Pale ruby color; dark cherry, cigar box, vanilla, light oak on the nose; cherry, clove, cranberry, plum, oak spice on the palate.
Dry; well-behaved tannins, especially after decanting—recommended by the maker—good, balancing acidity (3.6 pH). Rich and full in the mouth with concentration and depth; substantial with vivid fruits rather than the etherial pinot noir that can be produced in the Willamette Valley. This is pinot that a lover of rich, bigger wines—cab, petite sirah, syrah, malbec—can relate to.
Yamhill County has more than 80 wineries and 200 vineyards, the largest concentration of grape growers and wine producers in any other Oregon county. Yamhill Valley Vineyards is the oldest winery in the McMinnville AVA; their first vintage was 1983. They grow, produce and bottle their own grapes at their estate located on 150 acres in the rolling foothills of Oregon’s Coast Range Mountains, one hour southwest of Portland in the Willamette Valley. They grow and make pinot noir, pinot gris, pinot blanc, chardonnay, and riesling.
According to their website: “From our beginning we have been stubbornly dedicated to the pursuit of a character that is distinctively Oregon and distinctively Yamhill Valley. Our goal is to bring forth from this unusual and exciting property the finest possible expression of its intensity, charm and uniqueness.”
Yamhill Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve 2014 is bigger and richer, with more concentrated fruit, than many other Willamette Valley pinot noirs. The juice spent 16 months in French oak, 20% new, and the wine reflects the time on wood, but the oak does not dominate the pour. Pair with juicy, peppered steak—this will stand up to it without problem; chargrilled steak, lamb, venison, coq au vin where the sauce is made with pinot noir, glazed ham, roast turkey, brie, blue cheese such as gorgonzola dolce. $27-36
Yamhill Valley Vineyards website
