Current Releases - 2007 Wine Information

  Swine Wine Pinot Noir        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source:

30 percent Meredith Mitchell
30 percent Wind Hill
20 percent Gran Moraine
10 percent Canary Hill
10 percent Stermer
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Soil Type: Willakenzie
Laurelwood
Jory, Nekia
  Planted: 1974-2002
  Clonal Selection: Pommard, Dijon 777
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 1.8-2.4
  Fermentation: Indigenous
  Barrels: 20 percent new French oak - Francois Freres
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  The most popular bottling of EIEIO & Company; this wine is more than just a great label, it's also a great Pinot Noir. This wine is distinguished by the slightly macerated and smoky nature of black currant and plum scents and flavors and a smoked meat component that is ridiculously enticing. The smoky gaminess is balanced by floral tones of lilac and hyacinth and acid is matched with some pretty stout support in the form of earthy, minerally tannins and more ephemeral autumnal qualities like the smoke from burning autumn leaves. This is one of those wines that confirms the belief that great Pinot under $25 exists. Check out the recent review by Gary Vaynerchuk http://tv.winelibrary.com/2009/12/03/and-on-this-farm-we-had-a-pinot-episode-779/
       
       
 
   2007 Cuvee E Pinot Noir        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: undisclosed vineyards
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: 100 percent Ribbon Ridge
  Soil Type: marine sedimentary
  Clonal Selection: Pommard
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 2.2
  Fermentation: Indigenous
  Barrels: 33 percent new French Oak - Cadus
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  Gary Vaynerchuk did a review of the 2006 Cuvee E Pinot Noir on his webcast, Wine Library and although there are subtle differences in fruit profile and a gaminess that isn't quite as processed and artificial as a Slim Jim, the 2007 bottling is pretty similar.
" NOSE-smells exactly like a just snapped in half Slim Jim; lots of red beautiful strawberries; extremely good; TASTE-great texture; beautiful mouthfeel; explodes on your palate; rounds out beautifully; very fine & focused tart berry flavors; meaty (venison action); Kill a deer, cut it open, pour Strawberries & Pepper--that's exactly what this wine tastes like; an absolutely beautiful bottle of Pinot Noir; an exquisite finish; a very fine effort; GV-91 Wine Library Episode #408 
 There is definitely a classic Oregon Pinot noir barnyard and a distinctive meat characteristic, but the fruit profile is more freshly picked, ripe raspberry dusted with white pepper and cedar shavings than strawberry and pepper. Serious tannin warrants a little aeration, but this is definitely an everyday drinker.
       
       

  2007 Cuvee I Pinot Noir        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: Stermer Vineyard
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: Yamhill- Carlton
  Soil Type: Willakenzie
  Planted: 1996
  Clonal Selection: Dijon 777
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 1.8
  Fermentation: Indigenous
  Barrels: 33 percent new French oak
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  This wine is a classic, from its entrancing medium ruby color, to its aromas of red currants and bing cherries, talc and violets, to its appealing texture that contains plenty of mineral grip. It smells squeaky clean and perfectly polished and you can actually smell and taste the talc-y, dusty, chalky, limestone. However, unless this wine is decanted there is an intense tannin in the form of briers and underbrush result in a dry and rather austere finish. Although austere is usually the intention with this blend, a vigorous decant allows the tannins to balance out and reveals that this wines construction is a matter of the melding of nuances.
       
       
  2007 Cuvee O Pinot Noir        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: 60 percent Thistle
25 percent Canary Hill 1.8 TPA Pommard planted 1988
10 percent Gran Moraine 1.8 TPA Dijon 777 planted 2002
5 percent Stermer 2.2 TPA Dijon 777 planted 1996
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: Dundee Hills
Eola Hills
Yamhill-Carlton
  Soil Type: Jory
Willakenzie
  Planted: 1982-2000
  Clonal Selection: Wadensvil
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 1.8
  Fermentation: Indigenous
  Barrels: 40 percent new French oak- Meurieux and Francois Freres
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  In 2007 there were three barrels of Pinot Noir that stood out from all the rest. Alone these barrels were great, but when blended they became an Outstanding, Over-the-top, Outrageous, Opulent, Out-of-this-world wine warranting the O designation. Aromatically this wine is sexy and flashy with racy red fruit, pie spice, and lots and lots of candied cherry enhanced by seductive notes of vanilla, caramel, and smoke. Unleashed upon the palate, flavors erupt into a complex barrage of ripe red raspberry, licorice, and hot sauna cedar. The oak is present but with the primary function of defining the body, not ruling it and ever evolving flavors unfold layer by layer to reveal just how serious a wine this is. It truly is something special.
       
       
  2007 Blackburn Reserve        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: undisclosed vineyards
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Soil Type: Marine Sedimentary
  Planted: 1986
  Clonal Selection: Pommard
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 1.9
  Fermentation:  
  Barrels: 100 percent new French Oak - Cadus
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  Blackburn is always that bottle that is big and tannic and well..a "reserve", or at least has been up until 2007. This vintage the wine is generous and expansive, opening with aromas of stewed black plums and cherries, Oriental Ramen spice pack, bourbon and graphite and filling the mouth with all sorts of dark dimensions. This is perhaps the best representation of what the 2007 vintage was like- fruit and flavors are there, but the weight that was found in the 2006 and prior vintages is not (which oddly was not the case when this wine was blended, at least to my recollection). There is nothing wrong with drinking this wine now, but it would be better to let it rest until 2010-2015.
       
       
  2007 Canary Hill Vineyard - Old Block        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: Canary Hill
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: Eola Hills
  Soil Type: Jory, Nekia
  Planted: 1988
  Clonal Selection: Pommard
  Yield-TPA/YPV: 2.2
  Fermentation: Indigenous
  Barrels: 50 percent new French Oak - Meurieux
50 percent once used French Oak - Francois Freres
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  This is the last vintage of EIEIO Canary Hill and undoubtedly one of the best. Although we have gone on ad nausea about how this site is meticulously farmed, it's definitely worth stating one last time. Mineral, earthy elements are right up front, both in the nose and the mouth, but red and black currant and cherry jam filled sugar cookie flavors are ripe and fleshy, while the texture is like dusty satin. The wine deepens and intensifies in the glass exhibiting darker flavors of dried cherries, warm granulated sugar, jelly filled donuts and star anise. It is substantial, solid, tense, and ravishing with intense fruit flavors deeply etched with vibrant acid; the earthy aspect comes in as strata of brambles and briers and moss with underlying minerality. It's a model of absolute harmony, balance and integration.
       
       
  2007 Cuvee E Chardonnay        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: Thistle, Yates- Conwill Vineyard
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: Dundee Hills, Yamhill-Carlton
  Clonal Selection: Dijon
  Barrels: 50 percent new French Oak - Sirgue and Gillet
50 percent small stainless steel barrels
  Fermentation: Small barrel ferments each inoculated with a different type of yeast making for infinite blending trials. Early lees stirring to maximize texture.
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  There are simply not enough adjectives to describe the intoxicating aromas of this pale, straw colored wine. Initially, notes of slightly macerated apple and crunchy apple oatcakes (or the dust in the bottom of the bag of cinnamon apple cheerios) combine with toasted nuts and cedar, followed by citrus rind, candied lemon peel and honeysuckle. A solid spice framework of raw cinnamon supports big, lush flavors of baked Macoun apple, sweet butterscotch and hazelnut while crisp acidity and refined tannin add structure. This sense of structure carries through to the finish and is preluded by flavors parfaited between creamy layers of texture and citrus. It's signature Cuvée E style; rich with exceptional detail and dimension that go well beyond its price.
       
       
  2007 Cuvee I Chardonnay        Click to BUY NOW!
  Fruit Source: Thistle, Yates- Conwill Vineyard
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: Dundee Hills, Yamhill-Carlton
  Clonal Selection: Draper clone, Dijon 76
  Barrels: 80 percent small stainless steel barrels
20 percent new French Oak - Francois Freres
  Fermentation: Small barrel ferments each inoculated with a different type of yeast. The older, higher elevation, north facing site provided fruit with retained acidity and minerality resulting in a lean, Chablis style Chardonnay.
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  Cuvee I is a continual work in progress in the pursuit of Chardonnay perfection. The color is pale straw; the bouquet is and intermingling of white flower, melon, peach, Key Lime, Meyer Lemon and warmer notes of hulled Filberts, toasted almonds, caramel crème brulee, and raw honey. Initially there is a slight diesel note which dissipates with time, evolving into an aromatic of freshly poured concrete which is usually indicative of a clean fermentation. In the mouth, delicious stone fruits, peeled green apple and lemon meringue streaked with hazelnuts and honey lead to a creamy shortcake texture that gives this wine weight while the refreshing acidity keeps its lean p ... Morerofile in check. This is a magnificently crafted, refined wine that will delight the more critical Chardonnay follower
       
       

  2007 Cuvee O Chardonnay        Click to BUY NOW!
     
  Fruit Source: undisclosed vineyards
  AVA: Willamette Valley
  Sub AVA: 60 percent Amity - Eola Hills
20 percent Yamhill - Carlton AVA
20 percent Dundee Hills AVA - Old Vine
  Clonal Selection: Draper clone, Dijon 76
  Barrels: 80 percent new French Oak - Siruge and Dargau
20 percent neutral French Oak
  Fermentation: Small barrel ferments each inoculated with a different type of yeast.
  Production:  
  Tasting Notes:  
  This is the first vintage of Cuvee O Chardonnay. The bottling designation appears in vintages where there are stand alone barrels that exceed the high standards of vineyard designations. This does not occur in every vintage, so when it does, it is truly something special. This is one of those wines that actually smells classy like wet crystal or broken bone china. Under all that minerality is a layer of fruit including early season fig, apple blossom, and white nectarine with earthy undertones of white truffles. I could sit here and smell the aromas indefinitely; rich, concentrated and filled with subtleties.
There is nothing about this wine that is over the top; no in your face fruit, no heavy handed oak; it is all about understated elegance. Unlike some Chardonnays that are all initial impression with little to back it up, this wine is constrained. The super smooth entry is filled with fresh pressed apples, lemon zest, limestone and slightly sweet brown bread toast flavors that extend on the palate building with intensity and culminating in a long spicy finish that continues with unwavering power. A remarkable finely designed Chardonnay with beautiful, seamless flavor from beginning to end.
       

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