stems into the fermentation, fermenting with wild yeasts, excessive use of oak aging, over-fining, over-filtering, etc.) worked well in France, but not so well in Oregon. It took Oregon vintners many years before they "found their own way", so to speak. Now, almost forty years later, the results are spectacular. Today's Oregon Pinot Noirs are big, grapey wines with loads of up-front fruit and the potential for long aging. While it can be argued that French Burgundies have more "structure" and "balance", Oregon Pinot Noir just tastes better.
With that in mind, we set out early in the morning to visit as many wineries as possible. Our first stop was Elk Cove Vineyards. I have always enjoyed the Pinot Gris from the Alsace region of France, but one of my neighbors (who works in the wine business) introduced me to Elk Cove's Pinot Gris several years ago. It's a wine that I buy by the case every year. So...it was a real treat to actually visit the winery where this wine is produced. As expected, the Pinot Gris was excellent, but it was the Pinot Noir at Elk Cove that really stood out on this visit. Naturally, I had to buy a few bottles of Pinot Noir that was produced from vineyards right next to the winery.
From there, we went on to two more of my favorite wineries, Maysara and Adelsheim...wonderful wines...I bought a few bottles from each. The only "low point" of the day was the defeat of my first alma mater, Michigan, by my second alma mater, Notre Dame. A few more glasses of Pinot Noir over lunch at the Ponzi Wine Bar and Bistro, however, worked wonders in easing the pain of defeat.
All of the wine tasting was great fun but, late in the afternoon, we visited the Sineann Winery...where we were forced to endure the "Bataan Death March" of wine tastings. Over twenty different wines...and they wanted us to try them all...Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir, Cabernet, Merlot, Reisling, Icewine...this vineyard, that vineyard...it was brutal. It was only with a great struggle that I was able to complete this tasting...and buy a few bottles of the Pinot Noir "Phelps Vineyard". Now exhausted, we were forced to return to our hotel for a long nap before dinner.
And a great dinner it was...this time at the Bistro Maison, a classic French Bistro in McMinnville. Truffle-scented fondue was followed by a perfectly-ripe heirloom tomato salad; thick, grilled local pork chops and a profound plate of house-made duck confit...all washed down with the tremendous 2005 Penner-Ash Pinot Noir Dussin Vineyard. For dessert, they had a large (really large) selection of house-made ice creams...sassafras, rose hips, cardamom, mocha, orange blossom, vanilla...and on and on. I decided to order a small "sampler" of each (see photo). Another perfect "cap" to a perfect day...UM notwithstanding.
1 comment:
You know Bill, you can always ship some of the wine home now. We will all get together and taste it all and let you know if we agree with your assesments. Yes?? Or are you planning a wine tasting when you get home? Laurie
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