2015 Pinot Noir Reserve
“Impeccably balanced, the nose brings waves of brambly raspberry, freshly baked butter cookies, with hints of violet and cinnamon. The structured palate brings bold flavors of Bing cherry, black currant, and leather, with flecks of fleur de sel, nougat and white pepper adding to the long finish.”
We only a make a Reserve in exceptional years, selecting less than 1% of our Pinot Noir to make the best wine we can imagine, balancing diverse components from our best vineyard blocks.
92 in Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
“…scented of kirsch, dried herbs and black tea with hints of cedar, black cherries and dark chocolate. Medium-bodied, it has good concentration of black and red fruit flavors with a solid backbone of firm, chewy tannins and a long finish…”
– Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate (August 31, 2017)
Vintage
VINTAGE 2015 brought ideal conditions, leading to generous yields and exceptionally concentrated fruit. An early spring and clear weather led to a solid bloom that was three weeks early. Thinning is such an important tool for us to influence the course of ripening, and due to large initial cropsets, one we fully utilized in 2015. We thinned in early summer at our higher elevation sites, but waited until veraison to thin our lower elevation sites to slow down ripening and add “hang-time,” an important factor in the development of complex flavors in Pinot Noir.
Harvest 2015 was the earliest on record for the Northern Willamette Valley and we were a little stunned when our first fruit hit the crushpad on September 8th. Autumn brought relief from the heat with mild evenings and cool rainless nights that allowed for slow, even ripening. We harvested fruit that was absolutely pristine and perfectly ripe, at a gradual pace that allowed us to give our full attention to each block.
We are hopeful that 2015 is equally as good as the spectacular 2012 and 2014 vintages, and early signs indicate just that, with the wines showing moderate alcohols, balanced acids and great concentration.
Vineyard
Our winemaking team considers barrels from all of our estate plantings to make the Reserve our very best Pinot Noir.
Winemaking
We only a make a Reserve in exceptional years, selecting less than 1% of our Pinot Noir to make the best wine we can imagine, balancing diverse components from our best vineyard blocks.
“In 2015 our best barrels were from four vineyard sites – including a barrel from our newest vineyard, Goodrich which added about 10% whole-cluster. We think of this as a true reserve meaning we pick the finest 9 barrels in the cellar from our top single vineyard sites. This wine saw 56% new oak of only extra-tight grain light toasts from top Burgundian cooperages.” – Winemaker/Owner Adam Campbell
Our Reserve is both big and structured, designed to improve with cellaring for 20+ years.
Viticultural & Enological Data
- Vine Age 7-40 years
- Harvest Sugars 23.5 brix
- pH 3.54
- Vatting Fermentation in small open top steel fermentors. 10 months in 56% new French oak
- Cases Produced 400
