Brittan Vineyards New Releases from Oregon and some of the best wines from my Trip to Oregon on SALE!!
"The First Duty of wine is to be Red...the second is to be a Burgundy"
Harry Waugh
And if you are not a red Burgundy the second-best thing would be a Willamette Valley Pinot Noir as they make some of the most age worthy and high-quality wines from Pinot Noir in all the world today.
I just returned from a visit to the Willamette Valley and one of the places I am remiss about not visiting is Brittan Vineyards. We have been buying these wines every year since the 2016 vintage and we hosted a great virtual tasting with Robert Brittan that featured the 2017 and 2018 vintage wines that got me so excited I ordered all the magnums that were available! Magnums sell slow and age slower than the 750ml format, so I am not disappointed to still have a few in stock!
We did stop to see our good friends at Bethel Heights, Cristom, Ken Wright and a few others but the 2921’s at these three wineries were the most impressive wines that we tasted on this trip. I have included all the wines available from them in this offering also.
Check out one of the best small producers in Oregon but the production on many of these block wines is between 200-400 cases so don’t wait too long to respond to this e-mail!
New Releases from Brittan Vineyards
2021 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR ESTATE MCMINNVILLE
Price: $51.00 Your Price: $44.88 Quantity in Stock: 24
Vineyard notes: The Brittan Estate Vineyard lies just 12 miles southwest of McMinnville, tucked into the foothills of the Coast Range. The original 18 acres were planted in 2001, but due to the challenging nature of this site and limited topsoil, only eight acres survived. Since 2004 when Robert and Ellen purchased the vineyard, it has been an ongoing rehabilitation project: replanting, retraining, and learning the unique landscape that has become Brittan Vineyard.
Vintage notes: The 2021 vintage, despite some challenges, produced wines with intensity and richness. A mild winter was followed by a warm and dry spring. Summer brought warm temperatures with occasional heat spikes, including the June heat dome that caused some stress in the vineyard. Yields were significantly lower than normal, with some blocks producing less than one ton per acre. Harvest began on September 17 and continued into early October, resulting in wines with good balance and acidity.
Tasting notes: Our 2021 Estate Pinot Noir entices with aromas of juicy fruit, pomegranate, pie cherry and warm spice. On the palate, sweet baking spices, blackberry seed and brambly flavors mingle with silky tannins and balanced acidity, leading to a long and satisfying finish. Pairs well with salmon, pork tenderloin with berry sauce or Eggplant Parmigiana. Drink now though 2038.
2019 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR GESTALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $69.00 Your Price: $60.72 Quantity in Stock: 24
(98 points) The 2019 Pinot Noir Gestalt Block is a stunning Pinot Noir that was reticent and wound in an earlier tasting but has blossomed into a kaleidoscopic beauty. Its perfume is heavenly and changes with each return to the glass: violet and graphite give way to red cherry and pomegranate preserves, which in turn segues to nuances of tobacco leaves, bitter orange and woodsmoke. The palate is equally compelling, its deep core of fruit streaked with touches of iron and haunting floral perfume. It has a frame of powdery tannins, focused acidity and a very long, latent finish with a detailed fan of earthy accents. It deserves several more years in bottle to unwind and will be long-lived. Wine Advocate
2019 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR CYGNUS BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $69.00 Your Price: $60.72 Quantity in Stock: 27
(97 points) The 2019 Pinot Noir Cygnus Block offers tremendous aromatic definition and layering: bursts of lavender, bergamot and botanicals give way to a core of mixed berry preserves, and each return to the glass brings a new alluring fragrance. Its generosity is echoed on the palate, which is packed with floral fruit. It has a support of grainy tannins and mouthwatering acidity and a fantastically detailed, energetic finish. It’s a beautiful Willamette Valley Pinot Noir that embodies power and grace. (EB) Wine Advocate
A bit about Brittan Vineyards:
It took years to find the ideal site on which to grow Pinot Noir but after an exhaustive search, Brittan Vineyards began on an 128-acre hillside in Oregon in December 2004. The soils are a mixture of glacial deposits and volcanic material, with a predominant presence of broken basalt.
At that time, there were 18 acres of existing vines. However, close to 50% has subsequently been re-planted in order to fine-tune the viticultural practices and improve the clonal and rootstock combinations. This included one of the first plantings of the Swan clonal selection of Pinot Noir in Oregon.
After dropping all of the crop in 2005 to allow the vines to get better established, the first two Pinot Noirs from the mature vines on the property came from the 2006 vintage, a total of 720 cases.
In the spring of 2008, an additional 3.5 acres of Pinot Noir were planted, which are now in production— the rocky soils and low water retention often means that it takes five years for a vine to get into production.
In addition to the Pinot, 4 acres of Chardonnay and 1.5 acres of Syrah have been planted. These are two varietals that benefit greatly from a cool growing climate.
“We have east, south and west exposures to choose from on a cool, windy site on the edge of the Coastal Range. As a result, I believe I have found a site where I can grow unique wines, wines that truly speak of this place.” - Robert Brittan
Robert Brittan left Stags’ Leap Winery in Napa after 16 years as Winemaker and Estate Manager to fulfill his dream of making Pinot Noir and Syrah from unique sites in cooler climates. His winemaking career began in his dorm room at Oregon State University, where he was a physics and philosophy major.
Being both geeky and broke, he soon realized that alcohol was an attractant to co-eds, so he began his career in fermentation sciences in order to get a date. He ultimately completed his education at UC Davis and moved to Napa Valley, where he made wines for Far Niente, Saint Andrews and Stags’ Leap Winery.
With 45 years of experience growing grapes and making wine, he brings a significant amount of viticultural and winemaking knowledge to Brittan Vineyards. He has always had a passion for Pinot Noir, and hopes that with the fruit from the Brittan estate vineyard in the foothills of the Coastal Range, he can bring a new voice to the McMinnville AVA, and help form the style and definition of Pinot Noir from this recently designated winegrowing region.
In addition to his own wines, Robert is also the winemaker for several other brands, to include: deLancellotti, Fairsing and Winderlea. As a result, Robert is now making wines from all six of the sub-AVA’s of the Willamette Valley and has learned first hand that Pinot Noir lends itself to many wonderful interpretations, depending on the soils and microclimates where it is grown.
Ellen has always had a passion for food and wine, so after spending the first twenty years of her career working in Financial Services, she finally decided to give up the corporate world to do something she would do even if she didn’t get paid to do it.
After working in a lovely little family winery in Yountville, she joined Rudd Winery in Oakville, where she had the wonderful opportunity to launch and manage a new luxury wine brand for Leslie Rudd. In the course of her ten years with the Rudd Group, she also was involved in the group’s other food and spirits related projects, to include Dean & DeLuca, Edge Hill Winery, Distillery No. 209, PRESS Restaurant and Oakville Grocery. It was a dream come true to be immersed in a world of gourmet food and luxury wine and spirits.
Having grown up in Seattle, studying French and Spanish Language & Literature at the University of Washington, she longed to return to her North West roots, so needless to say she was thrilled to be joint owner of the beautiful Brittan Vineyards winery in McMinnville.
While Robert oversees the vineyard and winemaking, Ellen manages the business operations for Brittan Vineyards. In addition, Ellen has worked as General Manager for the Carlton Winemakers’ Studio and as the Director of Wine Education at Linfield College. In order to give back to a wine community that has been so welcoming and supportive, she has also served as Chair of the Oregon Wine Board, President of the Oregon Winegrowers’ Association, and Chair of the International Pinot Noir Celebration. She currently sits on the board of Visit McMinnville and is a member of the Linfield Wine Education Advisory Council.
All the older vintages of Brittan Wines in the store on SALE!
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR GESTALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE MAGNUM
Price: $133.50 Your Price: $117.48 Quantity in Stock: 10
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR GESTALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $60.00 Your Price: $52.80 Quantity in Stock: 14
WINERY NOTES BLOCK NOTES: The Gestalt Block, a two-acre parcel planted primarily to Pinot noir selection 115, occupies the southwest flank of our hillside. The vines here are planted in shallow topsoil underpinned by a young, dense layer of intrusion basalt, and yield less than one ton of fruit per acre. The small, thick-skinned berries (a product of the Van Duzer winds) produce wines with a dark fruit core and pronounced phenolic intensity that showcase the essence of the vintage.
VINTAGE NOTES The 2018 vintage started cool and wet in February and March, which led to a more “normal” budbreak in April. The season quickly accelerated and was warm and dry beginning in May. Summer brought very warm, dry weather through August, which put pressure on the vines and produced fruit of great depth and concentration. September was dry but more moderate and allowed the fruit to reach full maturity by the end of the month.
TASTING NOTES This year’s Gestalt Block Pinot Noir showcases the essence of the 2018 vintage, with intense concentration, serious structure and chewy, drying tannins. You’ll find notes of graphite, pencil shavings, thyme, sage and a hint of vanilla on the nose, leading to elderberry, black currant, choke cherry and cacao on the palate. Decant if opening now or lay down for long-term development. Drink now through 2038
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR BASALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE MAGNUM
Price: $133.50 Your Price: $117.48 Quantity in Stock: 9
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR BASALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $75.00 Your Price: $66.00 Quantity in Stock: 10
2017 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR BASALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE MAGNUM
Price: $127.50 Your Price: $112.20 Quantity in Stock: 6
2017 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR BASALT BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $63.75 Your Price: $56.10 Quantity in Stock: 5
VINEYARD NOTES The Brittan Vineyard lies just 12 miles southwest of McMinnville, tucked into the foothills of the Coastal Range. The original 18 acres were planted in 2001, but due to the challenging nature of this site and limited topsoil, only eight acres survived. Since 2004 when Robert and Ellen Brittan purchased the vineyard, it has been an ongoing rehabilitation project: replating, retraining and learning the unique landscape that has become the Brittan Vineyard. The Pinot noir for the Basalt Block predominately consists of the Pommard selection, blended with clonal selecions 667, 777, 115 and Swan. The vines are planted on Riparia Gloire, 3309 and 101-14 rootstocks.
VINTAGE NOTES Akin to the prior three vintages, 2017 provided a consistently warm growing season for the vines at our estate vineyard, resulting in generous (for us) average yields approaching two tons per acre. Springtime flowering and fruit set, while delayed by a cool and wet winter, were even across the blocks and dry conditions at harvest meant little to no pressure from disease. The resulting wines are full bodied yet retain the mineral notes and taut core of acidity that have become the hallmarks of Brittan Vineyards.
PRODUCTION NOTES The fruit for the 2017 vintage was picked in late September and early October. The wine was aged in French oak, 15% new, for 12 months. BOTTLED:DECEMBER 2018 CASES PRODUCED:343
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR CYGNUS BLOCK MCMINNVILLE MAGNUM
Price: $133.50 Your Price: $117.48 Quantity in Stock: 9
2018 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR CYGNUS BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $75.00 Your Price: $66.00 Quantity in Stock: 6
2017 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR CYGNUS BLOCK MCMINNVILLE MAGNUM
Price: $127.50 Your Price: $112.20 Quantity in Stock: 3
2017 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR CYGNUS BLOCK MCMINNVILLE
Price: $63.75 Your Price: $56.10 Quantity in Stock: 5
TASTING NOTES The trademark red fruits of Cygnus Block Pinot noir are in good supply this vintage, including the bright sweetness of red currants, Amarena cherries, red plum and a hint of raspberry alongside more savory notes like black tea, bergamot, licorice, and baking spices. The wine wraps-up with bright acidity, lingering juiciness, and a long, elegant finish
VINEYARD NOTES The Brittan Vineyard lies just 12 miles southwest of McMinnville, tucked into the foothills of the Coastal Range. The original 18 acres were planted in 2001, but due to the challenging nature of this site and limited topsoil, only eight acres survived. Since 2004 when Robert and Ellen Brittan purchased the vineyard, it has been an ongoing rehabilitation project: replating, retraining and learning the unique landscape that has become the Brittan Vineyard. The three acre, southeast facing Cygnus Block was planted in 2008 to Swan selection, a selection of Pinot noir they believe was brought in from Burgundy around the 1880s and planted in California.
VINTAGE NOTES Akin to the prior three vintages, 2017 provided a consistently warm growing season for the vines at our estate vineyard, resulting in generous (for us) average yields approaching two tons per acre. Springtime flowering and fruit set, while delayed by a cool and wet winter, were even across the blocks and dry conditions at harvest meant little to no pressure from disease. The resulting wines are full bodied yet retain the mineral notes and taut core of acidity that have become the hallmarks of Brittan Vineyards.
BOTTLED:DECEMBER 2018 CASES PRODUCED:260
2016 BRITTAN VINEYARDS PINOT NOIR THE PUNCHEON MCMINNVILLE
Price: $75.00 Your Price: $66.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
Notes on “The Puncheon”: Each vintage, Robert Brittan ferments small lots of Pinot noir from each of our single blocks in open-top “puncheons,” custom-built 500L French oak barrels standing on end with one of their heads removed. The final cuvée is meticulously assembled from these lots, producing a complex and intriguing wine of great depth, complexity and longevity.
Vintage notes: 2016 was the third vintage in a row in the Willamette Valley where flowering started earlier than normal, and the weather remained warm throughout the growing season. After a warm summer, the last ten days of the growing season gave us beautiful days in the low 70’s, making for an easy and unhurried harvest. The grapes exhibited ripe flavors, but with more restraint and elegance as we get better and better at handling warmer growing conditions.
Tasting notes: The 2016 Puncheon Pinot Noir expresses notes of blueberry, raspberry, herbal blackberry and dried cherry alongside white pepper, baking spice, blood orange zest and fennel. This complex, savory wine is beautifully balanced with firm, bright acidity and an elegance and roundness on the palate. Ripe fruits and a complex earthiness linger in the long finish.
AVA: McMinnville
Vineyard: Brittan Estate Vineyard
Cases produced: 66 cases and 18 magnums
Selections: Pommard, 777, Swan, 115
Elevage: 12 months in once-filled French oak
Date bottled: December 12, 2017
Alcohol: 14.2%
All the wines from Bethel Heights, Cristom and Ken Wright available at Wine Watch:
2018 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY CASTEEL WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2016 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY CASTEEL WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64 Quantity in Stock: 6
2015 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY CASTEEL WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64 Quantity in Stock: 8
2014 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY CASTEEL WILLAMETTE VALLEY MAGNUM
Price: $125.00 Your Price: $110.00 Quantity in Stock: 7
2021 BETHEL HIEGHTS ESTATE CHARDONNAY EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $36.00 Your Price: $31.68 Quantity in Stock: 12
2019 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY ESTATE EOLA AMITY
Price: $30.00 Your Price: $26.40 Quantity in Stock: 1
2014 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY ESTATE EOLA AMITY
Price: $29.25 Your Price: $25.74 Quantity in Stock: 2
2015 BETHEL HEIGHTS CHARDONNAY JUSTICE VINEYARD WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $67.50 Your Price: $59.40 Quantity in Stock: 7
2021 BETHEL HEIGHTS JUSTICE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $80.00 Your Price: $70.40
2019 BETHEL HEIGHTS JUSTICE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $60.00 Your Price: $52.80 Quantity in Stock: 19
2015 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR WEST BLOCK MAGNUM
Price: $159.00 Your Price: $139.92 Quantity in Stock: 4
2015 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR FLAT BLOCK MAGNUM
Price: $159.00 Your Price: $139.92 Quantity in Stock: 3
2022 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR AEOLIAN EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $60.00 Your Price: $52.80
2019 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR AEOLIAN EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $55.00 Your Price: $48.40
2018 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR AEOLIAN EOLA AMITY HILLS MAGNUM
Price: $119.00 Your Price: $104.72 Quantity in Stock: 1
2017 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR AEOLIAN EOLA AMITY HILLS MAGNUM
Price: $97.50 Your Price: $85.80 Quantity in Stock: 7
2021 BETHEL HEIGHTS PINOT NOIR ESTATE EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $36.00 Your Price: $31.68
A brief Histiry of Bethel Heights Winery:
United by their interest in wine, in 1977 Ted Casteel, Pat Dudley, Terry Casteel, and Marilyn Webb abandoned the academic life and, together with Pat’s sister Barbara Dudley, bought 75 promising-looking acres northwest of Salem, with 14 acres of newly planted cuttings in the ground. They moved to the vineyard in 1978 (except Barbara, who was in California working as a lawyer for farmworkers with the Agricultural Labor Relations Board) and started a new life. In 1979 they cleared and planted 36 more acres. In 1981 they harvested their first crop and started home winemaking in Terry’s basement. In 1984 Bethel Heights produced their first commercial vintage of 3000 cases: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Gewurztraminer, all Estate Grown.
For the first thirty years Ted was responsible for managing the vineyards and Terry made the wine. Pat and Marilyn shared responsibilities for marketing and business management. Over thirty years they grew their wine production to 10,000 cases, and made common cause with our fellow pioneers to establish the Willamette Valley as the home of New World Pinot Noir.
Meanwhile, five cousins grew up knowing the tidy rows and wild hidden places of Bethel Heights as their backyard playground, science lab and adventure park. Now they have taken their places as co-owners, co-workers, and stewards of this place.
In 2005 Ben Casteel (son of Terry and Marilyn) took over from his father as Winemaker at Bethel Heights. In 2007 Jon Casteel (second son of Terry and Marilyn) launched Casteel Custom Bottling, a mobile bottling company that serves wineries throughout Oregon, including Bethel Heights of course. Mimi Casteel (daughter of Ted and Pat) worked with the family at Bethel Heights until 2017 when she started farming her own vineyard at Hope Well, and launched her Hope Well Wine project. Jessie Casteel grew up among the vines at Bethel Heights, but now lives in Chicago. Jessie brings a creative outlier perspective to the direction of the family business, and serves as our ambassador in Chicago and points east.
So where did the name Bethel Heights came from? They found the answer in a small booklet written in 1941 by John E. Smith called Bethel, Polk County, Oregon. According to Smith, “One of the earliest settlers in this vicinity was Rev. Glen O. Burnett who came to Oregon in 1846 and built his house half a mile or so north of the present location of Bethel School. To the heights eastward, he gave the name ‘Bethel Hills’, Bethel being the name of the church in Missouri that he had recently served as pastor.”
The property now known as Bethel Heights Vineyard was originally platted in 1909 and recorded under the name Bethel Heights Walnut Groves. A number of the original walnut trees and their children still flourish around the edges of the vineyard.
Since 1984, both the Estate Pinot Noir and Estate Chardonnay have been the most transparent statement of Bethel Heights terroir that they produce, the sum of all its parts. Old vine storytelling delivered with tension and energy – these wines are the foundation of this producer and a statement to the terroir of their vineyards.
2021 CRISTOM ROSE PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $30.00 Your Price: $26.40
2021 CRISTOM CHARDONNAY EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $45.00 Your Price: $39.60
2021 CRISTOM VIOGNIER LOUISE VINEYARD WILLAMETTE VALLEY
List Price: $33.25 Your Price: $29.26
2021 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR MARJORIE WILLAMETTE VALLEY
List Price: $90.00 Your Price: $79.20
2021 CRISTOM PINOT GRIS LOUISE VINEYARD WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $34.25 Your Price: $30.14
2021 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR MOUNT JEFFERSON WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $43.00 Your Price: $37.84 Quantity in Stock: 5
2021 CRISTOM EILEEN VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS
List Price: $90.00 Your Price: $79.20
2021 CRISTOM LOUISE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS
Price: $90.00 Your Price: $79.20
2021 CRISTOM JESSIE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS
Price: $90.00 Your Price: $79.20
2021 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $36.00 Your Price: $31.68
2020 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $36.25 Your Price: $31.90
2019 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR MOUNT JEFFERSON WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $45.50 Your Price: $40.04 Quantity in Stock: 108
2019 CRISTOM PINOT NOIR MOUNT JEFFERSON WILLAMETTE VALLEY MAGNUM
Price: $93.75 Your Price: $82.50
2019 CRISTOM CHARDONNAY EOLA AMITY HILLS
Price: $46.50 Your Price: $40.92 Quantity in Stock: 1
2016 CRISTOM ESTATE SYRAH WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $42.50 Your Price: $37.40 Quantity in Stock: 6
2000 CRISTOM LOUISE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS 3 LITER
Price: $395.00 Your Price: $347.60 Quantity in Stock: 1
2000 CRISTOM EILEEN VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS 5 LITER
Price: $595.00 Your Price: $523.60 Quantity in Stock: 1
1998 CRISTOM JESSIE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS 5 LITER
Price: $650.00 Your Price: $572.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
A brief History of Cristom Winery
Cristom Vineyards began a quarter of a century ago as a collaboration between an engineer and a biochemist who each possessed a deep-rooted respect for the land, the natural winemaking process, and Pinot Noir. Twenty five years later, second-generation winegrower and owner Tom Gerrie leads winemaker Steve Doerner and their tenured viticulture team in tending to the Estate vineyards, and producing elegant, dynamic wines, recognizable by their hallmark style of whole-cluster fermentation by native yeasts.
Their winemaking philosophy begins with respect for the land and estate vines. They are proud to be Certified Sustainable by Low Input Viticulture & Enology (LIVE), both in the winery which they run responsibly, and in thier fields, that are thoughtfully and meticulously farmed with a focus on quality.
The four estate Pinot Noir vineyards - Eileen, Jessie, Louise and Marjorie, named for Gerrie family matriarchs - each possess natural variances in soil, elevation and exposition. With minimal intervention during the winemaking process, Tom, Steve and their team strive to craft wines that are an honest recording of both the vineyard and the vintage, producing the ultimate expressions of the stellar fruit which they are fortunate enough to work with. Recognized globally as a leading producer in the Willamette Valley, Cristom wines continue to be a unique blend of tradition, modernity and finesse.
Paul Gerrie founded Cristom but that was not the original plan after graduating from University of Pittsburgh with a degree in Engineering. He became interested in wine after collage and his passion started with French bottles (with the occasional California jug tossed in). He can still remember his first exceptional Pinot Noir. It was a 1980 Echezeaux and it was astonishing, fom that point on Paul was hooked on Pinot!
Around 1990, he started looking for a career change that would be interesting and challenging. Despite the fact that he lived on the East Coast, the first thing that came to mind was the wine business. In 1991, some friends invited him to attend the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC) in McMinnville, Oregon. He fell in love with Oregon and began to think it would be a good place to raise their young family. Soon after that, Paul was introduced to Mike Etzel who helped him to find land that would produce great Pinot noir grapes. Mike found the site that is now Cristom.
In the summer of 1992, Paul moved his wife Eileen and their children, Christine and Tom from Pennsylvania to Oregon. There has been no looking back. Through serendipity and good fortune, they were able to hire Steve Doerner as their winemaker, and Mark Feltz as their vineyard manager. Their first vintage was in 1992 and they were up and running. Twenty years later, today they are still on a quest to make the best Pinot Noir on the planet!
Steve Doerner was one of the most acomplished and respected winemakers in California after working for Calera (a top level California Pinot Noir producer) for 14 years, he was ready for a change. In 1992, Steve identified two goals to help determine where he wanted to work next. First, He wanted to continue making Pinot Noir, and second he wanted to work for a small company. It didn’t take much persuasion from Paul Gerrie to convince Steve that Oregon was the place and that Cristom was the company. At the time it seemed like a hard decision but it’s been over twenty years now, and Steve has never looked back.
Steve's goal has always been to make wines that have balance, wines that have weight and power and finesse and elegance. While honeing his craft by traveling and studying winemaking around the world. He has been to Chile, Italy, France, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand. But Oregon is home and Steve has always liked working at Cristom because it’s so varied. His work is influenced by the seasons and by a constant desire to meld the art of winemaking with the terroir of the Willamette Valley. Of course he's incredibly proud of the Pinot noirs, but make sure you check out the exceptional Chardonnay, Viognier, Syrah and this Pinot Gris. In Oregon they make some of the best Pinot Gris on Earth!
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $26.25 Your Price: $23.10
2021 KEN WRIGHT PINOT NOIR SEDIMENT WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS PINOT NOIR VOLCANIC WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $45.00 Your Price: $39.60
2021 KEN WRIGHT PINOT NOIR ABBOTT CLAIM WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS 'AURIC' PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $127.50 Your Price: $112.20
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS GUADALUPE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, DUNDEE HILLS
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64 Quantity in Stock: 12
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS BRYCE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, RIBBON RIDGE
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS LATCHKEY VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS MCCRONE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS CARTER VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, EOLA-AMITY HILLS
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS FREEDOM HILL VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS 'HIRSCHY VINEYARD' PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT,
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64 Quantity in Stock: 12
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS 'SAVOYA VINEYARD' PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64 Quantity in Stock: 12
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS SHEA VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS LATCHKEY VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, WILLAMETTE VALLEY MAGNUM
Price: $180.00 Your Price: $158.40
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS CANARY HILL VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, EOLA-AMITY HILLS
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS BONNIE JEAN VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS 'SAVOYA VINEYARD' PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT MAGNUM
Price: $180.00 Your Price: $158.40
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS SHEA VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT MAGNUM
Price: $180.00 Your Price: $158.40
2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS CANARY HILL VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, EOLA-AMITY HILLS MAGNUM
Price: $180.00 Your Price: $158.40
2021 2021 KEN WRIGHT CELLARS TANAGER VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, YAMHILL-CARLTON DISTRICT
Price: $78.00 Your Price: $68.64
A brief History of Ken Wright Cellars
The seed for a career in wine was planted squarely in Bourbon country of Lexington, Kentucky. While waiting tables to put himself through school, Ken was exposed to fine wines from regions around the world. The passion became avocation when Ken left the Bluegrass State to attend enology and viticulture classes at UC-Davis. Eight years were spent winemaking for Ventana Vineyards, Chalone and Talbott Vineyards in Monterey County of California’s central coast. Friends from the Willamette Valley piqued Ken’s interest in the region when they would visit, and a trip to the Dundee Hills in 1976 convinced him that this was where the finest Pinot noir in North America was being grown.
In 1986, with family, belongings and 10 barrels in tow, Ken moved to McMinnville and started Panther Creek Cellars. His concept of focusing on vineyard-designate bottling began during those years at Panther Creek and was cemented as a core philosophy in 1994 when Ken Wright Cellars was founded in historic downtown Carlton. Ken now makes a single vineyard bottling from 13 vineyard sites in the Northern Willamette Valley.
Given his appreciation of sense of place, it was a given that Ken would contribute to the locations and industry near and dear to his heart. Instrumental in organizing the six new American Viticultural Area (AVA)’s in the Northern Willamette Valley that define in detail the distinct growing areas within the region, he wrote the proposition for the Yamhill-Carlton AVA and served as the association’s first President.
For Carlton, his work with the Visioning Committee helped develop a 20-year plan for the community. He has been active in downtown improvements as well, from selecting the trees and vintage street lamps lining Main Street to purchasing and restoring historic buildings in keeping with the town’s rich, agricultural heritage. In 2003 Ken and his wife, Karen, bought the town’s train station that was built in 1923; after two years of extensive restoration, this beautiful building now houses the tasting room for Ken Wright Cellars. Here at the tasting room, you can taste a selection of Ken’s single vineyard Pinot Noir. The staff provides an in-depth geological tour of the Willamette Valley and shares Ken’s 40 years of experience of making wine.
Ken’s accomplishments have been recognized over and over throughout the years. Including in 2005 when Ken was award the VINI Award at Classic Wine Auction for a lifetime of service to the wine industry and Oregon’s community at large, in 2012 Ken and Karen were voted as the Oregon Wine People of the Year, 2013 as Salud’s! Legacy Winemaker and in 2014 an American Winery of the Year Nominee. Ken Wright Cellars wine has received 111 scores of 90 and above in the Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast, and they continue to year after year. In 2014, Ken’s 2012 Abbott Claim Vineyard Pinot Noir was ranked the number one wine on the world, per Wine Enthusiast. His most recent recognition was being featured as the first Oregon wine maker on the cover of the Wine Spectator, in the May 2015 issue, with a 9-page article on his lifetime achievements in the Oregon Pinot Noir industry and his local philanthropies.
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