Hello people! This is my first (non-Berserker Day) post! Just got home from the 2024 Oregon Chardonnay Celebration at the Allison Inn and Spa in Newberg, OR. 50 Oregon wineries each pouring one of their chardonnays. My first time going and I really enjoyed it. I ended up trying about half of the wines. A couple of my favorite chardonnay producers were there (Goodfellow, Morgen Long) but many top chardonnay producers were not. Most were pouring 2021’s though there were some older and a few 2022’s. Most were good to very good, and I had one terrible one (that will remain nameless). A few of my favorites:
Goodfellow 2021 Richard’s Cuvee - So much reduction! The most of any wine I tasted there. But I love it.
Gran Moraine 2021 Yamhill-Carlton - Lots of fruit with prominent pineapple.
Bethel Heights 2021 Casteel
But the one wine that blew me away was the Flaneur 2021 Bon Vivant. Incredible nose, focused, intense flavor. While most of the other wines seemed raw as one would expect in young chardonnay the Bon Vivant seemed to have settled down already. Man, was it good. Only available to wine club members so I may have to join. Anyone else get a chance to attend this event?
Wish I could, maybe next year. Going to Oregon during IPNC this summer and to visit winemakers.
I had a Flaneur La Belle Promenade Chardonnay a few months ago that was also excellent. I was excited to see them as a newbie on BerserkerDay.
I’d love to make it out to this event. Oregon Chardonnay has quickly risen to a cellar staple for me and Walter Scott and Goodfellow are making up a good chunk of that!
I was there 
, and with Megan this year so I wandered around a bit. I heard excellent things about the Flaneur wine but didn’t get to taste it.
Of the wines I did taste (about 15), I really enjoyed the overall level of quality. Lots of very good wines. Some highlights:
2021 Morgen Long Wilamette Valley was one of my favorites. Very Roulot-like with lots of sea air, shells, slightly smokey, and very nervy. Great finishing acidity, very long.
Martin Woods Pearlstad Vineyard and Koosah were excellent. The Pearlstad was very stony, great clay aspect to it. Tightly wound and unique.
Cristom Royer Vineyard-this was a really unique expression of Chardonnay and I enjoyed it immensely. The Louise was also a lovely wine.
Grochau Cellars Pearlstad Vineyard had just a touch more fruit than the Martin Woods but in great balance with the non-fruit notes.
Grand Moraine-great work as always. This is consistently really, really tasty and delicious. They had a bottle of bubbles with 7 years on lees that was also excellent.
My favorite sparkling Blanc de Blanc was the 2017 Corollary from magnum. Except for a bottle of Lundeen 2012 recently disgorged with over 10 years on the lees. Such a nice wine with excellent fruit still in the mix and lovely leesy notes around it.
Twill was also really delicious, and the Crowley Four Winds “Helen” was beautiful but begged for me to have a glass and an hour to sit a watch it unfold. Crowley Chardonnays are always such a treat and Four Winds is a special site.