White Wines

2006 Umpqua Valley Pinot Blanc

The wine is bright and lively looking in the glass with hints of green tinged straw.  The aromas are full with white peach, lemon zest and graham cracker contributing harmoniously to floral and mineral scents.  We source our pinot blanc from Red Hill Vineyard.  At 1300' this is one of the highest elevation sites in the Umpqua Valley.  The vineyard is dry farmed and is characterized by the Red jory soils that give Red Hill its name.  The fruit we get from this site always has good acidity and minerality.  For this pinot blanc that steers us towards full barrel fermentation, complete malo-lactic fermentation with long lees contact and lees stirring.  We utilize our old neutral barrels, striving to enhance the structure and emphasize the pure fruit characters.  The flavors feature quince, green apple and pineapple.  The mouthfeel  is full and the finish is lingering with clean refreshing acidity.  We recommend this wine with fresh cracked Dungeness crab marinated in olive oil, minced garlic and cilantro.

Bottled September 2007       314 cases cork free        14.1% alcohol by volume

Retail $18  case $194.40

2007 Umpqua Valley Pinot Gris

The wine is a shimmering, brilliant pale straw color with hints of green around the edges of the glass.  The aromas have pronounced green apple and quince notes with touches of fresh mown grass, ripe banana and tropical floral notes with a hint of pineapple.  The flavors echo the fruit highlights with a silky, generous mouthfeel.  The crisp acidity keeps the finish clean and long lasting, perfectly countering the full texture.  This wine is clean, fresh and bright.  The acid in the wine would compliment fresh shellfish, our favorites Dungeness crab and oysters, while the textural qualities would pair well with a smoked chicken salad or a savory mushroom risotto.

Bottled cork free March 2008      620 cases produced       Alcohol 14.2%-dry

Retail $16  case $172.80

2007 Scarlet Cuvee, Rose’ of Pinot Noir

This is a dry rose made from several of our pinot noir lots utilizing the French method saignee, which literally means “to bleed” the tank.  We give the must about 24 hours skin contact and then take 5% of the juice off of the peels and treat the fermentation like a white wine.  We want to preserve the zesty acidity and prevent the new wine from undergoing malo.  The result is a lovely blush with a pale crimson color.  The aromas bring fresh summer berry fruits, especially strawberry and raspberry with a hint of tangy rhubarb.  These qualities carry through to the flavors as well, with the addition of sunny ripe cantaloupes and watermelons.  Crisp acids make this wine a perfect summer sipper and a great companion to warm outdoor dining, whether picnic lunches or barbeque dinners.  For lunch try pairing with a Salade Nicoise or a good ham sandwich and for dinner use with grilled fish and vegetables

Bottled cork free March 2008      64 cases produced        Alcohol 13.2%-dry

Retail $14  case $151.20

2006 Oregon Blanc White Wine

This wine is our homage to the white wine blends of Alsace. Our region’s climate is very similar to that of Alsace. 2006 brought a bumper crop to us and we began to think of a blended white, enabling us to bottle a larger batch than our single varieties would allow. The resulting blend is 37% gewürztraminer, 32% riesling and 31% pinot gris. Each of these varietals contributes a distinctive element to the blend. The aromatics are driven by the floral qualities of the gewürztraminer. The full body and lingering mouthfeel comes from the ripe and rich pinot gris. Riesling contributes to the clean acidity. This wine is bursting with fresh white peaches, grapefruit, honeysuckle and lemon blossoms. There is a touch of sweetness .8%, bright fresh acid and a long lingering finish. This pleasing summertime sipper has everything going for it.

Bottled May 2007       1,372 cases cork free      14.1% alcohol by volume

Retail  $14      $151.20 case

2006 Umpqua Valley Riesling

In 2006 we blended riesling from the Bradley Vineyard in Elkton and the Red Hill Vineyard to craft this wine.   Elkton is the most maritime climate within the Umpqua and Red Hill is the most continental type site.  From Bradley we get a riper fruit profile with peach and nectarine flavors.  From Red Hill, at 1300 feet with volcanic Jory soils, we get green apple, lime zest and steely minerality.  The aromatics and flavors also show nice floral fruit with hints of toasted almonds.  The wine is a pale straw color and this is our driest riesling to date with less than 1% residual sugar.  The wine has a pleasingly round mouth feel with bright and refreshing acidity.  One of our favorite food pairings with this racy riesling is a pizza topped with caramelized onions, gorgonzola cheese, fresh minced rosemary along with a generous amount of grated black pepper.  The sweetness of the onions and the pungent cheese and spiciness compliments the fruit flavors and the crisp long lasting finish of this off-dry wine.

Bottled April 2007       318 cases cork free        12.9% alcohol by volume

Retail  $16    case $172.80

2007 Umpqua Valley Dry Gewurztraminer

Red Hill Vineyard provides us with the gewurztraminer used in our dry style for this varietal.  This very cool site allows us to let the fruit stay on the vine longer and develop true varietal character at a lower sugar content.  The aromas are full of leeche, rose floral notes, cardamom and wild herbs.  The flavors in this wine are very focused on entry with green apple and lemon zest leaping to the forefront.  The acidity is bright and obvious making this wine a perfect foil to a rich charcouterie, smoked meats or a pork terrine

Bottled cork free March 2008    241 case produced    Alcohol 13.5%    Residual Sugar less than 1%

Retail  $16    case $172.80

2007 Umpqua Valley Gewurztraminer    

Elkton has proved to be an absolute bullseye for this varietal, sourced from the Bradley Vineyard planted in 1983.  The aromatics are so pure and true to type with wonderful leeche, exotic spices, clove and stick cinnamon, tea roses and mandarin oranges. Upon tasting the wines citrus elements come forward with a rich and supple entry, followed by a long and lingering spicy fruit finish.  This is our sweetest white with 2.5% residual sugar, but the refreshing acidity keeps the whole package in balance.  This is a very versatile food wine and can serve as an aperitif, as a starting course wine with foie gras for instance or find paring with desert.  Of course Thai food is a natural, as is our wonderful local Rouge Creamery blue cheeses

Bottled cork free March 2008    798 case produced    Alcohol 13.4%    Residual Sugar 2.5%     

Red Wines

2004 Northern Reach Pinot Noir

Our Northern Reach Pinot Noir is sourced from two vineyards in the most northern and coolest reaches of the Umpqua Valley. The Bradley Vineyard in Elkton, the most maritime climate found in the AVA, is planted to own rooted wadensvil. The Red Hill Vineyard is the most continental type climate found in our area and at 1300 feet one of the coolest. From here we source primarily pommard clones. This wine is very Burgundian in character with good acidity, structure and balance. The aromas and bouquet are very full with tar, cinnamon, nutmeg, wild forest herbs, lavender and mushrooms with plum jam. The fruit in the nose is very dark cherry and blackberry. All carry through across the palate. The wine has a nice well balanced mid-palate, soft integrated tannins and a long lingering finish. It will serve well with variety of meat, lamb or duck dishes, grilled with herbed rubs or long simmered in savory sauces.

Bottled September 2005               958 cases            13.7% alcohol by volume

Retail $25        $270 case

2006 Umpqua Valley Bench Lands Pinot Noir

We source fruit from a number of vineyards for this blend, all with close proximity to the Umpqua River.  Some sites have stony alluvial river soils, some have sedimentary clays.  All are influenced by the cool maritime air and fog that are drawn daily inland preserving  fresh berry/cherry fruit and bright acidity.  The wine is a beautiful garnet red rimmed with violet.  The aroma is lush with dark cherry, blue berry and ripe plums.  The bouquet is filled with toast and spice, showing nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves.  The flavors abound with blueberries and  cranberries with overtones of pomegranate with dark cherries.  The mouthfeel is full, pleasing and warm with a long toasty finish.  All of our pinots are made the same way.  Small lots are fermented separately with hand punchdowns, gently pressed and barreled “dirty” to 100% French oak, 33% new.  This allows us to stir the lees and build structure and mouthfeel, while maintaining the minerality inherent in Umpqua Valley fruit.  We feel this wine is a great value and should be enjoyed regularly.  Experiment with pairings, but right now I can imagine it with rotisserie grilled game hens stuffed with lemons, garlic and rosemary.

Bottled cork free  September 2007              2961 cases            14.3% alcohol by volume

Retail $22        $237.60 case

2006 Love Puppets Pinot Noir

The wine is deeply colored with hues of ruby and purple around the edges.  The aromas and bouquet are warm and inviting with candied sour cherries, blackberries, persimmon pudding and spice cake with notes of racy oak toast. The flavors revolve around great dark cherry fruit.  The mouthfeel is nothing short of voluptuous.  This wine coats the mouth with a warm pleasing impression that lasts and lasts and lasts.  There are well integrated very fine tannins that are nicely balanced by refreshing acidity.  This wine is the real deal, a very decadent and hedonistic pinot noir.  All of the grapes in this wine come from our favorite dry farmed vineyards, all with yields of less than two tons per acre.  The resulting structure is phenomenal.  2006 is going to prove to be a fabulous vintage for pinot noir in the Umpqua Valley and this wine represents the best of the grapes we bring in from our diverse growers.

Bottled September 13, 2007            800 cases           14.3% alcohol by volume

Retail $30        $324 case

2006 Ferris Wheel Estate Pinot Noir

The wine has a very deep ruby color with garnet highlights ringing the edges in the glass.  It is clear and brilliantly bright.  The aromas are a striking mix of dark fruits, dark cherry, blueberry, with pronounced elements of spicy cedar and cola.  The bouquet is very complex with notes of oak spice, coconut and tar with damp forest floor that brings out an evident wild mushroom quality.  In the mouth the flavors echo all of the dark cherry and blueberry characteristics with well integrated barrel toast and caramelized orange rinds.  The flavors last and last.  The mouth feel is very supple and filling.  The finish is very long and full and rounded.  With airing the wine begins to show red fruits, particularly cranberry and pomegranate, in the nose and on the palate.  This indicates good aging potential and we have noticed that the wine is even better the next day, though that doesn’t happen very often.  Our estate fruit becomes more profound with each vintage and the ’06 is a deeper wine in every way when compared to the award winning ’05.  We are very excited about the continuing development of the Ferris Wheel Vineyard and the quality of fruit that we get to work with.  We enjoyed this wine with duck that was brined and then cooked on the BB-Q rotisserie.

Bottled September 2007    452 cases   13.8% alcohol by volume

2004 Syrah

This wine is a blend of fruit from the Marshanne Vineyard near Oakland and the Fox Hill Vineyard located north of Cole Road, close to the hamlet of Umpqua, with a perfect southern aspect.  Both contribute unique qualities to this wine.  We find earthy, toasty, meaty nuances in the Marshanne fruit and intense black pepper, with blueberries and damson plums in the Fox Hill fruit.  These flavor characteristics blend seamlessly in this wine and our oak treatment of 100% small French barrels, 33% new, lends a perfect balance of spice and vanillin richness.  The wine has good body and texture with a nice round mouth feel and a welcoming long, lingering finish.  The acidity and sumptuous fruit make this wine a wonderful accompaniment to slow roasted meats, game and flavorful grilled steak.

Bottled September 2005          599 cases         13.5% Alcohol   

Retail $27.00  Case $291.60

2004 Umpqua Valley Cabernet Franc

Cabernet Franc is the one Bordeaux variety that is well suited to slightly cooler climates. We source our cabernet franc from Marshanne Landing Vineyard, a more continental climate and considerably warmer than Elkton, but still a cool climate site. Cabernet franc is usually used as a blending tool, but we choose to bottle this wine as a stand alone varietal, in celebration of its typicity, reminding us of the wines of the Loire. The wine has typical aromas and flavors of raspberries, violets and pencil shavings. The body is medium full with a warm and long finish. The wine has moderate tannins and a good acid balance. Our style is to make wines that are a fine addition to your table and this wine would be a well suited accompaniment to spit roasted, herb stuffed game hens or bacon wrapped venison chops. Or, try with a well aged beef steak, simply rubbed with salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper, grilled to medium rare.

Bottled September 2005              62 cases           13.6% alcohol by volume

Retail $29     $313.20 case