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Lingua Franca Mimi’s Mind Pinot Noir 2015

Lingua Franca Mimi's Mind Pinot Noir 2015

Mimi’s Mind, so named to honor the work of Mimi Casteel, and her east-facing vineyard site of Woodburn, Nekia, and Jory type soils planted in the 1970s. I am told that the vines are own-rooted and phylloxera-free, making them a rarity in the Eola-Amity Hills. The 2015, dressed in a translucent ruby robe, is poised […]

Cristom Mt. Jefferson Cuvée Pinot Noir 2015

Cristom Mt. Jefferson Cuvée Pinot Noir 2015

Cristom’s 2015 Mount Jefferson Cuvée Pinot Noir combines all five of the winery’s estate vineyards, and fruit from a few, select neighboring sites. The palate is both seamless and precise in its acid balance, truly, this is where this silken cuvée shows its pedigree. Fine, sueded tannins gather and fade—a slow, amaranthine unfolding of white […]

Lingua Franca Mimi’s Mind Pinot Noir 2015

Lingua Franca Mimi's Mind Pinot Noir 2015

Mimi’s Mind, so named to honor the work of Mimi Casteel, and her east-facing vineyard site of Woodburn, Nekia, and Jory type soils planted in the 1970s. I am told that the vines are own-rooted and phylloxera-free, making them a rarity in the Eola-Amity Hills. The 2015, dressed in a translucent ruby robe, is poised […]

Ledger David Rogue Valley Southern Oregon Sangiovese 2014

Ledger David Rouge Valley Southern Oregon Sangiovese 2014

A well-made Sangiovese from Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley—an appellation that shows great promise, turning out Spanish and Italian varieties of focus and depth. The 2014 Ledger David Sangiovese offers up a sumptuous bouquet of black plums, and blackberries, all resting beneath a garland of violets. In the mouth, it’s plush and open knit with black […]

Tendril Wine Cellars Extrovert Pinot Noir 2014

Tendril Wine Cellars Extrovert Pinot Noir 2014

Winemaker Tony Rynders 2014 ‘Extrovert’ is so named because it is the most fruit forward label in Tendril’s portfolio. On the nose, the subtle interplay of blackberry, black cherry, cola, underbrush and decaying rose petal sets the stage for this focused Pinot Noir. In it, one can find concentration and balance, fine tannins, and admirable […]

Murrieta’s Well Dry Rosé 2016

Murrieta's Well Dry Rosé 2016

Rosé for Valentines Day? Yes, why not. The 2016 Murrieta’s Well Dry Rosé is an excellent candidate. Composed of 55% estate-grown Grenache and 45% Counoise, it’s a pretty shade of orangey-pink salmon and delivers lifted aromas of bruised peach, Queen Anne’s cherries, melon, baking spice.Medium-bodied and crisp, the palate is awash in red berries and […]

Bluebird Hill Cellars Trilogy 2016

Bluebird Hill Cellars Trilogy 2016

Densely packed aromas canned pear, honeydew melon, thai coconut custard are the welcome tones that lead into a palate that is surprisingly more taught than the nose belies. Bluebird Hill Cellars’ 2016 Trilogy is an undisclosed blend of three white varieties sourced from the Willamette Valley, displaying predominant orchard fruit flavors embroidered against a backdrop […]

Aubert Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2007

Aubert Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2007

Now a decade on, the 2007 Aubert Sonoma Coast Chardonnay slowly unfurls to reveal lemon curd, poached pear, and baked apple notes, couched in mellow and toasty tones of salted butter, brioche, caramel, and vanilla. Nice delineation on the palate, where voluptuous spiced orchard fruit is neatly intersected by a firm acidic spine and beautifully […]

Charles Smith Eve Chardonnay 2015

Charles Smith Eve Chardonnay 2015

Crafted with native yeast, 20% of which goes through malolactic fermentation, the 2015 Charles Smith Eve Chardonnay is uniform and varietally correct on the nose and palate with attractive aromas of bosc pear, yellow apple, and banana cream pudding. Crisp and bright on the palate, the acidity is slightly softened by six months of aging […]

Talbott Kali Hart Chardonnay 2015

Robert Talbott Kali Hart Chardonnay 2015

A suffusion of smokey minerals, creme brûlée, toasted coconut flake, mandarin and grilled pineapple. Talbott’s 2015 Kali Hart Chardonnay is made from the winery’s Sleepy Hollow estate vineyard, a hillside parcel that is relatively close to the Pacific Ocean—where cool maritime breezes lend a moderating effect. The effect of this microclimate on the palate is […]

CHRISTINE HAVENS
McMinnville, OR

christine@christine-havens.com