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By Chuck Hill
CHUCK'S CURRENT PREVIOUS SERIES Viognier – The 2010 Quest Begins EARLIER COLUMNS
Versatile Chardonnay
Syrah & Petite Sirah
Tasty Italian Varietals...
The Game of Gewürztraminer
Cabernet
Sauvignon & Meritage Wines
Wines of the Week REVIEWS BY VARIETAL
Chuck's Wine Reviews
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Pinot Noir with Copper River Salmon
Chinook and Sockeye salmon from Alaska’s Copper
River delta is prized for its rich flavor and elegant texture. Matching this delicious fish with Pinot Noir is a pleasure, but
it requires that the cook know the wines and the recent trends that have
taken place in Pinot Noir production. Once upon a time, Pinot Noir was a light and elegant wine grown
to preserve acidity for aging and delicate fruit of strawberry and
cherry. Today, consumers
want more. Pinot is
harvested later (more ripe) and aged in plenty of French oak.
The wines, for the most part, do not age as gracefully and offer
toasty flavors of plum and black cherry along with chewy tannins.
The smoky, toasty notes add a complementing character to the rich
fish, especially when grilled.
Anne Amie Vineyards
Located at the top of an imposing hill in the
Yamhill-Carlton district of Oregon’s Willamette Valley, Anne Amie
Vineyards offers a wonderful experience to visitors and superb wines.
Cuvee A is a blend of barrels selected to highlight Pinot Noir's
bright, fresh aromas and flavors.
Aromas of black cherry, raspberry, toasty cedar and sweet tobacco
lead to a lush black cherry palate with notes of spice and anise.
Evesham Wood
South Eola Hills winegrowing pioneers Russ and
Mary Raney have been my friends for 25 years.
One of Oregon’s most underrated Pinot Noir producers, Russ offers
a half dozen Pinot Noirs crafted from several vineyard sources and
blends made from some of these wines.
The 2008 wine we tasted shows bright aromas of black cherry,
floral perfume, anise and hints of toasty caramel.
The palate offers tangy cherry flavors with complex nuances of
tea leaf, vanilla and tarragon.
Superb with salmon.
Grapes for this wine come from the Cote de Nuits
and the southern part of the Cote de Beaune.
Founded in 1750 in the reign of Louis XV, Chanson today owns
properties throughout Burgundy and produces a wide range of excellent
wines. Our tasters agreed
that this is the best candidate for aging of any wine tasted in this
series so far.
Bright, elegant fruit of strawberry, citrus and floral perfume
entice a taste that reveals light berry and fruit flavors with crisp
acidity on the finish.
Little oak, not overripe.
Very tasty with salmon. (You might bake a piece to see how it goes
without the smoky nuances necessary to pair with heavier wines.
Rex Hill
Rex Hill winery has been an important part of the
Willamette Valley wine scene since its founding in 1982 – great wines
and a great visit. In
addition to this excellent blended Pinot Noir, they offer single
vineyard bottlings and a powerful reserve.
The winery description of the nose, “…evokes plums, framboise
syrup, dried cherries, tamari sauce and campfire smoke.”
Spot on. The plum and
cherry flavors carry into the palate with medium, chewy tannins that
show best with hearty food.
Lazy River Vineyard
This wine is crafted by Eric Hamacher at the
Carlton Winemakers Studio, a cooperative venture of 10 esteemed Oregon
wineries. Lazy River
Vineyard is just three and a half miles from Yamhill and has been a
source of superb Pinot Noir fruit for almost 10 years.
This most recent Pinot Noir release was a favorite with our
tasters showing black cherry fruit and a complex cast of supporting
aromas including vanilla, anise, toast and spicy herbs.
The sweet cherry palate gives nods to anise and black pepper,
accepting the calls for encore with a generous and complex finish.
Nobilo Icon
Like the French wine above, this bottling stands
out for its elegance and clarity.
Hailing from the north end of the south island (Marlborough),
many other famous New Zealand Pinot Noirs come from the south end of the
south island (Central Otago).
Bright berry aromas mingle with hints of spice and light plum.
The palate offers black cherry and berry flavors with subtle oak
character and moderate tannins.
Very tasty with grilled salmon.
Erath
In the old and carefree days, I once joined former
owners Dick and Joan Erath in a game of “Tank Golf” where we hit 5 irons
from his deck into this vineyard trying to hit the water
Mirassou Vineyards
It is not many American wineries that can
rightfully claim a winemaking heritage going back 150 years.
Sixth generation owner David Mirassou represents his family
history with a new line of wines that offer great value.
Their Pinot Noir opens with bright fruit of cherry and
pomegranate with notes of vanilla and oak.
The palate offers smoky cherry flavors with vanilla and moderate
tannins. Visit
www.mirassou.com for a
fine selection of wine-friendly recipes and a downloadable cookbook
where Chef Jennifer Jasinski shows you how to make a goat cheese tart to
pair with this wine.
Estancia
This wine stands out for power though it shows
finesse that intrigues veteran Pinot Noir snobs as well.
Pull the cork and the wine reaches out and grabs your nose with
ripe cherry and plum, caramel, vanilla and the whole baking-spice side
of the spice rack. The
palate is lip smacking and rich with black cherry and blueberry, toasty
oak and vanilla. It is not
Burgundy, but it is very appealing in a power-Pinot way.
Good value.
Lange Winery
Lange Winery has earned quite a reputation for
quality Pinot Noir, offering a half dozen selections from single
vineyard to blended wines to reserve.
The least pricey, this blended bottling, shows a nose of blueberry
and candied cherry with herbs and spicy oak.
The palate offers cherry and vanilla flavors with a complex
finish and excellent food compatibility.
Needs a little breathing time.
Adelsheim Vineyard
Like several of the wines in this report,
Adelsheim 2008 Pinot benefited from some aeration (extended breathing
time) to show its best. Look
for aromas of black cherry, berry, spicy cedar and baking spices.
The palate is lean with ample acidity for aging and finishes with
satiny tannins that pair well with grilled salmon.
Willamette Valley Vineyards
WWV's Estate Pinot Noir is a product of the estate
vineyard near Salem, Oregon, where a half dozen Dijon clones join grapes
of Pommard and Wadeswil heritage to form the cuvee of this
annually-anticipated bottling.
The wine was barreled in 50% new French oak, creating a powerful
palate and lending spice and vanilla to the nose.
Look for aromas of pie cherry, toasty oak and Asian plum leading
to a palate of black cherry, caramel, vanilla and spicy oak.
And a final Hedonistic Blast ...
Firesteed
It was a dark and stormy afternoon – in May.
We dragged our soggy selves into Anthony’s HomePort at Squalicum
Harbor in Bellingham to be among the first to enjoy Copper River Salmon
– expensive this early in the season, but worth the price for the
experience. Our cheerful
server swiftly fulfilled our request for appetizers, salads and the
highly anticipated fish of destiny – Copper River Sockeye, alder planked
with smoky goodness. A
bottle of Firesteed Pinot Noir was just the ticket showing bright
cherry, berry and light toasty aromas, and a lip-smacking palate with
bright flavors and ample acidity to tame the rich fish while
highlighting the distinctive flavors.
Great wine, great food, great ambiance – highly recommended. # # #
One-year
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© 2010 Chuck Hill |
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