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2007 Vintage

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2003 Vintage  
     
    2007 Vintage
     

 

2007 Cuvee E Chardonnay

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  Tasting Notes:  Intoxicating aromas of this pale, straw colored wine abound. Initially, notes of crunchy apple oatcakes (or the dust in the bottom of the bag of Apple Cinnamon Cheerios) combine with toasted nuts and cedar, followed by citrus rind, candied lemon peel and honeysuckle. Then a solid spice framework of cinnamon supports big, lush flavors of baked Macoun apples, sweet butterscotch and hazelnut while crisp acidity and refined tannin add structure. Classic Chardonnay.
     
 

2007 Cuvee I Chardonnay

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  Tasting Notes:  Cuvée I is a continual work in progress in the pursuit of Chardonnay perfection. Pale straw in color, the bouquet is an intermingling of white flower, melon, peach, Key Lime, Meyer Lemon and notes of hulled Filberts, toasted almonds, caramel crème brulee drizzled with raw honey. A slight diesel note evolves into aromatics of freshly poured concrete, 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 profile in check. A magnificently crafted and refined wine that will delight the more critical Chardonnay follower. Drink or cellar this baby.
     
   

2007 Cuvee O Chardonnay

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    Tasting Notes:  The first vintage of Cuvée 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. Aromas of 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. Rich, concentrated and filled with subtleties, the perfume carries on in definitely. However, 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. 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 remarkably fine Chardonnay with beautiful, seamless flavor from beginning to end. Load up on this one.
     

 

2007 Cuvee E Pinot Noir

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  Tasting Notes:  Wine Library reviewed the 2006 Cuvée E Pinot Noir: Episode 408. 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 damn 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 and 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”

There is definitely a classic Oregon Pinot noir with barnyard and distinctive meat characteristics, but the fruit profile is more freshly picked, ripe raspberry dusted with white pepper and cedar shavings, but not from a hamster cage! This is a serious wine warranting a little aeration. So give a chug-a-lug an hour before serving or cellar it for six more years without any worries.
     
   

2007 Cuvee I Pinot Noir

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  Tasting Notes:  This wine is a classic, from its entrancing medium ruby color and its aromas of red currants and Bing cherries, talc and violets, to its appealing texture that contains plenty of mineral grip. Squeaky clean and perfectly polished with flavors of dust and chalky limestone. Initially there is an incredible initial wetness to the wine with a round mouthfeel. Upon swallowing, the wine finishes completely dry with fine tannins in the form of blackberry briers and underbrush resulting in a subtle finish. Austere is the intention with this blend as it will gain weight with time, just like the 2006 did, a current favorite of foodies. Vigorous decanting reveals the balance and the melding of many beautiful nuances from the blending trials. One of the most cellar worthy 2007s.
     
   

2007 Cuvee O Pinot Noir

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    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 dry sauna cedar. The oak is present but with the primary function of defining the bones of the body with the fruit being the flesh, clothing optional. Ever evolving flavors unfold layer by layer to reveal just how serious a wine this is. It truly is something special.
     
   

2007 Blackburn Reserve Pinot Noir

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  Tasting Notes:  Blackburn is always that bottle that is big and backward and well...a “reserve”, or at least has been thus far. This vintage is generous and expansive, opening with aromas of stewed black plums and cherries, Oriental Ramen spices, bourbon and graphite and filling the mouth with all sorts of dark dimensions. This is perhaps the best representation of the 2007 vintage; fruit and flavors are there, but in the background, as in classic Burgundy, there is always seems to be something else lurking. Very drinkable now, but it would be better to let it rest until 2010-2015.
     
   

2007 Canary Hill Pinot Noir

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  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. Minerals and earthy elements are right up front, both in the nose and the mouth. Flavors expand into ripe and fleshy red and black currants plus cherry jam filled sugar cookies, while the texture is like dusty satin. The wine deepens and intensifies in the glass exhibiting darker flavors of dried cherries, warm brown sugar, jelly filled donuts and star anise. 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 deep coast-range moss with underlying minerality. A model of absolute harmony, balance and integration. Check the website for verticals of this beauty.
     
     
    2006 Vintage
     
     
   

2006 Cuvee E Chardonnay  

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  Tasting Notes:  Small barrel ferments of 70 percent stainless steel and 30 percent New French Oak creates a more traditional style of Chardonnay.  The warmer vineyard sites provided riper fruit which easily stood up to the new oak barrel regime.  The result is a completely balanced Chardonnay with fruit, oak and acidity.  In addition each barrel was inoculated with a different type of yeast (two barrels underwent a native yeast fermentation) which had a profound affect upon the wine and made for infinite blending trials.

The pale yellow color gives no indication that this Chardonnay is full of fresh yellow peach, hints of almond oil, coconut and exotic spice.  Aromatics lead through to the flavors with subtle undertones of sandal wood, maple brown sugar, and meringue.  Ever so slightly more unctuous than the Cuvee I, this is a great cocktail style Chardonnay.
     
   

2006 Cuvee I Chardonnay  

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  Small barrel ferments of 82 percent stainless steel and 18 percent neutral French Oak.  The older, higher elevation, north facing vineyard sites provided fruit with retained acidity and minerality resulting in a lean, Chablis style Chardonnay. 

Cuvee I is more texture driven than fruit driven wine.  Expressive aromatics of white flowers, white stone peach and wet river rock lead to subtle flavors of Asian (nashi) pear, wet slate, and honeysuckle on the finish.  Great texture with subtle complexities that all result in one seamless Chardonnay. 
     
   

2006 Cuvee E Pinot Noir - SOLD OUT
  Primarily consisting of Ribbon Ridge Appellation fruit, this wine has a wide range of flavors.  Initially aromatics show intense blue and red fruits with a bit of funk.  With time aromas of dusty blackberries and intriguing hoisin sauce intermingle with flavors of wild strawberries and sweet black cherry, and fresh Chanterelle mushrooms.  More familiar cherry notes, raspberry and mocha emerge with food.  Smooth on the palate with a reasonable tannic and acid structure underneath.
     
   

2006 Cuvee I Pinot Noir  -  SOLD OUT
    Color is clear and deep and I swear it sparkles.  Delicate and dusty aromatics give the impression that the wine will be restrained, but flavors indicate otherwise.  Initially intense black and red cherry intertwine with cinnamon sugar covered graham crackers.  Explosions of stone fruits hit the mid-palate and add another layer of more earthy flavors ranging from wet concrete to freshly turned soil.  The finish has a density showing fresh pipe tobacco, wild raspberry and blueberry compote around a core of dried cherries.  While initially the wine is deep and brooding, the lively acidity is balanced against structured tannins and results in a seemingly never ending finish.  This is a fresh beauty with balance, grace and complexity and energy.  A Roumier style of Pinot.
     
     

2006 Blackburn Reserve - SOLD OUT
    Inky purple approaching black.  Aromatics of mocha and cocoa nibs intertwine with red and blue fruit- slightly smoky blackberries and sun warmed raspberries. Piercing purity and intensity bring freshly turned earth, forest underbrush and bittersweet chocolate covered currants and raspberries the forefront while undertones of char, toast, and tar add complexity.  The initial impression is clean, with a great acidity, weighty texture, and smooth tannins.  Raspberry, baked blackberry cobbler with hints of cinnamon, and Tahitian vanilla bean seamlessly integrate with porcini mushroom and oak. It’s an evolution from fruit to dirt back to fruit.  The last time this wine was tasted it was still brooding, but the lively acidity balanced against sweet fruit and lip smacking tannin indicating there is tremendous backbone and structure.
     
   

2006 Canary Hill Vineyard

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Burnt umber, rusty red color with aromatics that are more mineral than fruit  driven.  Dominated by dusty caliches dirt road, clean graphite, and freshly poured concrete as this wine opens it displays spiced red cherry, and just out-of-the-oven French apple, raspberry and cherry tart. The texture is almost talc-like due to the profound mineral quality which is permeated by chiming acid. A little tight, but balanced with searing potential. Mineral elements carry through in the mouth and the wine opens up with a dark, brambly fruit element and hints of sandalwood, spiced and macerated currents and plums and a touch of mulberry. “WOW this is good. “  The wine rounds out beautifully with layers of fruit, slate and earth on the finish. Nice acidity contributes to a sense of structure in the mouth as well as a lengthy finish. Typical to this site, the wine drinks beautifully in its youth and will gain complexity with age.
     
   

2006 Stermer Vineyard

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A beautiful garnet red. "What a nose!” This wine is perfectly Pinot-esque; black cherries crushed underfoot dried grapevines with a bit of Chanterelle mushroom, fresh pipe tobacco, espresso, clove, vanilla and dark bittersweet chocolate. Further complicating things is a citrusy grapefruit, blood orange characteristic and an almost gamey component.  There is a seductive layering of silk and fine grained tannin. This wine epitomizes the essential balance between power and elegance.  Flavors range from fresh and dried black and red currents and plums to espresso, baking spice, Asian spice, and graphite pencil with a long and polished finish of lingering raspberry.
     
   

2006 Meredith Mitchell Vineyard

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Bright ruby color leads to extremely intense on the nose with pencil lead, blackberries, cherries and petrol being the dominate notes. Secondary aromatics present spiced and macerated black cherries and plums with a circumference of black pepper, and anise.  This site tends to be tannic, but this year I pulled back substantially on the extraction and followed primary fermentation with a post-fermentation-maceration. The result is a big, powerful wine which is amazingly the most balanced of all the 2006s.  The enveloping mouth feel leads to explosive flavors of Korean ribs dipped in plum sauce, red cherries, and brambleberry with an intense earthiness reminiscent of the Oregon Country Fair. Linear and complex with acid so vibrant it feels electrified.
     
   

2006 Wind Hill Vineyard

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Red garnet with flecks of pink.  This is a deep, rich wine with dimension and detail, very spicy and intense but also elegant. Classic black cherry and violets permeated with fresh green bean and ground black pepper. A dusty quality encompasses not only the aromatics but also the flavors due to the older vine site. The initial attack of acidity is backed up by a solid framework of dried berries and earth, oak and minerals with a floral edge and encompasses tannins that dominate the finish. Initially the dusty raspberry and blackberry components are behind the scenes, but emerge over time. Fine grained tannins commingled with layers of flavors of spice. The most subtle of all the single vineyard offerings, it’s a subtly serious wine.
     
    2005 Vintage
     
    2005 Cuvee E Pinot Noir - SOLD OUT
     
  This wine truly is a little bit of everything and has a wide range of flavors.  Primarily consisting of Chehalem Mountain fruit which consists of three different soil types; basaltic, ocean sedimentary, and loess (blown lake sediment), this wine has a wide range of flavors. Beginning with bright spice notes, blue fruit and intense blackberry jam, intriguing undertones of charred black-pepper-rubbed filet mignon emerge with time. Aromatics carry through to flavors of wild Maine blueberries, blackberries with astringent seeds, sweet black cherry, and fresh mushrooms. With food and air, the wine reveals more familiar cherry notes, raspberry and mocha. It is smooth on the palate with a reasonable tannic structure underneath. 
     
    2005 Blackburn Reserve - SOLD OUT
  Earthy mushroom aromatics with hints of spruce evolve into blackberry jam, cinnamon and nutmeg. A dense weave of black peppercorns, fresh tobacco, wild raspberry and blueberry compote and vanilla intertwine around an intense core of dried cherries. While initially the wine is deep and brooding, the lively acidity is balanced against structured tannins and results in good length of finish. One of the most interesting observations is how consistent this wine is;flavors that were apparent at time of harvest through fermentation and aging are similar to that in the bottle. A cellar worthy wine which will reward the patient.
     
    2005 Broadley Vineyard
  A full palette of classic Pinot noir aromas leap from the glass; red and black cherry, plum and blackberry are followed by cassis, orange peel and distinctive hints of sassafras and cola. The wine tastes of chocolate covered cherries with a hint of anise and deep gamey undertones that are balanced against fine blackberry, black cherry, sour stone cherry fruit, white pepper, and freshly cut oak. More earth driven than fruit focused, the wine shows wonderful balance. Round, well-integrated tannins frame the intense fruit beautifully. A well-finessed BIG wine.
     
    2005 Canary Hill Vineyard  - SOLD OUT
  Aromatics are fruit forward with bright, spicy notes that tickle the nose. Ripe red raspberries, red and black cherries, and sweet baked cherry pie with crunchy graham cracker crust intermingle with waxy black cherry and cola. Naturally high acidity contributes to a sense of structure in the mouth as well as a lengthy finish. Typical to this site, the wine drinks beautifully in its youth and will gain complexity with age. Like Grand Cru Burgundy at a fraction of the price.
 
     
   

2005 Meredith Mitchell Vineyard  

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  The intense and structured 2005 Meredith Mitchell results from the tiny Pommard clusters and berries and naturally higher acidity of the site. This wine usually requires a bit more cellar time to reach its full potential, but even in its youth displays an intense nose of blackberries and cherries laced with spice, black pepper, and hints of anise. Black cherry jam, juicy Asian Pears and brambleberry with a zingy acidity add a subtle complexity. The finish with hints of spectacular, sweet almond oil creates intense waves of salivation!
     
    2005 Stermer Vineyard - SOLD OUT 
  A beautiful garnet with Old School aromatics of earthy crushed dried grapevines and mushroom coupled with raspberry, blackberry and black cherries. Hints of fresh pipe tobacco, espresso, clove, vanilla and dark chocolate carry through to the flavors. In the mouth, candied cherries and dried red currants evolve into hot apple pie a la mode. This wine is wonderfully balanced with great structure, enticing texture and tannins, and a long polished finish. Acidity levels are lower than other EIEIO wines making Stermer lush and agreeable in its youth.
     
     
    2004 Vintage
     
     
    2004 Broadley Vineyard - SOLD OUT
    Big nose of super ripe black cherries, ripe black plums, and dusty blackberries followed by earthy, fresh mushroom-like aromas interlaced like a mincemeat pie picnic on the dense Coast Range during the early fall.  Under these traditional aromas, it exhibits exotic toffee candy with nutmeg and vanilla, perhaps due to barrel influence. Quite the complex nose to say the least.  In the mouth, flavors kick in under the long-chain tannins. Blood oranges and sweet cherries dominate but cinnamon and cardamom finesse.  Similar to Amarone, due to the ripeness of the fruit.   Rich, lush, and fat in the mouth.  Finishes with nice ripe tannins and a lingering flavor of raspberry and fig compote-if such a thing exists.  A flamboyant wine in a more modern style. Unlike the 2003 Broadley, this wine is ready to drink now.
     
    2004 Canary Hill Vineyard  - SOLD OUT
    Dark color, aromatics, and flavors. More viscous, more brooding, more aromatically complex than the other 2004s with smells of dark fruit and flowers followed by licorice and violets. On the palate, blackberries and sweet cherries with hints of vanilla bean.  Velvet-like texture with a nice balance between the fruit, acidity and tannins. Unbelievable wine to date and one that will only get better with age.
     
   

2004 Meredith Mitchell Vineyard  

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    Aromatically this is the most exotic with spices ranging from star anise to Chinese Five Spice to fruits ranging from black cherries to tangerines to an element of fresh cut straw. Flavors of large, ripe stone fruits, bitter chocolate and Medjool datesare typical to the Pommard clone from this site. There is a sweet and lively juiciness similiar to the better Burgundies in the better vintages. Nice fine grained tannins combine with the acidity to make a flavorful and textural finish.  Great structure, elegance, and finesse.  This is a wine  that highlights EVERYTHING you should look for in a Pinot that will defy the drink in 5-7 rule.
     
    2004 Wind Hill Vineyard - SOLD OUT
   
EIEIO & Company 2004 Wind Hill Vineyard Although not citing vineyard designation until 2003, EIEIO & Company has produced wine from this site for the past five vintages. Elegant and distinctly feminine the wine displays lovely lavender and fresh cherry blossoms. Beautifully balanced aromatically and texturally this is a classic Pinot Noir.
     
    2003 Vintage
     
     
    2003 Blackburn Reserve - Magnum
  Due to the extreme heats of the 2003 vintage, this south facing vineyard site experienced raisinizing- resulting in a massive Pinot Noir that borders Amarone or Port. If you are looking for Pinot like you've never experienced before look no further.
     
     

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