Savor Southern Oregon offered a panel of key winemakers in conjunction with its event in Jacksonville. It was a great opportunity to hear them talk about their craft and wines firsthand. Following are tasting notes from some of the wines presented by the panel:
Irvine & Roberts Vineyards Brut 2019: Lovely notes of yellow apple and lemon, acidity balanced with biscuity flavor due to aging for 3 years on the lees, one year in oak and the remainder in the bottle. This is a traditional method sparkling with a 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Winemaker Brian Gruber pointed out that some of these grapes come from the Illinois Valley AVA which has a bit more coastal exposure than other AVA’s in southern Oregon
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Red Lily Vineyards Verdejo 2022: A Spanish white varietal that is finicky to grow, according to winemaker and winery owner Rachael Martin. This wine is a pale yellow and gives off perfumey notes of white peach and roses on a mineral base. This wine is aged in stainless steel which retains a notable acidity, but it still dances lightly on the tongue. This is a refreshing summer wine, meant for enjoying on a warm day.
Circadian Cellars Primitivo 2022: You might recognize this grape as what you get in a bottle of California Zinfandel. This grapes for this wine are hand-selected by winemaker Sara Garr. She leaves about 50% of the grapes in whole clusters to promote carbonic maceration (allowing the fermentation process to begin inside the grape instead of crushing it first). It’s “gently oaked.” This results in a very purple wine with notes of baked plums, pomegranate and brown sugar. It still gives you plenty of tannins right now, with fairly low acid. In another year or two, the tannins should break down in a way that mellows this already drinkable wine.
DANCIN Vineyards Adagio Pinot Noir 2023: This is new release that shows great promise. Winemaker Chris Jiron views this style of pinot as a bridge between what you get in the Willamette Valley and what Sonoma Coast producers are making right now. That’s a good description of a promising young wine. This is a single-clone Pinot Noir (Wädenswil, a Swiss clone). That in itself is unusual as many Oregon pinots represent a mix of clones. A few winemakers, like Patricia Green Cellars, also make focused wines from a single clone like this, but Dancin’s Adagio is a rare breed on this basis alone. These grapes are grown at about 1800 feet in elevation on a north-facing slope. This contributes to even ripening and a classic style of cooler Pinot Noir wine. It’s a pretty ruby in the glass with fresh strawberries and cherries on the nose and a bit of tomato leaf. Some baking spices linger along with a note of freshly turned earth in a wine that displays a soft but discernible structure nicely balanced between tannin and acid.
Quady North Flagship Syrah 2020: Remember 2020? People in southern Oregon still talk about the disastrous Almeda fire that broke out just north of Ashland in September of that year. The devastation is still evident, and at the time many in the wine industry thought smoke produced by that fire would taint wines made with that year’s grapes. This Syrah from Herb Quady and his team defies that expectation. This is a spicy but velvety wine evoking baked plums and ripe figs. It strikes a great balance between acidity and tannin, and there isn’t even a hint of smoke in the nose. Quady made this from a low-yielding Syrah clone that produces bigger grapes. That gives the grapes plenty of surface area to soak in the sun. The wine maintains a nice structure even with relatively high alcohol. Some oak keeps the overall effect in check and makes this a very drinkable wine, especially with bold flavors like seared steak with fire-roasted peppers or roasted pork loin with a fig balsamic glaze.