What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD)

In my last post, I wrote about a wine that was a case study in bottle label minimalism. With this one, I wanted to highlight a producer at the opposite end of the spectrum, Willamette Valley Vineyards (WVV), who with their labels do a fantastic job connecting the consumer to the people, places, and practices going into each bottle of wine.

The back label was the first thing I noticed when getting ready to open a bottle of their 2007 Pinot Gris Willamette Valley ($15) and the 2006 Tualatin Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir (price unknown) to pair with a meal of roasted chicken breasts with garbanzo beans, tomatoes, and paprika served with a Greek yogurt sauce. I did not purchase these wines, for they arrived at my doorstep as free samples provided by the marketing folks at Willamette Valley Vineyards. In accepting these wines, I made it clear that BeyondtheBottle.com includes positive and negative reviews, which did not dissuade them from following through with a box arriving several days later.

Founded in 1983, Willamette Valley Vineyards is Oregon's third largest producer (112,000 cases) and its only publicly held winery (WVVI). For more on their story, I encourage you to visit their web site, which like their labels, does a great job going beyond the bottle to connect you to their history, team, vineyards, and practices. Getting back to the labels, what is it that makes Willamette Valley Vineyards bottles unique?

As you can see on the '07 pinot gris label, there is a detailed description of the wine, including where the fruit was sourced, how it was cultivated, and what went into the wine making process. There is also the mention of the vineyards being LIVE and Salmon Safe certified, as a result of sustainable farming practices. In addition, each label offers the names and signatures of Jim Bernau, owner/winegrower, and Forrest Klaffke, winemaker. Last but not least are are the technical notes provided, detailing the clones used, the soil composition, the harvest period, the brix at harvest, fermentation, and peak period for drinking.

For wine geeks like me or those that are just seeking to understand more about the wine they are drinking, these notes are fantastic. I think this speaks well of Willamette Valley Vineyards in taking the extra step to offer this information. Sure, they could have followed the well trodden path of other wines by relegating technical and tasting notes to their web site. But to provide these on the back of each bottle demonstrates a commitment to help consumers discover something new and connect even further to their wine.

The WWV 2007 Pinot Gris (13%) was a clear, light golden color, offering notes of honeydew melon and a bit of yeastiness. This wine continued to evolve with each glass and definitely improved as its temperature rose, revealing some nice fruit, minerality and decent acidity. Overall, this was a decent Oregon pinot gris considering its price point of $15. I would buy another bottle of this wine and serve it again, albeit not immediately after pulling from the refrigerator.

The WWV 2006 Tualatin Pinot Noir (14.5%) was slightly cloudy in the glass and on the nose offered bright red berry fruit notes, especially strawberry, followed by hints of alcohol. This sequence repeated itself in the mouth with the fruit giving way to a burst of heat in the finish. All who tasted this wine really liked it except for the heat coming from the high alcohol. To be fair, 2006 was a challenging vintage, with many producers having to deal with very ripe fruit, which in turn elevated alcohol levels in many wines.

Even still, I was shocked to see that some of fruit going into the Tualatin pinot noir was harvested between 22.1 and 27.8 brix. Using the standard conversion of 55% brix to estimate alcohol, this would put these grapes within a range of 12.15% to 15.29%. It appears much of the fruit from Tualatin Estate Vineyard was picked at the higher brix level, thus the 14.5% alcohol by volume provided on the label.

It's too bad the alcohol overpowered this wine, for there was fine fruit in this bottle wanting to express itself. Which leads me to believe that trying a cooler vintage of a wine comprised of Tualatin Estate Vineyard, one of Oregon's oldest sites in the valley, would be worthwhile. I am going to have to keep an eye out for a 2007 or 2008 bottling of this vineyard to try down the road. In the meantime, I look forward to opening other bottles of Willamette Valley Vineyards wine and connecting further with the people and places behind this producer.

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