General News of Late: Day Trip

Not much to report save a bus trip with the famous Bob Sogge, wine expert and teacher. We took an LTD bus that was donated to Oregon Mozart Players on a 5+ hour tour of Benton Lane, Pfeiffer, and LaVelle wineries.
This was a good chance for novice wine lovers to learn wine from the ground up. Steve, at Benton Lane, took us up in to the vineyards and gave us a detailed explanation of soils, varietals, removing leaves, dropping fruit, and everything else about how to bring in a great crop. He even told about his methods of selecting the best practices from all the different growing methods such as organic, sustainable, bio-dynamic, etc. and putting them to use. His methods seem to work as he just got voted on of Wine and Food magazines top 20 Pinot Noirs of the world. of the world.
We tasted the wines starting with a very good Pinot Gris, then moved to one of  the best Pinot Blanc I have had all year.
His First Class Pinot Noir is exactly that! If you have to sell something to afford a bottle, do it! Absolutely lush and warm and soft in the mouth with all the lovely layers of berry, fig, leather, and earth you can imagine on the nose. The tastes range from raspberry, plum, and figs to leather and spice. It livens up with each sip and if you take the time to let it settle under your tongue, it is like a delightful celibration of fruit and spice that you will want to repeat often.
Next stop on the trip was Pfeiffer Vineyards, home of the famous Blue Dot Pinot Noir.
cont. later

A Rich Rewarding Day

After sleeping late and dreaming about broken wine glasses, I roused myself and drove out to King Estate Winery do do something I seldom have time to do: just taste the wines.
Josh ( shown here looking a bit fearful) took me through all the whites and reds while helping others on their exploration. The newest offering from King is a restaurant, on premise wine called Acrobat ($12). I was very impressed with its full flavor: lots of pear, green apple, in the nose and tropical fruits on the palate. Full mouth feel and a bit of a tang on the finish. Very enjoyable. I took two home and we had one with lemon, basil paste and it was perfect. My wife was surprised by the flavor as it is very pale in the glass.My favorite among the many whites was the '07 Domaine Pinot Gris: ($25) Lively and fresh with lots of peach and citrus, nice finish with a clean mineral taste.
The reds were all the North by Northwest brand, (yes, that is what NxNW means) and were all really good entry level wines for those whose palettes have not been honed to a sharp point by tasting hundreds of wines...or who just like a good, simple, drinkable wine. My favorite was the Cabernet Sauvignon- Walla Walla ($35). Deep rich red with strong ceder, berry, and earth. Soft finish and drinkable now.

 A very nice family from Taiwan, Katrina, Li-Hsiang, Tsung-min, and Jessie, was there enjoying their first tastes of Oregon wines and seemed very impressed by the wines and the place.I offered some tickets to our concert for them to enjoy while in Eugene so they will get a bit of "South of the Border next weekend.

As I left there were two cars at the bottom of the hill with the people out looking up at one of the trees. As I got closer I saw what was so interesting. He was balancing atop a spruce and his weight was bending it over. As I took the second picture, he sprang up and took flight down through the vineyards. Stunning!

Angela at Silvan Ridge had promised me a bottle so I showed up as she was still opening. As she turned around I realized how long it had been since I had seen her as she is "with child" and due in February! Very happy and radiant!She presented me with a bottle of their wonderful '06 Cabernet ($24). From their tasting notes:
The rich, velvety wine has quickly become a staff favorite! Smooth blackberry and raspberry flavors melt in your mouth upon entry, with well-balanced tannins lingering on a smoky oak finish. Truly an amazing example of Oregon Cabernet.

After I had tasted  through the wines that she had out she opened a bottle of the Cab and let me sample. Smooth, soft, and rich with great finish. Should be very drinkable in about 4-5 years.

Next stop, Sweet Cheeks Winery nestled atop the hill across the road. As I drove in I saw something that I have become so used to seeing that now I don't notice. The very well done murals on the end of the building as you drive in are worth a second look.
 Next time you are out there, take a close look.
I hang the paintings there in the tasting room and wanted to try some new ones out so after a taste of their many great wines I put up two paintings by Barry Geller.
My favorite wine there was the '08 semi-sweet Reisling. Tropical flowers, peach, and a hint of spice make this a perfect sipping wine.

The drive north on Terroirtorial Highway led me to Pfeiffer Vineyards and a visit with one of my favorite winery owners, Robin Pfeiffer. He took me in to the Pinot tasting room, separate from the regular tasting bar and very cave like. He let me taste an very lightly oaked blue line Pinot Noir from '08, then we got busy with a '06 Blue Dot Pinot Noir($60). He donated to the OMP "South of the Border" outreach fund so I get to talk about them from the stage on the 9th and 10th before the concert.

A short but productive trip

Today I went on a short drive up Terroirtorial Road through the Southern Willamette Valley wine country and picked up a 2005 Blue Dot Pinot Noir from Pfeiffer Vineyard. I have this wine in my collection and was VERY happy to get one for the auction. Truly one of the best! I then stopped by Benton Lane (shown here) and picked up the 2007 Estate grown Pinot Noir. Still in bottle shock but lively and luscious with lots of aroma of strawberry with chocolate layered in . On the palate, it exhibits cherry flavors with red licorice. I stopped by Broadley in Monroe on the off chance that they would be there and my bet paid off with a bottle of the 2007 Shea Pinot Noir! That is Morgan with the wine.
I, like most men, hate to turn around, so I drove on to Corvallis and visited with Jerry at Wineopolis at 151 NW Monroe. As I walked in I was met by John Bacon who, with Jane Smith, is responsible for Nuthatch Cellars. Their wine was sold off the shelves so he is bringing down another for me. Jerry gave me a bottle of 3 Fools. This one is their Del Rio Reds and it will be a real treat to whoever gets it!