I hear you. If you like the Pinot Noirs from Division, you might want to try Bow & Arrow, Love & Squalor, and Johan. All are solid producers that lean to Pinot Noirs that are pushing to lower alcohols and a nice combination of fruit/non-fruit components, with little to no new wood. Eyrie also fits the bill.
I’d also recommend checking out the entry level wines from a few other people:
Patricia Green Reserve, Cameron, Belle Pente, and again J. Christopher.
You may want to check out the 2015 Goodfellow Willamette Valley bottling, my entry level is often better at this stage of evolution than the single vineyards. While I have a VERY different style than Tom and Kate at Division, we like each other’s wines and my focus is definitely on a European framework of tannin and acidity. Bear in mind that 2015 is the Valley’s warmest vintage on record, so the 2015 is more substantial than some of my typical expressions. You may also want to hunt down a few 2013 vintage Oregon wines. It’s a great vintage, in the old sense of the word, and the wines needed time. They are starting to be really beautiful now.
Last, since you like Riesling, you might search out:
Ovum “Off the Grid”
Paetra
Love & Squalor Sunny Mountain
Matello Whistling Ridge Blanc(I make this and it’s a field blend but Riesling dominant)
I don’t think any of these will slow down your German purchasing(nor should they) but they are all delicious and excellent examples of Oregon whites.
You may want to check out some of my other whites though, the wine that most of my process relates to, IMO, is the “Tradition” wines that Schloss-Gobelsberg produces(larger older wooden foudres and puncheons, along with a slower elevage).
Going back in reference to the OP and this ludicrous article I feel like it is necessary to point out this was at least the second poorly written, utterly un-researched “article” in a local weekly that attempted to set up this false narrative of how Pinot Noir “really” doesn’t belong in Oregon and that there are these small growers monkeying around with obscure varieties and/or winemaking techniques that are the true visionaries in Oregon and that there is not only a dichotomy between predominantly Pinot Noir producers and these other folks but some all out turf war. It is simply bunk on all fronts.
First, Pinot Noir thrives here like it does few other places on earth. Is every site a perfect haven for Pinot Noir? Of course not. Even in Burgundy that is not true. There is no possible way to only plant the good sites and not the poor or marginal ones. I have seen places that look like they would be terrific sites turn out okay grapes and sites that look pedestrian that are simply amazing (same is true in Burgundy of course). There are plenty of sites that could be better if the people farming them and/or making wine from cared about them the way that is necessary for Pinot Noir to rise to the heights that it can get to. I hear (and feel) words like “product”, “brand” and “investment” far more than I used to around here and far more than I want to or think is healthy. If there is an issue it is not that there isn’t a diversity of varieties (so many of us dreaded Pinot Noir producers make at least one “off-beat” wine and have for years we just haven’t attempted to sell know-nothing writers on this being so much more amazing than actually producing the best wine this region grows).
In any area there are a finite number of older and/or better vineyard sites. There is a hierarchy of sites in every important wine growing region in the world. That folks who have worked a harvest and then started their own “brand” don’t have access to the best sites, the best farmed sites, the older sites does not make questioning the production of Pinot Noir in Oregon an issue worthy of serious discussion.
I can see where you’re coming from. I’ve lived in Oregon my whole life and have surrounded myself with pinot over the last 8 or so years. It’s VERY easy to try 20 different wines/producers and have them all taste very similar. Over the last few years, I’ve paired down my Oregon pinot buying. I focus on the ones I know I like and am discovering new producers who I’m excited about and want to watch over the next few years.
Marcus gave you great suggestions and I will add that you should try Brickhouse and Beckham Estate if you have not already done so. Beckham is using amphora and has some very cool wines.
Lastly, keep in mind vintage as well. If you tried 20 different producers for the 2011, or 2013 vintage, I think you’ll see a lot more variation compared to 2014 or 2015.
[quote=Jim[ (so many of us dreaded Pinot Noir producers make at least one “off-beat” wine and have for years…).
[/quote]
I think this is what bothers me most about the recent Portland articles. There’s no acknowledgement of how many of these grapes have been here for years and in production the whole time.
The guys at Johan have planted Blaufrankisch and Savagnin, and both are varietals I am really excited to see here. The Johan Blaufrankisch is dynamite.
But Gruner-Veltliner was planted at Vitae Springs decades ago. Myron Redford has been making off-beat wines from the beginning, Ponzi makes lovely Arneis, and David Lett always made a little Pinot Meunier from the very beginning.
The Melon de Bourgogne that Stephen Westby made under his Elemental Cellars label was fantastic, and the potential for the grape is continuing to be realized by some of the newer wineries like Helioterra.
That said, Stephen paid his rent with Pinot Noir, as did everyone else I just named. We’ve finally gotten to where a winery doesn’t have to have Pinot Noir as the foundation of the house(even though most of the new visionaries also make Pinot Noir) and suddenly amnesia is cropping up?
I stand on the backs of the people who went before me in everything I do. Whether it’s tradition that goes back to Europe, or things that I learned here in the Valley. It makes me sad to see someone publishing an article that disparages the effort, work, and investment that has gone into learning how to produce Pinot Noir well. And not recognizing that the desire to explore has been here for years just adds to that. It’s made worse by seeing producers showing apparent disdain for the house they grew up in. Kind of like an architect shit talking the design of his/her architecture school. Whether it’s right or wrong, it lacks maturity.
Changing the thread title to ‘The Future of Oregon Wine’, i.e. dropping the ‘It Ain’t Pinot’ seems appropriate and less inflammatory/click-baitish…even if it is the title of the article.
I know a couple who only drink Pinot Noir. And not only do they only drink Pinot Noir, they only drink west-coast Pinot, and 90% of that from a single Sonoma producer…and they keep about 20 cases of that producer’s wine on hand, because, well, they drink a LOT of Pinot.
Is your point about marketability or do you only drink mainstream varieties?
I could get really excited to see great examples of those MW candidate wines coming out of Oregon.
btw the Cristom Syrah is not bad. I’m not as crazy about the Riesling.
Given the latitude, soils, and climate, the dearth of Cabernet Franc and Savignin is puzzling. I don’t think “marketability” explains it…lots of folks are willing to venture out. Look at all of the exotic craft beers produced in Oregon.
Cab Franc is a well enough known wine to establish. Savagnin is about marketability. I love Savagnin, and am an Oregon producer. It’s in the ground at Johan, and I would happily take a couple of tons but I am not dropping any of my Pinot Noir contracts to do so. Especially while the vines are young.
Honestly, I would never expect to run into anyone that only drinks Pinot Noir. It’s a grape that’s biggest strength is it’s ability to express itself diversely. My belief would be that people who seriously enjoy Pinot Noir are among the more exploratory palates among wine consumers. I do know quite a few people that drink a lot of Pinot Noir though (I probably wouldn’t still be in business if
I didn’t.)
As Marcus wrote, “Whether it’s right or wrong, it lacks maturity.”. Terroir includes history, just like novels (or philosophers or other thinkers) are best understood in their historical context.
If you are tired of Oregon PN, have some of Marcus’. They’re terrific and anything but staid! His chard is pretty good too…
I think you need to segment the market in these sorts of discussions.
For the geeks, like us, diversity is fun and good and we embrace complexity.
For the more general market, the strength of Oregon is that to the outsider it’s a monovarietal region, and thus it’s a simple and strong marketing message: Oregon makes tasty Pinot Noir, and you won’t get too many nasty surprises buying blind.
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