This being Oregon, there never seems to be a “normal” or “average” year for growing winegrapes. Every year brings something different, some new twist we haven’t seen before. And, while 2001 did ultimately turn out to be another very good vintage, it did spring a little surprise on us. A beautiful summer growing season was interrupted by a few days of rain right at the end of September just as we were poised to begin the harvest. The rains stopped on September 26, the grapes and the ground dried out, and harvest began on October 1. Then the weather warmed and we proceeded to bring in 85% of our total harvest (just over 200 tons out of our 240 ton total) in the next nine days. In fact, 2001 (much like the just completed 2003 vintage) was one of Oregon’s most compressed harvests ever. All of our Pinot Noir was harvested between October 1 and October 9, with excellent sugar/acid balance and nicely developed flavors.

Our 2001 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir is not an immense blockbuster wine, like our 1999. It is much more “typical” Oregon Pinot Noir – medium weight, with delicacy and nuance. Right now it is still very young; it was bottled only about six months ago and won’t be released until late winter or spring of 2004, but we wanted to show it to you now. At this stage it is fairly tight and closed, showing more barrel characteristics (cinnamon, mocha, spicy toasty oak) than fruit, but as time passes we expect the fruit to begin to emerge and bring balance to this wine. When you first open and pour it, expect it to be somewhat lean and “hollow” – missing a middle body. But as you swirl the glass and get some air into it, it will begin to fatten up and round out, and you can then see some of the underlying subtle aromas and flavors that will blossom in a few months.