A blend of grapes from the Soles small Wits End and vineyards in the Dundee Hills. Aged in French Oak barrels.
Tasting NotesThis Pinot is leap out the glass good. The wine has a beautiful rich nose of blackberry pie fresh from the oven with maybe an edge of blueberry. In the mouth there is a velvety richness with bright red fruit flavors and a nudge of black pepper and exotic spices. The sweet berry center has a tad of vanilla or honey that heightens that central sweet spot and escorts the wine through a valley of subtle complexities that add to the melding of berry, earth and graveliness as it dances across your pallet. Production NotesEarly in the season the vines set an “interesting‚¬ mix of normal and tiny berries on the clusters. This is a good thing as each size berry ripens at a different rate -thus adding complexity of flavors to the wine. In July, we experienced a number of days where the evening temperatures did not drop to their normal “chill‚¬. Oregonians flocked to the Pacific Oceanside and mountain rivers for relief from the warm weather. What I didn’t expect was that this brief event would speed up the rate that the vines matured the fruit regardless of the vineyard elevation.Significant amounts of cold rain fell over Labor Day Weekend. Fortunately, the fruit was not ripe enough to become prey to mold infections. Then, in mid-September we experienced a typical event where very warm, dry air whips into the Valley from the Columbia River Gorge to the east. This dry wind can desiccate ripe berries, causing the berries to lose connection to the vine. At Wits End, we have a full time spring from which we irrigate the vines just enough BEFORE the “furnace‚¬ comes on, to allow the vine to withstand the drying effects of this high desert wind.After the east winds, the weather cooled down to normal Oregon Fall temperatures and beautiful conditions brought rich, ripe luscious fruit to our fermenters. The result is lovely, balanced, richly colored Pinot Noir that is perfectly matched to pleasant mineral and tannin textures. It will delight the drinker today and merit some serious age in the bottle. Case Discounts AvailableReturn to ROCOWinery.com