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« December 2008 | Main | February 2009 »

January 27, 2009

Westrey 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

This Oregon pinot noir from 2007 is a wine that showed well from the first pour in the glass to the last sip with dinner. The Westrey 2007 Pinot Noir (13.5%) was a bit cloudy in the glass, offering red berry fruits, floral perfume, and earthy notes to the nose, while delivering great acidity and flavors of strawberry/cherry fruit, licorice, and toast, leading to a long, lasting finish. We paired the Westrey with a couple of pizzas Kari crafted, one a caramelized onion, Salumi salami, rosemary, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, and the other a mozzarella, olive, artichoke, tomato sauce, and pickled...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:42 PM |

Chehalem 2007 3 Vineyard Pinot Noir

This Oregon pinot noir was a light, clear ruby red in the glass, offering an overwhelming hydrogen sulfide smell, which eventually blew off. Like many of its youthful peers from this vintage, the Chehalem 2007 Pinot Noir 3 Vineyards Willamette Valley (13.5%) is best served decanted, for it did start to show off some deep red fruit, especially cherry notes, after some time in the glass. On the palate, the Chehalem provided very bright acidity, leading to some sour strawberry notes, but then followed by a long cherry finish. We paired the Chehalem 2007 3 Vineyard with a dinner...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:00 PM |

January 25, 2009

High Praise for Washington Syrah

Two of my favorite wine columnists/critics, Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, recently offered some high praise for Washington syrah, tasting through over fifty wines and then singling out half a dozen as their favorites. Check out the video above or you can read the details at The Wall Street Journal site. Here is their overall assessment of Washington syrah: As a group, these are the most exciting red wines being made in America today that you might actually find on a shelf. This is a strong testament not only to the quality of syrah in Washington state, but more...

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Posted by Thad W. at 02:08 PM | | Comments (2)

King Estate 2007 Signature Pinot Gris

This Oregon pinot gris has become somewhat of a staple at our dinner table these last few months. We enjoy the King Estate 2007 Signature Pinot Gris Oregon (13%) as an aperitif or with a meal calling for a food-friendly pinot gris. The '07 pinot gris is a light, clear straw color in the glass, with scents of pineapple, cantaloupe, lemon and honeysuckle. The tropical fruit and honey flavors stand out, but are well balanced by the crisp acidity in this wine. It's a delicious table wine offering a wonderful complement to any meal. We paired the King Estate...

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Posted by Thad W. at 01:32 PM | | Comments (1)

January 24, 2009

Evesham Wood 2007 Pinot Noir

This is a terrific Oregon pinot noir for $18. In fact, considering its price-quality ratio, this is one of the best of the 2007 vintage I have tasted to date. The Evesham Wood 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13%) is a bit cloudy in the glass, giving off a bouquet of dusty earth and muted red berry fruit, with a modest floral perfume encapsulating these scents. Flavors of strawberry and cherry are evident with balanced acidity ending in a decent finish. This is a wine that deserves time to open up and express itself. While serving this at dinner,...

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Posted by Thad W. at 04:48 PM |

Lange 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

This Oregon pinot noir is a clear, light red in the glass offering notes of cherry cola and dusty eucalyptus. In the mouth, it is consistently smooth and even from start to finish, however, it seemed a bit flat without much structure or acidity. Even after tasting a day later, the Lange '07 pinot was much the same, if not a bit flatter. We paired the Lange Estate Winery 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13.2%) with a mushroom risotto accompanied by a Julienne apple and fennel salad dressed in oil and vinegar. It was a great meal on a...

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Posted by Thad W. at 03:18 PM |

January 23, 2009

Cooper Mountain 2007 Reserve Pinot Noir

This is yet another well made Oregon pinot noir from a producer that offers its wines at affordable prices. The Cooper Mountain 2007 Reserve Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13%) retails for only $22, but offers a level of quality that approaches wines at two to three times its price point. Even better, the fruit is grown and wine is made through sustainable practices, which could be the reason why Cooper Mountain wines stand apart from some of their peers. In the glass, the '07 Reserve is a very light ruby red, almost to the point of being rose colored....

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Posted by Thad W. at 04:02 PM |

Patricia Green 2007 Four Winds Pinot Noir

A unique expression of Oregon pinot noir, the Patricia Green 2007 Four Winds Pinot Noir McMinnville (12.5%) is a captivating wine, in that its modest, elegant approach kept me returning to the glass to try to discern the various smells and flavors with each swirl and sip. Some may not like this approach, but I find this is what makes wine enjoyable. The more searching a wine requires, while still revealing itself gradually in return, the more engaged I become with every glass. This test of the senses is much preferred over wines that present smells and flavors that...

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Posted by Thad W. at 03:24 PM |

January 21, 2009

Terrapin Cellars 2007 Pinot Noir

This Oregon pinot noir was a light, yet cloudy, ruby red in the glass with sour red berry fruit on the nose along with herbs and a cinnamon toast spice. Flavors of muted fruit and tempered acidity with a sour, if not astringent, aftertaste. The Terrapin Cellars 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13.2%) was purchased for $18, but even with its affordable price point, this wine left much to be desired. It was a bit flat throughout, never offering anything to show for itself. We paired this wine with a tomato sauce penne pasta dish garnished with fresh basil...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:14 PM |

Chehalem 2007 INOX Chardonnay

This Oregon chardonnay was a bit disappointing in terms of what it delivered at its price point of $19. In the glass, this wine was a very light yellow color offering faint notes of tropical fruit and very muted mineral notes. On the palate, it was outright flat, with weak acidity and little to show for the varietal. We ended up not finishing the bottle of this lackluster wine, for it wasn't worth filling our glasses with something that left us wanting. The Chehalem 2007 INOX Chardonnay Willamette Valley (13.5%) did not meet the bar in terms of bouquet,...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:04 PM |

Patricia Green 2007 Pinot Noir Reserve

In the glass, this Oregon pinot noir from 2007 was a medium translucent red offering hints of earth, especially that of pronounced forest floor leading to sour cherry and strawberry fruit notes. In the mouth, the Patricia Green reserve was fruit forward with a bit of candied cherry dropping off quickly to a short finish. The Patricia Green Cellars 2007 Pinot Noir Reserve Willamette Valley (13%) was a decent wine, but at $26 I found this to be a bit disappointing in terms of value. It began with much promise considering its earthy tones, but the fruit seemed to...

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Posted by Thad W. at 08:50 PM |

January 17, 2009

Biggio Hamina 2007 Pinot Blanc

This delicious Oregon pinot blanc was a light yellow straw color in the glass, offering scents of pineapple and melon with a light, crisp taste that showed mostly mineral flavors with modest tropical fruit. The Biggio Hamina had moderate acidity throughout ending in a clean finish. The Biggio Hamina 2007 Pinot Blanc Yamhill Valley Vineyard McMinnville (13.5%) was paired with chicken teriyaki (thigh meat only) on a bed of steamed rice accompanied by stir-fried red peppers and sugar snap peas garnished with toasted sesame seeds. I enjoyed this food friendly wine, especially the mineral characteristics combined with modest fruit,...

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Posted by Thad W. at 10:16 AM | | Comments (1)

Chateau Bianca 2007 Pinot Noir

This wine offers a very good representation of Oregon pinot noir at a low price of $16. In the glass, the Chateau Bianca 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (12.5%) was a very light ruby red. It smelled of dusty eucalyptus, earth, and strawberry fruit. Flavors of strawberry and raspberry fruit, albeit slightly sweet, but balanced with bright acidity making this a delicious food friendly wine. The Chateau Bianca pinot was paired with an Italian dish comprised of an Italian sausage (sans casing) tomato sauce cooked and reduced on the stove top and then served over a bowl of soft...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:30 AM | | Comments (2)

Broadley Vineyards 2007 Pinot Noir

This Oregon pinot noir from the 2007 vintage is a light to medium ruby red color in the glass, with appealing notes of forest floor giving way to slightly sour cherry and strawberry fruit. It offers bright acidity with pronounced flavors of red berry fruit and an earthiness that was a nice backdrop to a long finish. We paired the Broadley Vineyards 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13.5%) with grilled pork chops that had been seasoned with Italian herb salt along with roasted fennel and cherry tomatoes in chicken broth and a rice pilaf. I really enjoyed this wine...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:16 AM |

January 10, 2009

Lange Estate 2007 Pinot Gris

This a delicious Oregon pinot gris, offering pineapple, pear, and honey notes on the nose and tropical fruit and floral flavors on the palate with crisp acidity throughout leading to a long, somewhat viscous finish. It offered a nice accompaniment to the ham/mushroom/tomato and prosciutto/goat cheese/red pepper/artichoke pizzas we had delivered for dinner. At $15, the Lange Estates 2007 Pinot Gris Willamette Valley (12.4%) is wine worthy of having a presence at our dinner table whenever a pinot gris is called for or just on its own as an appertif. Related Links Lange Winery Site San Francisco Chronicle Wine...

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Posted by Thad W. at 03:36 PM |

Cooper Hill 2007 Pinot Noir

From the folks at Cooper Mountain Vineyards, this 2007 Oregon pinot noir is made with organically and biodynamically grown fruit. In the glass, the Cooper Hill is a medium dark ruby red offering muted notes of red berry fruit giving way to menthol and eucalyptus. As the concentrated color suggests, this wine is a bit sweet, delivering slightly candied fruit flavors. There is good acidity to counter the sweetness, but not much there beyond a fast and fleeting taste of fruit. We used a half of bottle of the Cooper Hill 2007 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (13%) in a...

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Posted by Thad W. at 02:39 PM |

January 09, 2009

Penner-Ash 2006 Riesling

This Oregon riesling was a light, golden color in the glass, delivering signature notes of petrol giving way to stone and minerals, with very understated floral and fruit. The Penner-Ash (12.5%) was dry, offering bright acidity and a clean finish. Not much fruit coming through, making it a bit flat. We paired this wine with Korean-style BBQ, which consisted of grilled tri-tip beef that had been marinated overnight in a soy/ginger/rice vinegar/chili/sesame oil sauce. The beef was grilled medium rare, allowed to rest 5 to 10 minutes, and then sliced into thin strips. We wrapped the beef with steamed...

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Posted by Thad W. at 11:05 AM |

Brick House 2007 Pinot Noir Select

A wonderful, unadulterated expression of Oregon pinot noir, that we enjoyed with dinner one night and then even more a day later with another meal. The Brick House 2007 Pinot Noir Select Ribbon Ridge (13.4%) was a very light, cloudy ruby color in the glass, offering scents of fresh strawberry fruit, a bit of dusty eucalyptus, and understated floral notes. Red berry fruit flavors predominated this biodynamic/organic pinot, going from strawberry to cherry, with balanced acidity and smooth texture leading to a long, delicious finish, without any hint of oak along the way. We paired the Brick House with...

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Posted by Thad W. at 10:04 AM |

January 07, 2009

Wine to Go, Spinasse Style

Last Saturday night, Kari and I went to dinner at Spinasse, a fairly new restaurant in Capitol Hill that specializes in Piemonte food and wine. Justin Neidermeyer, founder and chef at Spinasse, makes fresh artisan pasta daily from scratch for the primi courses, while crafting some amazing antipasti and secondi dishes as well. Besides making great food, Justin has another talent: preparing open wine bottles "to go" in a style that is going to prompt some restaurants to reconsider their brown bag treatment. At the end of our delicious meal, we had no idea what was in store for...

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Posted by Thad W. at 03:36 PM |

January 04, 2009

Exploring 2007 Oregon Pinot Noir

Over the past couple of weeks, I have picked up and opened a few entry-level 2007 Oregon pinot noirs with dinner, including Erath, Evesham Woods, and Lange. If these are any indication of what's to come, then the 2007 vintage is going to be my kind of pinot noir. Each of these understated wines offered modest fruit, good acidity, and low alcohol. Put another way, they were a clear departure from their overstated predecessors from 2006, a vintage that produced wines that too often tasted of candied fruit and heat from the higher alcohol. Here's what the Oregon Wine...

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Posted by Thad W. at 03:26 PM |

January 01, 2009

2009 - Directions in the New Year

With the start of the New Year, some new directions will be taken here at BeyondtheBottle.com. This wine blog will not stray from its core mission, which is to focus on those experiences that connect me to the people and places behind Oregon and Washington wines. Even still, there will be less coverage of some topics, with more emphasis on features that will take readers beyond the bottle. For example, in terms of reviewing wines, a new tasting notes section will be launched, covering any bottle that is opened at our table, good or bad. The wines that truly...

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Posted by Thad W. at 09:38 AM | | Comments (4)


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