An exciting find! Located in the heart of Oregon’s prime wine grape growing region, the Willamette Valley, Elkhorn Ridge Vineyards is dedicated to growing the finest Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc grapes, and to producing the very best Pinots.
In 2000 they planted our first 10 acres of Pinot Noir, utilizing several different rootstocks and various Pommard and Dijon clones. In 2001 they added an additional 11 acres using the same rootstocks and clonal mix. They sell their high quality grapes to five top Oregon wineries, but also bottle a small quantity of their own estate Pinots.
This wine estate wine made entirely from Dijon 777 clone Pinot Noir. Clone 777 arrived in Oregon in 1981 and this early ripening clone was found to be extremely suitable to the microclimate. In addition, the small, compact clusters were also advantageous for avoiding mildew in the sometimes damp climate. The other attributes of 777 are small berries, low-yields, strong and intense color due to thick skins, strong aromatics and dense, complex fruit flavors.
This 2019 shows all of the beautiful intesity of these mature vine Dijon 777 clone grapes from the Elkhorn estate vineyards. Ripe grapes are destemmed, crushed and inoculated with various strains of cultured yeast to maximize complexity, after cold soaking. Daily gentle punchdowns are used to extract optimal flavor and color and minimize harsh tannins. The punchdowns can vary by block, tank and day of fermentation. Every ferment is tasted daily to evaluate the evolution of tannins, modify extraction techniques and find the right moment to drain the wine off the skins. The “777” is aged for 12 months in various types of French oak barrels.
The “777”possesses a deep ruby color, in addition to a fragrant bouquet of ripe black fruit, including blackberries, black cherries and plums. This elegant wine is complex in structure, vibrant, unctuously-textured showing notes of black cherries, blackberries, plums, figs and black and red currants. Noted for its long, velvety finish it should age well for eight to ten years.
This wine was awarded a Gold Medal at the 2019 Sunset International Wine Competition and James Suckling scored this 91 points saying "Ripe strawberries and raspberries with flowers and cedar. Full-bodied, layered and dense with loads of fruit. A little extracted. For those looking for a fuller-bodied pinot. Drink now. Glass stopper."
This boutique Willamette Valley Pinot Noir is extremely limited so don't miss it.