Ann's
Wine Picks
of the Week
Ann is Avalon's Store Manager
and resident Wine Geek

August 8, 2001

AVALON
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Special Report

International
Pinot Noir Celebration 2001

This weekend was not like any other weekend. I had the pleasure of being a volunteer at one of this year's biggest Pinot Noir events.

The International Pinot Noir Celebration was hosted in beautiful Linnfield College located in McMinnville, Oregon.

I was among the few and the privileged to be able to set up tables, pick up trash, retrieve centerpieces filled with fresh herbs to a new location, and to try some of the best wines I would ever be able to get my hands on.

On Saturday, the day was perfect for a Salmon Bake. Open flames were sprawled out on the ground with soaked branches holding Salmon. The branches were about eight feet long and had been soaked and then split. The Salmon was then placed in the split part of the wood and then the wood was tied back together. Wooden picks helped hold the fish in place.
Then the wood was placed in a long line on either side of the flames/coals and held at a nice angle over the coals with steel holders. The holders reminded me of large metal candle holders.
Across the lawn, several 80 pound pieces of Bison were being cooked to perfection.

Close by in another tent, were many Volunteers cutting, chopping, spreading, and sweating to get the many desserts and salads ready for the dinner. They were very fortunate to work beside some of the top Chefs in the world. The talent was everywhere!

I was busy all day helping to get The Salmon Bake ready for it's hungry and thirsty guests. My job included getting three 50 foot long tables dressed and ready for the feast.

Guests were able to sample many different wines along with their dinner. Two wines that I heard from customers proclaim as their favorites many times over were both from Elk Cove Winery. Their '2000 Pinot Gris and '99 Pinot Noir blew away a lot of people.

I have tried both and truly agreed. Both are fantastic!

On Sunday morning , after spending a busy night tasting many wines after my shift, I was up and ready to face another challenging and fulfilling day at the Afternoon of Pinot Noir.
Just to let you know, many other events took place as well as the two things I am telling you about. I am only letting you in on a brief description of how my weekend went. And might I add that I will definitely make this a yearly event.

I was very fortunate to work the Wine Bar on Sunday. The Wine Bar was located at the front of the lawn and was covered by a huge umbrella. We were safe from the rain. Others were not so lucky. The weather took a turn for the worse and by 3 pm guests and volunteers alike were getting very wet. Fortunately, the rain waited until around 5:30 to really come down on us.
On to some wine!

A lot of wine that I poured is not available. So, maybe I should only tempt you with wines that are available at this time.

Some of the Fantastic wines I was able to pour (and taste for quality control, of course) included everything from Switzerland to Canada, and to the back yards of our own pride and joy, Oregon.

Broadley Reserve '98 Pinot Noir really stuck out as a winner!
So was the Knudsen Erath '89 magnum of Pinot Noir - not available, but I just had to tell you how yummy it was.

The Blue Mountain Winery from Canada was another delightful wine. - Maybe available - I will have to check.

Here are a few wines and a few mental tasting notes that really stuck out in my mind. Most of these wines are in stock at Avalon.

Argyle Pinot Noir reserve 99;
The richness and silkiness are always a favorite of mine. The flavors tasted of yummy overripe juicy black fruit. A touch of oak, and earth were also intertwined. And I think I tasted a hint of chocolate.

Belle Pente Pinot Noir 99;
This one reminds me of chocolate covered bing cherries. Definitely rich and elegant and the smell was so delightful.
Heaven in a glass. Fantastic wine. Every time I have this wine in the store it always sells out.

Briggs Hill Pinot Noir;
We have had this wine in the store for a few months and we have already sold a few cases. Pretty impressive for such a new winery. Flavors included blackberries, dried mushrooms, a little touch of green pepper and of course a backbone of dried cherries. This wine deserves a rich lamb dinner to help bring out the exciting flavors.

Eyrie Pinot Noir;
This wine sells out so fast I am not even sure if any is available. When guests at the IPNC tasting heard there was Eyrie being poured, and they came in droves!!
Nice fresh fruit dominate the palate. The tannins are strong and compliment the dark fruit perfectly.

Witness Tree Pinot Noir;
The nose on this one was delightful! I could smell the vanilla and oaky toastiness. The flavors were everything from cherries, to chocolate, to dark and light berries.

Even Amity Ecowine was among the wines poured and delighted everyone!! It was light and Beaujolais in style but not a bouncy fu fu type.

There were sooo many wines that it is hard to remember them all.
I am confident that Oregon has some of the best Pinot Noirs in the world. But competition does press on.

I was very impressed with the Pinot Noirs from Switzerland as well. It was very different from any Pinots I had tried before.
The taste was boysenberry and cherry and it sprang on to my tongue. It was fantastic. It was dry but sweet, rich but light.
A very juicy and fruity wine that was very enjoyable. Most everyone that tried it was impressed with the unusual flavors it portrayed.

I think part of the name is Hesselring. I did not have the opportunity to write anything down, so all of this is from memory.

I am not sure if it is available but I will do my darnest to get some for the store. I was able to try so many wines and I wanted you to get a feel for the wines. Some wines are not available anymore. I was very fortunate to try some wines that otherwise I couldn't even begin to get a hold of.

All in all it was a spectacular weekend and I was busy for the most part and very tired by the end of the day. I was exhausted and can't really remember very many wines because there were so many. But, I definitely can not wait until next year. Maybe I will be able to help with all four days instead of just two of them. The thrill of being around so many wine makers and vineyard managers, and winery owners, and importers of fine wine really delighted me and made me proud to live in Oregon.

Chateau Lorane
Marionberry Mead
$12.99

Okay I know that mead is considered rather fufu but boy is it a nice change of pace from cold white wines. I have to say that Mead wines take some getting use to but this Marionberry will definitely change your mind. It is rich but not sticky sweet like a dessert wine. The Marionberries are true to Oregon and are bursting with ripe juicy fruit flavors! Just try one chilled bottle on a hot summer's evening and you will definitely be surprised!!!

Waterbrook
Sauvignon Blanc
$8.99


Another wine is the Waterbrook Sauvignon Blanc- Klipsun Vineyard, Columbia Valley- This is a delicious wine with lighter fares. I love to make a summer pasta salad and have it with the Sauvignon Blanc. It has the typical grassy notes with a hint of herbs, and a very pleasant lingering aftertaste.

May 26, 2001

Ponzi Arneis
$19.99 -----

If you've tried and enjoyed Caymus's Conundrum, Archery Summit's Vireton, you must try Ponzi's incredible Arneis.....

This very rare and very special Italian varietal is traditionally planted in the Northern Piemonte region of Italy. The wine is crisp, yet has a haunting, delectable flavor of intertwined mineral and fruit notes, with hints of lemon peel, white peach, honeydew melon, and finishes with a clean, honeyed note.

The Ponzi family planted their first cuttings of Arneis in 1991. Ponzi Vineyards' Aurora Vineyard yielded 2 tons per acre of fruit. Juice was fermented cool in 50% stainless steel barrels and 50% older French oak barrels. It was lightly filtered and gravity-fed to the bottling line in April 1998.

5/19
Westrey Chardonnay
Reserve 98
$19.99 -----
I must be on a Chardonnay kick because this wine is another big ONE on my list. It is at first shy and alluring but as the wine warms and develops, out comes this rich textured white wine. It is almost spicy like a good Pinot Gris but it also has nice oak overtones that do not hide the fruit. Just to let you know how the wine is made, it has extended lees contact and judicious lees-stirring rounds out intense varietal flavors to produce an opulent wine of complexity and depth.

An absolutely delicious Chard, this wine has a scent of pear, butter, and toffee, and while rich in flavor, is not overly oaked - the flavors are of crisp fruit, soft mineral notes, and a clean and refreshing, easy going finish. Excellent for holiday sipping.

The blend consists of 40% Dijon clone 96 from Anderson Family Vineyard, 50% 108 clone from Temperance Hill Vineyard and 10% Dijon clone 95 from Temperance Hill Vineyard. Our Chardonnay is 100% barrel fermented using six different yeasts in 25% new wood. We pursue a very extended fermentation for Chardonnay, six months on average, striving for richness of fruit in the wine.

Extended lees contact and judicious lees-stirring round out intense varietal flavors to produce an opulent wine of complexity and depth. Rich golden straw color reveals fresh pear and Golden Delicious apple aromas. These are enhanced by sweet spicy oak, an undercurrent of minerals and a mouth filling texture as the wine unfolds on the palate.

With balanced acidity, the concentration of thick, sweet fruit in the wine stands out as the finish lingers for some time on the palate. Total production was 243 cases and 4 cases of magnums. Finished wine: pH 3.42, TA 5.45 g/l, alcohol 13.7%, RS .08%

Need Wine?

Call us at
541-752-7418
we love to talk
with our customers about
NW wines!

Store manager Ann Crowley-
10-6PM M-Sat

---

Cole Danehower on
Oregon Wine

This is the best guide, bar none, to Oregon's wines. Insightful articles, interesting reviews, in depth interviews- you'll find them all here. Worth every penny if you're interested in Oregon wine.

Andy Perdue
on
Northwest Wine

Andy is editor of
Wine Press NW

Check it out!

Archery Summit
Vireton
$25.00 -----

First there are exotic aromas of litchi, mangos, tangerines, lime blossoms, wildflower honey, and gardenias. The winemaker has combined light white wine grapes in a way that provides plush, silky texture, and soft honeyed notes intertwined with a bracing acidity that finishes like fresh spring water.

Stellar with a good chicken salad, cold poached salmon, rattatoille, caesar salad with lots of good anchovies.

This original, ultra premium white wine from the Red Hills of Dundee is Archery's proprietary blend of Pinot Gris (76%), Chardonnay (14%), Pinot Blanc (10%) and is the only white wine they make.

All grapes are grown on Archery's three estate vineyards in the Willamette Valley. Its Alsace-like pear and almond flavors combined with an extraordinary finish make Vireton unique.

Eugene Wine Cellars
Viognier
$19.99 -----

THE BEST! This wine is really really great- rich and glyceriny mouth feel, complexity that just keeps on, I am a Condreiu lover (viognier from a town in France that is pretty much considered the best in the world) and this wine stands up to the Condreiu standard. Viognier, traditionally a rare grape of the Rhone Valley, has been used for many centuries to make exceptional wines which are highly sought after from the vineyards of Cote Rotie and Condreiu.

The highlight of this Viognier is its fresh perfumed aromas, which carry onto a palate showing baskets of zesty orange flavours and hints of spiced fruit characters. This deliciously dry wine finishes clean and crisp and is a perfect match with seafood risotto or barbecued fish in a lime marinade.

This wine is almost gone, but the winery has promised us some more cases. This is one of the true bargains of summer. We had a tasting with EWC, and people who tasted this compared it favorably to $30 Viogniers from CA. A case of this wine is a very worthy purchase and will please you all summer.

5/5/01 Hells Canyon
Merlot 98

Hells Canyon Winery was founded in 1980 by Steve and Leslie Robertson. Using their lifelong love of food, appreciation for and fascination with fine wine, and an enduring entrepreneurial spirit to guide them, they took the plunge into grape growing and wine making in a relatively unknown wine-growing area overlooking the Snake River. They named Hells Canyon Winery after the famous canyon created by the Snake River.

Hells Canyon produces 3,000 cases of premium Idaho Wine. With the new spring expansion of the vineyard, they now have 10 acres of Chardonnay, 5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, 6 acres of Merlot, 3 acres of Cabernet Franc and 12 acres of Syrah. The Robertson's are looking forward to the future with these varieties: these red varietal are generating excitement in the marketplace nationwide, and have shown to be well suited to Idaho's climate and soils.

According to Northwest Wines, A Pocket Guide to the Wines of Washington, Oregon and Idaho, "A few years back, a leading publication in London, named Hells Canyon the best Chardonnay in the world."

At the recent Northwest Wine Summit Hells Canyon won BIG! Their 1998 Idaho Reserve Merlot won "Best Idaho Wine" and the only Gold that came back to Idaho. They also won a Silver for their 1998 Idaho Pinot Noir, a Bronze for their 1998 Idaho Chardonnay and another Bronze for the 1998 Idaho Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. When tasting, also take the time to appreciate the artwork on the labels.

Waterbrook
Melange- '99
$13.99 -----

This little hidden treasure is made of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese and Cabernet Franc.

Rich, plush, easy drinking. Lovely combination of flowery boysenberry and blackberry spice. Also hints of cedar and chocolate, not to mention the sweet vanillin oak finish.

Fantastic stuff!!!

When people come in to the store looking for a good red wine I send them to the Waterbrook. It is one of my own house wines that I buy by the case.

When Patricia purchased the Autumn Wind Winery, she immediately began reworking the vineyard to grow mostly red wines (Autumn Wind had focused more on whites).

Patty and Jim inherited nice Pinot Noir from the 98 and 99 vintage, just not suited to the single vineyard, exquisitely complex wines that she likes to make. So she made this delicious wine with the grapes, priced it to sell, and we all benefit.

Here's what Jim had to say about the wines:

"The 98's are quite good, toasty but good. The '99 whites are viscous, forward and round as both were barrel fermented. While they are not my style they are both nice, clean, and have loads of ripe fruit as the main ingredient of their personalities. .... The '98 WV Pinot Noir is probably as good a '98 as you would find for under $20 retail."

Autumn Wind Pinot Noir 99
$15.99 ---

The wine is plush, pretty, fruit forward, and easy drinking. She made 6000 cases and there are less than 100 left! Check out this great deal.

 Autumn Wind Pinot Noir Reserve 99
$25.99 ---
This is a great value, also produced from the Autumn Wind 99 Pinot Noir grapes inherited by Patty when she purchased the winery. This reserve wine is made from the best barrels of the 99 vintage and is rich, plush, pretty, fairly complex, fruit forward, and easy drinking.

  Autumn Wind Pinot Noir 98
$15.99 ---
This wine was in barrel when Patty purchased the winery, and as we know 98 was a pretty good vintage! She worked her magic on this wine and turned out a delicious quaffer, with enough age to offer a little complexity along with the easy drinking plush flavors. This wine had a great nose when we tasted in May, 2001- that wonderful oak, butter, and deep plummy scent that we associate with Patty's wines was her in her little bargain bottle. The woman rocks!

Bethel Heights Pinot Noir
Freedom Hill 99
$34.99 -----

This wine came from two different blocks planted in 1988: about two-thirds is from Pommard clone vines trained on the exotic "wishbone trellis." The other third is Wädenswil clone.

I am a huge fan of the Wadenswil clone and without knowing th blend in this wine I was thrilled at the taste.

I just smiled when my nose was engulfed in a bouquet of irises, you know the ones that the rain just washed and they smell almost grape bubblegum like.

This intensely aromatic wine also demonstrates burnt wood and dark juicy bing cherries. I could taste rich plum and marionberry flavors, almost Merlot-like flavors with plenty of tannins that linger long on the palate.

This wine is so yummy now, my question is why wait? It has everything it needs to age beautifully. My guess is 2008.