Wine Notes > Pinot Noir > Current Release
2007 Oregon Pinot Noir Reserve
(new release February 2010)
The Wine
We look for this wine to embody the essence of Pinot Noir. Select barrels and fermentation lots are chosen from Ridgecrest Vineyards before any blending is done in the cellar. We choose components to make a wine that epitomizes finesse, elegance, complexity, textural silkiness, and palate breadth and length for the vintage. We think these elements are what Pinot Noir is all about — not as big and macho as we can make it, but as beautiful and feminine as we can make it. Its balance makes it optimally ageable. This wine was once called the Rion Reserve, in thanks to friend and former advisor Patrice Rion.
The Vineyard
Our Reserve uses fruit primarily from Ridgecrest Vineyards, our oldest estate vineyard, a 55-acre vineyard on a 176-acre property. Beginning in 1980, this site pioneered grapegrowing on Ribbon Ridge, a small ridge on the western end of the Chehalem Mountains. Soils are a Willakenzie soil called Wellsdale, a transition soil series exhibiting characteristics of both volcanic and ocean sedimentary underlying structures. The rich, supple black cherry and blackberry fruits are characteristic of Ridgecrest Vineyards and the Willakenzie soil type. Excellent acidity, silky texture, and a long finish are hallmarks of the vineyard site, being relatively high in elevation, mature in vine age, and deeply rooted.
The Vintage
In summary, 2007 is a fantastic white vintage and a surprisingly good red vintage, despite a cool growing season and the final rains that many times might lead to less intense wines. Most winemakers in the Willamette Valley knew how to adapt to the cooler weather and took advantage of the vintage’s attributes, such as lower sugars (and therefore alcohols) and higher acids. Because of the exciting influence of vintage in a cool climate like ours, you’ll see nuance differences among all our wines. Expect ripeness but with a crisp, bright, fruit edge of minerality from higher acids and the cooler growing season. The vintage will have stellar wines, with a great range of styles. Buy whites in general, buy reds from trusted names.
Stats
Harvest Data:
Harvested 9/25–10/10/2007, fruit coming from Ridgecrest Vineyards (82%) and Stoller Vineyards (18%), @ 20.7–23.5 brix, 3.22–3.42 pH, and 6.0–7.3 g/L TA, from 1.8–3.1 tons per acre cropload
Fermentation:
12–16 days total skin contact, with 7–10 days of that pre-maceration, native ferments on Ridgecrest and Stoller fruit; average 17% whole cluster
Cooperage/Aging:
Aged for 10 months in French oak barrels with 42% new and 87% new or one-year prior use
Clonal Selection:
Pommard, Wadenswil, and Dijon clones 113 and 115
Bottling:
Bottled 9/3/2008
Bottling Analyses:
13.0% alcohol, 3.59 pH, and 5.9 g/L TA
Cases Produced:
777 cases
Suggested Retail:
$49 (TO ORDER)
Release Date:
February 2010
Quotes
Wine & Spirits, April 2010: 93. A scent of spiced tea and leafy forest notes brighten this expressive pinot. The flavors fall between black cherries and plum, with tannins as fine as Yunnan tea and a silky, finely wrought texture. The finish is firm and lasting.
The Wine Advocate, October 2009, Jay Miller: 92. The 2007 Pinot Noir Reserve is a selection of the best barrels in the cellar. In this vintage 80% of the wine came from the Ridgecrest Vineyards and was aged in 50% new oak. The nose exhibits pain grille, mineral, earth notes, lots of spice, and assorted red fruits. Silky on the palate, this elegant offering has excellent depth, succulence of fruit, and is surprisingly lush for the vintage.
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, July/August 2010, Josh Raynolds: 91. Bright red. Complex aromas of cherry pit, musky herbs, rose and smoky minerals. A chewy, sharply focused midweight that offers bitter cherry and blackcurrant flavors nicely framed by silky tannins. Finishes with good grip but no rough edges, echoing the cherry and floral notes and lingering with impressive persistence. This wine was raised in 42% new French oak.
Northwest Palate, July/August 2010: Highly Recommended. Savory spice and sweet cherry aromas mingle with rose petal, caramel, and toast on the involving--and evolving--nose. Filled with bright red cherry fruitiness, with a tart edge that shows cranberry overtones, this wine has a sense of breadth on the palate. Minerality and dried herbs line the tongue, but it is the lean red fruits that linger on the sustained finish. A deliciously elegant wine.
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© CHEHALEM
31190 NE Veritas Lane • Newberg, OR 97132
Tasting Room (503) 538-4700 • Winery (503) 537-5553 • Fax (503) 537-0850
Winemaker's Comments
Moderate-dark red/purple color; sensual, elegant nose with oak and red-black fruits; great velvet texture, broad in dimension; great acid, with an ageable balance and a very rich finish. Look for greatness here.