Can you tell me about the Oregon 2019 vintage?

Winemakers, how did the fruit look this year (the numbers) and which vintage(s) does 2019 remind you of?

Thanks

We just got back from 5 days in McMinnville.
Visited Patricia Green, JK Carriere, Soter, Sokol Blosser, Montinore, Adelsheim, and Brick House.

The general consensus was rainy spring, cooler than normal summer, and a little rain right around harvest/crush.

Optimism is good. We ended up buying 4 cases of mostly pinot from the '15 vintage.

Chardonnay is killing it up there.

‘15 is the first vintage I went big on after I discovered how much I love these wines. It was so cool to see what each producer was able to do with such a ripe vintage. Not the most ideal vintage but one from which you could learn a great deal.

Bloom was in early June, which put the sweet spot of 105 days towards the tail end of September. Folks that started early did so against miserable disease pressure. Folks with fine vineyard managers that picked on a reasonable schedule will be rewarded with pretty wines.

Reminds me 1996.

…which was a sneaky good year.

I would expect a higher acid/lower alcohol vintage, and as long as the fruit reached phenolic ripeness, really good wines.

Yes Rick, 96 was a “sneaky good” year. But not for everyone and that will be a truth in 2019.

And yes Mark, I think you’re right. So the arguement of picking to hold onto acid is out the window. Acid is abundant in 19.

I have this visual stuck in my head of RT doing a happy dance.

Right. Be brave Greg!

Acids are excellent in 2019, on both the early and the late side.

I picked half our Lewman vineyard fruit on Sept 14th and half on the 29th. Both are very good wines, I don’t actually have a preference.

I do think the paradigm of waiting for flavor in the Willamette Valley is leading to more CA style wines, as too many people who don’t really have enough experience with picking early live by the motto in every vintage. Present company excepted.

There is little doubt that this is a Trimpi vintage. My ABVs coming out of fermenter range from 11.9-12.85%. And acid…is correct.

RT

I think if the sun shines a lot in a vintage that the wines should show it.

2010 vis a vis 2008 taught me that I can excuse my self from the sunshine buffet before the cheese and dessert courses are served. It’s no crime to leave some heat units behind.

I’ll eat your cake. I love cake. Cheese too.

Stopped by a few wineries this weekend. Seems like the consensus was that it is a good vintage although the yields are down as they drop quite a few clusters in mid season due to mildew issues. The fruit that came into the winery was very nice.