Joined friends who came up from California to have a couple dinners together and share a day of wine tasting. Please note that I had no control initially over the itinerary--I had asked for Stone Wolf but got vetoed because our host preferred to stay on the Gaston-Beaverton side.
Elk Cove
The winery: pretty hilltop location with excellent views and pretty landscaping, good tasting room though we were overall disappointed with the wines poured--I know this winery's capable of better. Or at least it used to be. Beware of weddings and buses.
2008 Pinot Blanc: dilute, no fruit just acid, D.
2008 Pinot Grigio: good varietal character, smokey and floral, $19, B (purchased).
2007 Viognier: warm Del Rio fruit, very classic viognier flavors but not my thing, B.
2007 Pinot Noir Willamette: oxidized. (Pourer claimed it had been opened just that morning, and it was only 11:00.) F.
2007 Pinot Noir Willamette: new bottle. Lean, tomato leaf, not much else. D
2003 Pinot Noir Francis Vy: good nose, rich, harsh alcoholic finish. Will probably oxidize quickly in an hour. D
2007 Pinot Noir Roosevelt: better nose than palate, lean and tough. But open since yesterday--should show better tomorrow. C+
Kramer
The winery: Funky little hilltop house/barn, friendly hippie atmosphere. Good vibe.
NV Cuvee Rose sparkler: bone dry, fine bubble, nice. B-
2006 Chardonnay Dijon Clone: all mineral, no new oak, lean and lovely. B-
2006 Chardonnay Dijon Clone Barrel Select: some new oak, a bit tight, good. B-
2007 Pinot Gris Kimberley: shows a bit of oak, nice fruit but just okay overall. C+
2007 Pinot Gris Stainless: fresh, vibrant. Yum. B+
NV Olson Road Pinot Noir: eh--too herbal. D.
2006 Pinot Noir Estate: Nice fruit and spice, grippy tannins, textbook Oregon pN nose. B
2004 Pinot Noir Rebecca's: Stemmy, herbal, cool. C-
2005 Pinot Noir Rebecca's: Delicious, best so far, good fruit and development. B+
2005 Pinot Noir Cardiac Hill: stressed vineyard location, good fruit, sensual, I'm buying one of these! B++ (purchased)
2005 Pinot Noir Heritage: Almost as good as the Cardiac Hill, but I still prefer the CH. B+
2007 Carmine Big Red: Carmine is actually a grape, some hybrid invented by the boys at Davis IIRC involving carignane and mourvedre. Whatever, I liked it a lot. Supple red fruit, complex, intriguing. B++ (purchased)
2006 Pinot Noir Port: 19% abv, fortified not LH. Hot and simple to my palate. D.
Plum Hill
The winery: Gregarious husband and wife put on a good show trading insults in a modest little winery cottage, but the wines are amateurish and I wouldn't bet on that changing.
2007 Plum Hill Chardonnay: refreshing and balanced, but bland and lacking varietal typicity, $17. D
2008 Thistle Pinot Gris: (they poured another brand in addition to their own, Thistle label) Decent varietal character. C+
2008 Plum Hill Pinot Gris: Tastes like simple syrup with a mild floral additive. F.
2007 Pinot Noir Rose Saignee: bland, non-descriptive. C-
2007 Pinot Noir: polished, simple. C-
2007 Pinot noir barrel select: Obviously pinot, but no character, $24, C
2004 Thistle Pinot Noir: tart, iodine. D.
Montinore
The winery: Built for tourists. Imposing archicture, bus parking. Tasters choose five each from a large menu. Soulless winery, soulless wines.
2008 Pinot Gris: No oak, steely, mild fruit, bright, $13. C+
2007 Pinot Gris reserve: Dusty, no midpalate fruit, nothing but acid. Yet oddly for those words, I liked it better than
the non-reserve and gave it C++. Can't defend that now.
2007 Reserve Riesling: "our best vines". Eh. C+
2008 Estate Pinot Noir: cool vintage character with loads of white pepper, tomato leaf and lean fruit.
2007 Pinor Noir Parsons Ridge: massive brett of the rotten egg kind. F.
At this point the group split up, and my car sped off to find the next little winery whose pinot we had all sampled and liked in the Vino Volo tasting room at Sea-Tac. Great choices, as these were by far the best stops of the day.
Apolloni
The winery: Friendly and charming, you taste in the barrel room. Great wines without attitude, and modestly priced. Worth seeking out.
2008 Pinot Blanc: minerality AND fruit. Finally! B
2007 Pinot Gris: as above. B+
2008 Pinot Rose: saute rose petals in butter, add a splash of good pinot noir. Excellent. A. (purchased).
2007 Laurine Pinot: Didn't write anything down, but I gave it a B.
2006 Appoloni Estate Pinot Noir: Delish. Medium bodied, burgundian, one of the best of the day, A-. $29. (purchased)
2007 LH Viognier: Very well done, but you have to love viognier more than I do to want this.
2006 Soleggio: 53% sangio, 30% cab, 10% mer. (I know, those numbers don't add up, but that's what I wrote down, so....) 237 cases produced, CS and Mer came from Washington's very fine Pepper Bridge vineyards. Great balance with good acidity, nicely done. B+ (purchased)
They make but weren't pouring syrah, cabernet and merlot. I asked the pourer which wine of those not poured would she tell me I was really missing out on not taking a bottle home, and she said without a moment's hesitation, "the syrah." So I bought one of those too but haven't opened it yet.
We also tried to taste at Beran, a winery who made a pinot I liked very much and from whom I wanted to taste more. They were closed due to harvest but highly reccomended David Hill. When it turned out that David Hill was convenient located halfway home to Gaston from Appoloni, we made a point of stopping.
David Hill
The winery: Beautiful secluded location in a hilly area, intimate tasting room in an 1800's farmhouse; a bit of work to find but very very worth it. Very talented pourer, too, friendly and informative and able to singlehandedly pour wines to multiple tasters, ring up and stock purchases, as well as supervise the party pros setting up tents etc outside for a birthday bash later that night without missing a beat.
2007 Pinot Blanc: Bright, good acid and good fruit, citrus, a touch of diesel. Loved it. B++
2006 Chardonnay: white pepper and pears, nice acid, $18. B++
2007 Estate Pinot Noir: good. B
2006 Pinot Noir Barrel Select, $28, good plus. B
2006 Pinot Noir Estate Reserve, $38, very good. I would have purchased some if we hadn't talked the pourer into opening the next wine.
2006 Pinot Noir Estate Black Jack, $45: WOW. Black cherry, plum, barnyard without brett, earth, very rich palate, mouthfilling, sensual, distinctive. A+ (purchased)
2006 Tempranillo, $20: fragrant, cherry berry fruit w/raw red bell pepper and ripe tomato. Would have purchased but I'd reached my
self-imposed case limit, however my friends bought this as well as the Black Jack. B++
2006 Merlot Reserve: too jammy for my tastes. C-
