Oregon

• Columbia Gorge
• Dundee Hills
• McMinnville
• Willamette

At age 19, this is doing just fine with no signs of being past prime.  The vineyard has since been bought and is now part of the Burgundy producer's Louis Jadot winery in Oregon.  Darker ruby in color, mostly opaque and looking a bit flat at this point.  On the nose, there are cherries, black cherries and spice.  Medium to full bodied.  On the palate, this has nice cherry fruit with some underlying dry forest floor.  Long finish.  It has a nice depth and complexity.  At this age, all bottles are different (it uses a natural cork), but well stored bottles should last another decade.  It drin

This is the best vintage of this wine and that is saying something.  The top Pinot Noir uses the best barrels of all of his single vineyard wines to craft this wine.  Normally, a very fruit forward wine, this is more ephemeral in nature.  The term "Burgundian" gets thrown around a lot but is not far from the mark here.  Deep ruby in color.  Clear and bright.  The nose is great with raspberries, black cherries, cherries, spice and slight clean earthiness.  Medium to full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this unwinds slowly in the glass.  Deep and complex.  Cherry and black cherry frui

2018 seems to be a very successful year for Sineann.  This is the basic Pinot Noir from one of the top producers of single vineyard Oregon Pinots made from the declassified juices from five different vineyards.  Deep ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is deep with sour cherries, hay and slight black pepper.  With air a slight minty note emerges.  It has a very nice mouthfeel.  The abv is listed at 13.4%.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, black cherry fruit that is ever so slightly jammy at this point.  It is delicious.  There is some warmth on the finish.  This really needs s

This is a great take on Gruner.  Very different from the Austrian versions but every bit as good.  Pale silvery green/gold in color.  The nose has apples, slight lemon peel and slight white pepper.  On the palate, this has just a hint of sweetness to it.  Nicely balanced with acidity but there is still some green apple fruit.  Nice finish.  This drinks well on its own especially outside on a hot day.  It works nicely with lighter foods.  It probably should be consumed in the next three to five years.  

This is really drinking in a great place right now.  Deep ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has sour cherries, slight spice, slight cherries and just a bit of earthiness.  On the palate, this  is juicy with a smooth texture.  Layers of sour cherries and cherries with a bit of earthiness.  Long finish.  This is probably at peak but should easily be at this level for another five to seven years before slowly going downhill.  A great match with roasted fowl but drinks well on its own too.  

Always one of my favorite Zin's, in part for its uniqueness, it was wonderful concentration.  Made from vines that getting close to 100 years old.  This vineyard had been abandoned and then resurrected in the 1980's.  Style wise it is middle of the road for Zin.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, black cherries, baking spices and just a bit of char.  On the palate, this is full bodied.  At 14.8% Alc, this is not super high for a Zin.  Lots of cherry and some charred cherry fruit.  Very concentrated.  Lighter tannins.  Nice finish.  This drinks well young but does age nice with goo

This is the inaugural vintage for this wine.  A blend of 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir.  The dosage (added sugar) was 4g/l which is very low.  Light silvery golden in color with a fine line of tiny bubbles.  The nose is expressive.  Very clean with pears, slight lanolin, lemon curd and yeast with underlying slight nuttiness and a hint of smoke.  On the palate, this has a nice crispness.  Light strawberries with more profound lemon cream along with a slight nuttiness.  There is some orange rind on the finish.  Clean and deep, it is tight in the glass.  No guess as to how it ages balancin

Sineann makes some of the bolder Pinot's in Oregon, but they age beautifully.  In fact, if the style on release is too big for your tastes, just hold onto them.  At age eight, this one is somewhere in between.  It is drinking beautifully if not yet at peak.  Deep ruby in color with some purple swirls.  The nose has black cherries, sour cherries, spice and just the slightest bit of earthy funk starting to develop.  On the palate, this drinks younger.  Lots of cherries and slight sour cherries with just a bit of underlying earthiness.  Tight at first, it unwinds in the glass.  Great mouthfeel

This might be the best one of these yet.  The TFL is a blend of Sineann's best barrels of Pinot Noir.  It comes in 375ml bottles only.  This is a bit bigger but they age well, so if that is an issue, just let them mellow out in the cellar.  Purple in color with ruby swirls.  The nose has black cherries, cherries and baking spices.  Full bodied.  On the palate, the blak cherries dominate yet there is a lovely softness to the wine that makes it accessible now.  Good balance.  Light tannins.  Even in a 375ml size, this should easily last another ten years.  It drinks well on its own and will w

This is the "leftovers" from Sineann.  Every vintage is slightly different but it usually has Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet and Zinfandel.  It is a great value.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, black raspberries, spice and a woody note.  On the palate, this is medium bodied.  Light tannins.  Lots of lively cherry and black cherry fruit.  Good finish.  This is easy drinking and works well on its own.  It also works well with burgers or pizza.  Made for immediate drinking, it will drink well for the next five years.