The story: As a kid I drove north to the big city of Salem, OR literally hundreds of time. We would drive along Interstate 5 and I would use the
Enchanted Forest on the right as a landmark to tell me that we were almost there. Enchanted Forest is a small, tacky theme park where battery operated bears delight small town children with their stuccato movements, and Old Mother Hubbard's shoe serves as a slide that you can take a burlap sack down. Just south of this theme park stood a big empty hill, full of the characteristic red soil that reminds me of my Aunts dirt driveway in her nearby house. When I was in grade school I watched with relative disinterest as someone planted the entire hill in grape vines and built a big fancy house at the top. Slowly our frequent drives through the Willamette Valley became trips that were often flanked with grape vines. In my house, honestly, wine was something that a couple of great uncles were gonna die from and an aisle that we could just skip at the supermarket so I didn't pay that much attention. But now that I am learning about wine I realize that I grew up in an important wine region. I have a lot of catching up to do. If terroir is an expression of the environment and influences then I share terroir with these praiseworthy Oregon wines. We grew up together. We both spent summer afternoons looking over the rooftops of the Enchanted Forest ticket booths, me actively working to convince my parents to stop and the Pinot actively working to mature its sugar in the few months of sunshine that the valley receives. There is something there that makes me feel connected to this wines that I didn't even realize were happening in my backyard. I have a new found resolve to taste and appreciate them.
The wine: The
Erath Oregon Pinot Noir 2008 is one of the first releases of the stellar Oregon 2008 vintage. Located in the famous Dundee Hills, Erath has been growing Pinot Noir for 40 years now and this bottle represents their entry-level, early release cuvee, designed to be widely accessible. I have tasted other
2008 Oregon pinot noirs in barrel so I was very excited to give this wine a try. It poured a thin scarlet red, and was quite translucent in the glass. The wine had a nose of cherry and strawberry with a touch of minerality. This drank like a typical, inexpensive pinot noir, quite light in body, some cherry and red fruit, a touch of spice, and a decent finish. The wine retails widely for
around $15, and in Southern California is being offered at Costco.
The verdict: Overall the wine came across as pretty uninspiring. There really was nothing to think about as it was quite simple, but also the flavors nor texture offerred up anything that made you want to come back to the glass. I am often disappointed by pinot noirs that cost under $20, and this one was no different. The wine gets a 2.5 out of 5 as there was nothing inherently wrong with it, but I would not buy it again.
Moving on, I still feel inspired to reconnect with the grapes that I grew up alongside. Any Oregon suggestions that I must get to soon?
The wine: The Erath Oregon Pinot Noir 2008 is one of the first releases of the stellar Oregon 2008 vintage. Located in the famous Dundee Hills, Erath has been growing Pinot Noir for 40 years now and this bottle represents their entry-level, early release cuvee, designed to be widely accessible. I have tasted other 2008 Oregon pinot noirs in barrel so I was very excited to give this wine a try. It poured a thin scarlet red, and was quite translucent in the glass. The wine had a nose of cherry and strawberry with a touch of minerality. This drank like a typical, inexpensive pinot noir, quite light in body, some cherry and red fruit, a touch of spice, and a decent finish. The wine retails widely for around $15, and in Southern California is being offered at Costco.
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