Joel Gott 2017 Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley

Joel Gott Wines was born with the 1996 release of its Amador County Zinfandel, a joint effort with his wife, Sarah Gott, which earned stellar reviews from Robert Parker and Wine Spectator. Following this initial success, Joel Gott Wines released a Sauvignon Blanc in 1998, followed by a Cabernet Sauvignon and other California wines. In 2009, Joel Gott Wines partnered with Trinchero Family Estates. The relationship enables Joel Gott and his team to focus on sourcing the best fruit to produce high quality wines.

After a string of warm vintages, 2017 was a cooler, more traditional growing season for the Willamette Valley. The cooler vintage allowed fruit to develop more red fruit flavors, well-balanced sugars and acidity by the time it was picked in late September.

For this wine grapes were sourced from the Eola-Amity Hills and Yamhill-Carlton appellations within Oregon’s Willamette Valley, where ideal growing conditions—similar to those of Burgundy, France—produce world-class Pinot Noir.

After harvest, fruit from each vineyard was hand-sorted and de-stemmed. The wine was fermented in open-top fermenters and punched down twice daily. This gentler and more traditional form of cap management helps to retain the soft tannin structure of Pinot Noir. After fermentation, the fruit was gently pressed in a basket press which results in softer, more elegant tannins. The wine was then aged for approximately one year in 25% new Burgundy oak and 75% one-to three-year-old Burgundy oak.

This wine has aromas of black raspberry, pomegranate, strawberries and marionberry with notes of vanilla. On the palate, bright red fruit flavors and acidity lead to soft, velvety tannins with candied cherry and cranberry aromas and subtle vanilla notes on the mid-palate. Sweet, fruit flavors and notes of spice offer a long, elegant finish.