Sold Out!
Holy moly! That was intense. We’re so flattered at all the interest and support. WB has been such a valuable source of knowledge and community over the years and it’s touching that y’all are so interested in the wines.
If you’ve missed out on something, please join our email list (either email me or use the form on our website): While the WineBerserkers community got early access, I’ve reserved a chunk of each of the wines for my mailing list. That offer will go out in early March.
Who We Are:
We (my wife and I) are a very small (250 case) “winery” (renting space in the corner of Vincent Fritzsche’s facility in Amity), and we’re trying to make some of the best white wines in the Willamette Valley, at prices that those in the wine business can afford to buy. (I’ve been ITB in various forms since I was 22… it’s not the most lucrative work, even if it is a blast.)
We’re loosely inspired by the wines of Friuli (especially the Collio/Colli Orientali), which we think shares a vinous link with our little corner of Oregon. We want to make wines that have bright acidity and mineral-driven personalities—they have to work with food, first and foremost. Our first proper vintage was 2018, and we’ve been slowly growing things since then, though I still haven’t been able to quit the day job.
The Offer (Short Version):
PLEASE NOTE: These wines are being bottled in late February and will ship in March.
The Wines:
We’re releasing three different wines, all from the 2020 vintage. Unlike many young wineries, we don’t see white wine as a shortcut to cashflow—we’ve taken time to give them an extended upbringing in barrel and tank. We think this shows in the complexity and nuance they’ve developed, but it doesn’t detract from their sheer deliciousness.
The spring release features three wines, two of them brand new bottlings:
First, Out on Love. I’m gonna cut to the chase here: This might be the best wine we made in 2020, and it’s out of a grape that doesn’t always spring to mind for its best-in-the-cellar potential: Pinot Gris. What sets this apart from most Pinot Gris is the vineyard: this hails from Lewman Vineyard, which sits between Justice and Temperance Hill in a band of the Eola-Amity Hills’ Grand Crus. This has real minerality and tension, balanced by the naturally seductive fruit of the grape and a touch of texture from 18 months in older barrels. The vines were grafted over in 2021, so we only made it this one year. 48 cases produced. Full retail is $35, but BD13 pricing is $28.
Second, Hard Promises. If any wine we make has a cult following, it’s this one. Pinot Blanc from a cooler, north-facing vineyard in the Chehalem Mountains, fermented without inoculation (like the other wines) and aged for 18 months in neutral oak. I think that Pinot Blanc is a noble grape that’s often treated like an afterthought, and although we keep the pricing as low as we can, this develops in bottle like a very serious wine. Texture from the lees aging, beautiful yuzu-inflected citrus, and plenty of mineral cut. 48 cases produced. Full retail is $25, but for BD13 it’s just $19.
Finally, in a bit of a departure for us, there’s Racing Gloves—our first sparkling wine. Now, first and foremost, know that this ain’t trying to be Champagne. It’s made in the “col fondo” style, like the oldest-school Prosecco—which is to say, it’s refermented in the bottle for fizz, but not disgorged (aka bottle-conditioned for all you beer geeks). The goal is something that’s a bit rustic in the best way: deliciously fruited, dry, and complex. Because we can’t ever just make things simple, this blend of (~70%) Pinot Blanc and (~30%) Chardonnay aged in barrel and tank for ~12+ months before bottling. 40 cases produced. Retail will be $30, BD13 pricing is $24.
THE FINE PRINT:
We just switched to using Vinoshipper for fulfillment/sales and can ship to the following states:
AK AZ CA CO DC FL GA HI IA ID IL IN KS KY LA MA MD ME MN MO NC ND NE NH NM NV NY OH OK OR PA SC TN TX VA VT WA WI WV WY.
If you live in CT or MI: We’re working on getting all of our paperwork in order to be able to ship to you. Please email me at saul@championshipbottle.com with what you want and I’ll try and figure out a way to get you set up.
Wines are being bottles in late February and should ship in March. That’s dependent on weather and the supply chain for labels, etc, which should be fine, but these days… Also, flat rate shipping is for ground service only. If you’d like to upgrade to 3-Day/Next Day/Etc you can select that option at checkout—Vinoshipper will calculate the cost for you. We’re happy to hold until fall if it’s already too warm to ship to your area.
Free local delivery is available in the Portland metro area on orders of three bottles or more. Please note: local delivery will occur on weekends and/or weekday evenings at a mutually convenient time.
