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Domaine Drouhin Lauréne Pinot Noir 2012

Domaine Drouhin Lauréne Pinot Noir 2012

Elegant, developed aromas of black raspberry and mulberry, fig leaf and dried mushroom, decaying leaves and a dusting of iron ore. In the mouth, silken, fully-integrated tannins lend structure to ethereal tones of black tea, violets, dried bark, and stratified minerality that surface momentarily, winking in and out—shimmering shards on a backdrop embroidered in dark […]

Rain Dance Vineyards Lee’s Vineyard Estate Chardonnay 2016

Rain Dance Vineyards Lee's Vineyard Estate Chardonnay 2016

Full and expansive on the nose with orchard fruit hovering beneath striated layers of toasted coconut, lemon curd, orange zest, and toast. It’s the perfect compromise between more linear, unoaked chardonnays and full-on warm climate well-oaked expressions of the variety. There is ample concentration on the palate, and lovely round wood-driven character—but it veers well […]

Cooper Mountain Mountain Terroir Meadowlark Pinot Noir 2015

Cooper Mountain Mountain Terroir Meadowlark Pinot Noir 2015

Black cherries comingle with briary underbrush and red berries, sasparilla, and fading heirloom roses in this swoon-worthy biodynamic red. In the mouth, the 2015 Cooper Mountain Mountain Terroir Meadowlark Pinot Noir is poised an polished, with red and black fruit in equal measure, neatly embroidered to a framework of delicate tannins. 14.3% ABV | Sample […]

Rain Dance Vineyards Grand Oak Vineyard Estate Rosé 2017

Rain Dance Vineyards Grand Oak Vineyard Estate Rosé 2017

Glinting rose gold in the glass, the 2017 Rain Dance Grand Oak Vineyard Estate Rosé is replete with aromas of melon, white peach, Queen Anne’s cherries, and a fleeting whiff of chalkboard dust. Bright and elegant in the mouth, texture at the back palate suggests minimal skin contact. Pink pomelo adds mouthwatering lift and complexity […]

Ayoub Chardonnay 2016

Ayoub Chardonnay 2016

Another lovely vintage from Mo Ayoub that is clearly made in small lots and with great technical care, his 2016 Dundee Hills Chardonnay is only 400 cases and is enrobed in white peach, Asian pear, yellow apples, granulated honey, and apple blossom. It fans out across the palate, with exquisite creaminess and density offset by […]

White Rose Estate The Neo-Classical Objective Pinot Noir 2014

White Rose Estate The Neo-Classical Objective Pinot Noir 2014

Tasting through a series of vintages one can say that White Rose has its own style, it stands apart from the rest of the wines of Dundee Hills—there is a pure-fruitedness along with a perfumed exuberance on the nose that is a common thread through all their wines. The 2014 Neo-Classical Objective Pinot Noir is […]

Knudsen Vineyards Pinot Noir 2016

Knudsen Vineyards Pinot Noir 2016

The 2016 vintage was quite warm for the Willamette Valley, here Knudsen’s estate-grown Pinot Noir expresses a touch more black fruit than I have found in previous vintages—black cherry and black raspberry along with more ethereal notes of twiggy underbrush, a touch of iron ore, talc, and nuanced florality. It’s round and silky on the palate, […]

Tendril Wine Cellars Child’s Play Pinot – Chardonnay 2017

Tendril Child's Play Pinot - Chardonnay 2017

An offshoot label from Tony Rynder’s Tendril wines, Child’s Play 2017 Pinot Chardonnay is a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir. The nose grapey nose with intriguing layers of Fig Newton, sultana, white flowers, poached pear, and yellow plum. It’s medium-bodied on the palate with a zesty vein of acidity adding lift, cutting through perceptible […]

Stoller Family Estate Club Exclusive Chardonnay 2016

Stoller Family Estate Club Exclusive Chardonnay 2016

Perhaps one of the most unusual chardonnays I’ve run across in Oregon—Stoller’s 2016 Club Exclusive Chardonnay is partial-malo and partly aged in stainless and in one of the winery’s concrete squares. Had I have tasted it blind, I might have pegged it as a Bordeaux blanc, the profile has a lovely herbal note to it; aromas […]

Ayoub Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015

Ayoub Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015

I have long admired Mo Ayoub’s wines, and so meeting with him, and tasting with him at a recent dinner held by the Dundee Hills Winegrowers Association was a real honor. His 2015 Ayoub Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir is still young and expansive, showing off attractive notes of black raspberry, cherry, cola, sweet tobacco. Texturally, […]

CHRISTINE HAVENS
McMinnville, OR

christine@christine-havens.com