2008 Grande Cuvée Pinot Noir ($25.00 each)

TASTING NOTE

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TECHNICAL INFORMATION

VINEYARDS

FERMENTATION AND AGING

TASTING NOTES
The 2008 Grande Cuvée Pinot Noir delivers suave aromas of macerated cherries, blackcurrant, spices and cigar box. The flavors are fresh and juicy, showing ripe black cherries and cassis, framed by a long spicy aftertaste with a vibrant structure. Enjoy this complex yet easily approachable wine now or cellar for up to 7 years. Pairs well with Northwest-inspired cuisine, like salmon, duck or mushrooms.

VINTAGE
The 2008 vintage is becoming a new benchmark vintage for Oregon, following in the foot steps of the great 1999 vintage which was mostly characterized by a very long, beautiful Indian summer. The 2008 season started almost a month behind normal bud break times and the unfortunate rainy episodes during the fruit set caused a smaller crop load than usual. The overall growing season was cooler than average and resulted in late maturing of the fruit; we saw some veraison only occurring in the month of September. Fortunately for us the rain did not come in the month of September and October. Having started a month behind, we all felt that we had “dodged the bullet,” and did not realize we were about to create a wine that will be part of our wine history.

VINEYARDS
By combining grapes from a variety of appellations we created a wine with complex layers. We selected premium vineyard sites throughout the Willamette Valley, including Willakia (Eola-Amity Hills), Nuestro Sueño (Eola-Amity Hills), Zena Crown (Eola-Amity Hills), Kalita (Yamhill-Carlton District), and Monk’s Gate (Yamhill-Carlton District). All of the vineyard sites embrace viticultural practices that reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides which can have a negative impact on the soil’s health. The vineyard sites were closely monitored to ensure the maximum quality of fruit. Harvest decisions were made based on fruit flavors and sugars.

VINIFICATION
All grapes from the individual vineyard sites were hand-sorted and destemmed prior to fermentation. Grapes from each vineyard were fermented individually in small lots. Cold maceration preceded fermentation to maximize color and flavor. The majority of the fruit was fermented in 2½ ton open top stainless steel fermentors. These grapes were punched down daily by hand for a total of 20 days of skin contact. After primary fermentation the juice was gravity-fed directly to barrels. 100% malolactic fermentation occurred over a 6 month period. Aging took place for 13 months in French oak (16% new) barrels from a variety of coopers.The wine was bottled unfiltered and unfined.