From My Friend Jerry at Wineopolis

Hi Everybody,

Please disregard that big bright thing in the sky. It's supposed to be there. The solar flare that's being reported today, isn't even aimed at us. Also disregard the unusually high river, since it will overrun the east bank before it gets us. That's why Corvallis is still here and Orleans isn't.

Both of the featured wines for our free Saturday tasting are from the Marche, the Italian region on the Adriatic coast, east of Umbria. The white wine is one of our (and yours, apparently) favorite bang for the buck all-rounders, the Fattoria Laila Verdicchio. Yes, we tasted this last October, but now we have a new 2010 version, and the 2010 vintage strikes again. Only $9.75, the lowest price we've ever asked for this wine. Yes, the exchange rate is starting to improve with these recent arrivals.

The red wine signals the return of a marque that some of you may remember from five years ago, when they were direct imported by Portland importer, Greg Zancanella. Saladini Pilastri, one of the finest estates of the Marche, then decided to go with Leonardo Locascio's Winebow, a national importer specializing in Italian wines. Apparently, that didn't work out as expected, because they are back with Zancanella Importing, and are back on the shelf at WINEOPOLIS. Saladini Pilastri's 2007 Montetinello is a montepulciano and sangiovese version of Rosso Piceno, the regions most dominate red DOC, or Denominzione Di Controllata. This is a quintessentially italianate mouthful of intense plum, blackberry, herb, earth, and spice with a hint of licorice as well. That all totals up to just plain savory, a wine that just begs for all the usual suspects of non-fish foods. Only $12.95, a very special introductory price.

So, disregard all dangers, and come by, it will be good to see you.

Central Oregon to Become Official 'Wine Region'

Maragas Winery Gets 'Incredible Christmas Present'

From KTVZ.COM News Sources

POSTED: 12:33 pm PST December 29, 2011

Maragas Winery Maragas Winery in Jefferson County was first to grow wine grapes in Central Oregon's challenging climate

CULVER, Ore. -- The Oregon Wine Board will recognize Central Oregon as an official wine region, according to the founder of Maragas Winery near Culver, the first to make wine solely from grapes grown on the climate-challenged High Desert.Doug Maragas said Thursday he received confirmation of the news last Friday from Charles Humble, marketing and communications director for the Oregon Wine Board."It was an incredible Christmas present,” Maragas said.For a decade, Maragas had been working on getting recognition for wine-making and grape-growing in the Central Oregon area.“When we started here and released our first wine, I fielded numerous comments that the venture was foolish and I was a bit crazy to put forth the effort,” he said.But a decade later, Maragas said he has been exonerated.“It’s an enormous step forward in recognition and credibility, which directly relates to marketability,” he said.Soon, when people contact the Oregon Wine Board, the official state representative of the Oregon wine industry, rather than have Maragas Winery listed under the “other” category, it will be listed in its own category.And, what category is it? Maragas said it didn’t take long to respond to Charles Humble’s question on what he’d like to call it – “it seemed obvious to me – “Central Oregon.”” Maragas explained that the region would range from Warm Springs to Bend.“The tipping point of finally convincing the State to recognize the Central Oregon wine region was the fact that we now have two other licensed wineries in the area – Volcano Vineyards, and Faith Hope and Charity," Maragas said. "With Maragas Winery, that makes three wineries and six small but still commercial-sized vineyards.”Maragas had tried a year ago to get the recognition for the area when the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, the largest competition globally for American wines, awarded Maragas Winery Beat Red a silver medal. This was significant, because this wine was made entirely of Central Oregon grapes. (read the rest)

Anam Cara '07 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir.

I am very excited about our dinner at Linda's mom's tonight. Salmon, and I am opening a bottle of Anam Cara '07 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir. http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=784084
2007 Anam Cara Pinot Noir Estate Reserve, USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains -
Average of 91 points in 6 community wine reviews, professional notes, label images, wine details, and recommendations on when to drink.

'10 May be the Best Yet!

I have had a few opportunities to tast the '10 Pinot Noirs ove rthe last few months and I must say that they are just about perfect.
The other night we (Travel Lane County) had a celibratin at our one year old Adventure Center and King Estate was thee pouring the Signature Pinot Noir from '10. I was blown away! Complex, black fruit with hints of clove, honeysuckle and island spice layered with smokey peat and jam.
Loved it! And it will lay in wait for many years as the acid and body are both present and pleasant.

Double '07

I am sipping the '07 Iris Hill Pinot Noir right now. Plum and tart berry on the nose with hints of baked apple and spiced quince. Very soft mouthfeel with  lush, soft taste of black fruit and plumb. Really one of the outstanding Pinot Noirs of '07. Get it if you can and sit one it for a few more years just to see how much better it will get!
Jason D. Brumley says that '07 is a collectors vintage not a drinkers. I agree! But it is drinking VERY well now.
I have also just tasted an '07 Baco Noir from Girardet and found the wine to be wonderful. I love that I called the '07 as a great vintage and lots of wine writer said it would suck!:)
If yiu can get your hands on an '07 Pinot noir, buy it now!

Patchwork Cellars

Tonight I had an opening of my prints at a little cafe called The Washburne Cafe in downtown Springfield. Good crowd with lots of good questions. The best thing about the evening was the winery that came to help out and give tastes to all comers 21 and over.
I was impressed by both wines Stirling Fox , the owner and winemaker at Patchwork Cellars, brought to taste.
His '09 Pinot Gris has a nice mineral nose with hints of fresh crushed grape and floral overtones. The taste is caramel and ripe pear with a nice acid back. I had it with Lobster Bisque and it stood up very well. It is nice to have a Gris that will stand up to creamy soups and enhance the flavors.

The Pinot Noir was a great '09. Very mellow flavors with small hints of earth and leather. I came away with the impression that like his '07, this wine will be very drinkable in 2014-15 though it is very good now.
This is one of the '09s that is flavorful enough to last. Great buy.

'05 Devitt Merlot

We had a nice treat for dinner, a 2005 Devitt Merlot sourced from Steel-head Run Vineyard. Dark complex candied fruit, coffee, dark chocolate in the nose with fruit compote, 7 spice and deep dark fruit in the mouth. Excellent mouth feel, sot and pleasant with perfect acid balance. I had it with a roast and a salad and it paired very well. Great finish. I let it open for about 45 minutes and the difference was noticeable. Thank you Jim.

Harvest at Ghost Hill

Wednesday began on a bit of a sour note. Linda was backed up in meeting and we were trying to get on the road to Carlton to help sort fruit. As we got ready to leave, barely in time to make it up there at a reasonable time, we opened the garage door to fine our more adventurous cat had secreted himself in the garage while I was taking this out to the car. Out he went under the garage door the moment it opened. To say I was upset would be a ...well, let's just say I am glad there were no small children within earshot. Linda, ever calm and present, walked out and found him enjoying hide and seek in the garden, and after a short chase, he stopped in the dry leaves in the gutter and had a good roll. She calmly went over and picked him up. Back in the house, dusty and happy, and we were getting later and later.
We made it up in record (well not quite record time, after all, Linda was in the car with me) time and dashed in to Horse Radish for a plate of Hummus and salad.
Rebecca (seen above trying NOT to fall in) , the winemaker for Ghost Hill, was all ready for us, gave us our stations, and in came the grapes.
We were using the facility at Carlton Cellars, owned by my friend Dave Grooters and his partner/ wife Robin Russel, and were under the gun to finish and have things cleaned up so the next batch could come in.

The picking began at 11:00 on the Bayliss- Bower vineyard and we had Wädenswil on the sorting table by 1:00. The clusters were huge and firm. I tasted a few random grapes and I was amazed by the development in structure and complexity. These had a semisweet flavor bursting with rich,lush flavors of blue fruit, spice, pepper, and a soft mouthfeel. The seeds were brown and the skins were dense but not overly thick.. Very pleasant hint of acid.
We found very little botrytis as the leaves had been cut back to avoid standing water on the fruit and there very few unripe clusters.

Next came the 777 and man was it intense! This grape usually has a sweet, dark juice and a firm fruit with a thicker skin than other Pinot Noir grapes. These were no exception, rather, they were some of the finest firmest, most flavor filled 777 grapes I have ever tasted. Dark fruit, thicker, chewier skin with none of the usual bitterness, just a slight acidic feel on the tooth. This is going to be an exceptional year. We found a bit more mold deep in the clusters but still very little. The smaller more conical clusters were larger this year due to more hang time and because of the intense dropping of fruit done for the development of the best possible fruit. Most vineyard dropped fruit to 1 cluster per stem.

After a short break we started in on the 114 and I was amazed at the cluster size in these bins. The fruit, being thinner skinned than the 777, was easy to burst and the flavors were sweet and rich, not from high brix, usually higher in this clone, but from the long cool maturation that took place.
This is called physiological ripeness (or physiological maturity) of grapes is a relatively recent addition to the discussion of ripeness in viticulture and winemaking. The phrase has become a "catch all" term used to describe other factors in the development of ripening grapes that affect a wine's quality beyond the standard measurements of sugars, acids and pH. These factors generally includes evaluating the ripeness of tannins as well as the development of other phenolic compounds that contribute to the color, flavor and aroma of wine. In many ways, the concept of physiological ripeness is similar to the French term Engustment (from the Latin root gustis or taste) which denotes the stage of ripening when aroma and flavor become apparent. Research has shown that most aroma compounds develop in the berry in glycosylated form as secondary metabolites which occur late in ripening as the build up of sugars have leveled. This stage is distinct from the sugar/acid interactions of ripening because it is possible for a grape to be "ripe" in the context of sugar and acid levels but still be very immature when it comes to the development of tannins, aromas and flavor that characteristic a complex or quality wine.

For the most part, many of these qualities are difficult to objectively measure so evaluation of the physiological ripeness of grapes is centered around observing and physically sampling the grapes. With experience winemakers and viticulturists learn to associate certain taste and characteristics with different stages of development. They evaluate the skin and pulp texture of the berry as well as the color of skins, seeds and stems. If the seeds are still green, the tannins inside the grape are more likely to be harsh and bitter. As the tannins continue to develop, the seeds start darkening in color. They will observe the lignification of the stems as they turn from being flexible and green to hard, woody and brown (for many varieties but not all) indicating that vine has completed its work in developing its "offspring" grape clusters and has started to store carbohydrates and resources for its next growing season. During the ripening period winemakers and viticulturists will continually sample grapes throughout the vineyard in the weeks and days leading up to harvest. ^{(from an article in Wickipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripeness_in_viticulture)}

Absolutely joyful flavors.The smell of these grape filled the winery as they were crushed.
On to the last and my surprise favorite, Pommard. The clusters were small and had good brown stems on much of the grapes. The taste of these was what I will call meaty. Dense, ripe, smooth, and satisfyingly flavorful. I could eat bowls of these for breakfast. Very little sweetness, just that mature taste mentioned above.
The last tank was filled with a blend and we selected whole cluster with brown stems for the tank. Can't wait to try that one.
After a few hours of clean up, we bade farewell and headed in to Dundee for a bite at Dundee Bistro. There are so many fine places to eat but I had my heart set on the deconstructed clam chowder.

Manilla Clam Chowder with Mussels & Fuji Apples
fingerling, applewood bacon, leeks, cream & spinach 16

I was not disappointed. I had it with a glass of the 2009 PONZI Willamette Valley. Perfectly balanced, not to sweet and held its own against the apple and cream tastes.
A long drive home with a 1977 performance from the Met of Il Trovatore on the radio, ending the day on a fine note.
There are few things more wonderful than having your hands in the wine you will one day drink!
Mark my words: This WILL be the best year Oregon has seen for developed flavors and character of the wines. This will be the benchmark!

Thank You "My Wine Words"!

I just got a nice email from Alie at My Wine Words.
They had a contest to fill in the blank. A nice glass of Pinot Noir is like__________.
Click the link to see the winners!

Tasting at Authentica

My friend Steve Baker, owner of one of the best wine stores in the county, gave a gift certificate for a wine tasting to OMP's auction and Linda bought it. Last night we took advantage of it and had a great time tasting through three whites and three reds. The whites were all Chardonnay and were all just to my taste. We blind tasted and I pegged the first one as an Oregon wine. I was right! Winderlea '09 Chardonnay. What a wonderful and rich wine with great balance and complexity showing hints of soft apple and oak. Sweet but balanced finish.. The minerality that makes the great whites is always missing in wines from around here as we have no limestone, but Winderlea and a few others from up north have managed to coax out every bit of taste from the grape and it shows in this wine. Drinkable for another 3-4 years, great now. I highly recommend this one.
I did not take notes but the other two were also good and the one from Frances was the best with olives and hard cheese. The Winderlea was remarkably good with blue cheese. I will get the info from Steve and list the other wines.
I was fooled by the reds. The first wine was obviously a Pinot Noir but it had the rich full leathery hard red fruit of wines from the Van Duzer area. I was wrong! It was from the Alexander Valley in California. Very impressive wine! I will get the info from Steve and post it. The one I remember most is the Johan '08 Nils Reserve. The winemaker,  Daniel J. Rinke,  uses only native yeast, does not use SO2 to clean (and kill) and they are Bio-dynamic. This wine is so elegant it almost did not fit with the two other wines (the third was a Burgundy) and would have stood by itself. Soft mouthfeel with very soft tannins and minerality. Black fruit and hints of sweet cherry. Great with the white cheese.
More on the other wines later.