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YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST
A History of Picking the Good Ones

Where did you hear about these wineries first: Owen Roe, Dusky Goose, Shea VIneyard, Sineann, Beaux Freres? Was it avalonwine.com? Because before the scores, before the PR, these were up-and-comers in our store, then on our website. We're celebrating eight years online this month, and eighteen years in our store, and those were the wineries we called "Future Stars" back when the website started in 1998 and 99. You heard about them here first.

Mouse that pointer forward to 2006: Et Fille, Vitae Springs, Boedecker, Phelps Creek, Capitello - where will THEY be in eight years? We're betting high profile, high scoring, and (say it softly) higher prices. All are very low key Pinot makers who deliver the goods. And remember- you heard it here first.

Check out the "You Heard it Here First" Sampler Case at the the of the wine writeups.

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Et Fille Kalita Vineyard Pinot noir 05 $31.95/$28.75
Highly Recommended
We're coming to the end of our winter 2006/07 Et Fille offering, with the Willamette Valley and Palmer Creek now sold out. We had so many requests for those, one customer called the Et Fille Willamette Valley "the best value in wine he's ever found" and requested ten cases!

The Kalita is the biggest of the three Et FIlle Pinots, and we waited to give it a bit more time in bottle. It's drinking beautifully, like a much more expensive wine.

Delicately nuanced scents of perfumed cherry, violets, cola, and raspberry in the nose. Flavors are just huge- juicy black cherry, plum, blackberry, and black currant, with hints of white pepper and spice in the long finish. The finish shows how beautifully integrated this wine is, even young. There's a subtle streak of acidity that calls for successful cellaring, and says this wine will pair superbly with fine foods.

Howard says this wine is different in its flavors from his other wines, with darker fruit flavors, softer acids, a bit of cola in the nose and flavor, and a slightly less perfumed quality. He attributes a lot of the differences to the soils in the vineyard. It's an elegant, darker fruit wine, and the distinctive flavors of Kalita show through clearly. -jean

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Capitello Pinot noir 04 $30.56/$33.95
Ray Walsh, winemaker at King Estate from 1993-2005, has started his own winery, Capitello. This is a rising star no-brainer. He designed and made the wines of King Estate for more than ten years, a string of successes, albeit designed for the mainstream. Now he can expand his work to offer Pinot noir and Pinot gris with a unique identity, a succulent blending of "New Zealand savvy and now Oregonian" style.

I really liked Ray's 2003 Pinot and was anxiously awaiting the release of his '04. It was a combination of factors: I hold his wine-making abilities in high regard and as many of you have heard/read from me, I think the 2004 Oregon Pinot vintage is as good as it gets.

First wiff and taste: this Pinot is going to the Reserve Pinot Club. Georgeously expressive aromas of red fruit--cherry, wild strawberry, and raspberry with lilac, perfectly integrated earth, and a darker edge that reveals itself with time. The aromas carry through to the palate as dark red cherry carresses your taste buds.

Ray is a textural artist (have you tried his Pinot Gris?) and his Pinot has a lush mouthfeel, fine tannins and the hallmark juicy acidity of '04. As if you need more, spicy herbs, barrel spice, and sweet fruit dance on the finish. Expect to hear more from Ray Walsh...a lot more.

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Boedecker Stewart Pinot noir 04 $25.16/$27.95

Stewart and Athena have that special something found in the most promising Pinot makers. With their first vintage, it's clear something good is going on.

This is my kind of Pinot. Inviting, elegant red fruit aromas guide you to the round palate and raspberry core. Soft, refined tannins with pie cherry and spice, hints of warm caramel, and subtle truffle on the finish. An impressive beginning from Stewart Boedecker, the '04 is a blend of Maresh, Stoller, and Anderson Family Vineyards. -marcus

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Phelps Creek Judith's Reserve Pinot noir 05 $35.05/$38.95
Ten years ago, if we said the name "Peter Rosback", you'd say "Who?" Now his winery, Sineann, is synonymous with some of the NW's best wines. The Phelps Creek Judith's Reserve is made by Rosback.

Phelps Creek's Judith's Reserve is their finest Pinot Noir, made from the oldest vines of their Hood River vineyard. Dark cherry and ripe blueberry notes fuse with rich tobacco tones and the vineyard's distinctive underlying minerality. Fine, integrated tannins provide backbone to an opulent, seductive structure designed for years of development. Imagine pairing with game and wild mushrooms.

You Heard it Here First Sampler Case $349
(retail $398.40) save $49.49

3 each of the 4 wines above:

3 - Et Fille Kalita 05
3- Capitello 04
3- Boedecker Stewart 04
3- Phelps Creek Judith's Reserve 05

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NEW
ROCO "Private Stash" 04
(an Avalon Wine Reserve Pinot noir Club Selection for January)
ROCO Pinot noir 04
Roots "Estate" 05
Capitello Pinot noir 04
Patton Valley "Lorna MarieCuvee" Pinot noir 04
Iris Hill Pinot noir 05
Iris Hill Pinot noir Reserve 05