Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019: Vintage report and 30 wines
The 2019 vintage in Oregon’s Willamette Valley has produced wines of great complexity and texture, with the cooler vintage marking a return to the region’s signature elegance. Clive Pursehouse speaks to some winemakers and picks out 30 wines to try.
After a stretch of warm years from 2014 to 2018, the 2019 vintage was cool and wet in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Many winemakers welcomed a return of conditions more common a decade ago, emblematic of the elegant wines that have buoyed the region’s global reputation.
Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of 30 Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs from the 2019 vintage
That elegance and balance of fresh fruit character is a signature style of Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, as well as sous bois (forest floor) elements.
‘The wines from 2019 have a youthful exuberance that is so exciting,’ says Shane More of Zena Crown. ‘They ring with freshness, vibrancy and vitality. Our 2019 Pinots are exhilaratingly pure and will live for decades.’
‘When I think about the 2019 vintage,’ says Alex Sokol-Blosser, president and winemaker of Sokol Blosser, ‘I think about an Oregon vintage that is more typical. We had a nice growing season, and then it started to rain in September before things were ripe. Rain is part of the deal here in the Willamette Valley, and it’s hard to get out of that deal unless you want to move.’
It was a cold, early spring, and frost brought challenges in colder spots within the Willamette Valley. The wet July – highly unusual in any year here – made managing powdery mildew a challenge early on during ripening. Then there were significant rains in late September which delayed ripening.
‘So patience was the name of the game,’ Sokol-Blosser continues. ‘Several rain events in September really pushed my patience level.’
Jessica Mozeico, owner and winemaker at Et Fille, says it was an ‘absolute relief’ to see a return to a cooler growing season in 2019. ‘After warmer vintages punctuated by heat spikes and dryness, we finally saw cool harvest temperatures and rain.
‘The rain came in waves at bud break, just after bloom and before harvest,’ she says. ‘This created some disease pressure, but it also moderated brix [the sugar level in the grapes that determines potential alcohol]. It allowed us to let things hang a bit for phenolic and flavour ripeness and retained pH nicely.’
A breath of fresh air
The much-needed respite of these cooler conditions allowed the vines to recover physiologically. The 2019 vintage in the Willamette Valley saw 400 fewer growing degree days than the intensely warm 2018 vintage – 2,101 compared to 2,502.
‘Coming off the hotter previous years, the vines went to bed in autumn relatively stressed,’ explains Cliff Anderson of Anderson Family Vineyards. ‘They yellowed fast, dropped leaves and went dormant right after harvest. In our experience, stress during and after harvest one year can tend to produce thinner skins and lighter, more elegant wines the following year.’
‘We saw this in 2004 after the harvest heat wave in 2003. And I think this phenomenon set the tone for 2019,’ he adds.
The quality of the Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019 vintage is undeniable for fans its trademark fresh fruit, earthy minerality and bright acidity. Wines capable of ageing and far more comparable to Burgundy than California Pinot Noir.
‘2019 is the highest-toned, lightest-coloured Pinot we’ve made in recent years,’ Anderson remarks. ‘More like the elegant wines that put Oregon on the map back in the 1980s.’
Mozeico agrees: ‘This vintage definitely shows up in the wines. They are livelier, brighter and more energetic than the few preceding vintages, with higher acidity and more moderate alcohol levels. Our goal for Pinot Noir is to display complexity, balance and authenticity to place and time, which I think the 2019 vintage affords.’
Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019: 30 top wines to try
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Cristom Vineyards, Jessie Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Cristom's estate Jessie Vineyard was planted in 1994 on steep volcanic soils with substantial vine density. The steep sloping creates natural terracing protecting vines from...
2019
Cristom VineyardsWillamette Valley
Cristom Vineyards, Old Vine Series: Canary Hill Vineyard, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Utterly delicious. This Pinot Noir comes from Canary Hill, planted originally in 1982. This is a fleshy, fresh wine with evocative aromatics of flinty gunpowder,...
2019
Cristom VineyardsWillamette Valley
Et Fille, Maresh Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
A wildly elegant and beautifully aromatic Pinot Noir crafted from the highly sought-after Maresh Vineyard fruit, 50-year-old vines, atop the Dundee Hills. Fantastic, gorgeous aromatics...
2019
Et FilleWillamette Valley
Martin Woods, Bednarik Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
A beautifully elegant Pinot Noir from the own-rooted Bednarik Vineyard, planted in 1988 in the newly designated Tualatin Hills AVA. Aromatics exude suggestions of dusty...
2019
Martin WoodsWillamette Valley
Anderson Family Vineyards, Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
<p>This small family-owned vineyard in the Dundee Hills may be home to the steepest vineyard slopes in all of Oregon. The phenolic ripeness, which reached...
2019
Anderson Family VineyardsWillamette Valley
Cristom Vineyards, Marjorie Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Initially planted in 1982, the Marjorie estate vineyard was the site that launched Cristom's focus on single-vineyard bottlings in 1994. As phylloxera began decimating the...
2019
Cristom VineyardsWillamette Valley
David Paige Wines, RPG Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
A wonderfully bright single-vineyard Pinot Noir from a new Willamette Valley label, though winemaker David Paige has made Pinot in Oregon for 20 years. Rolling...
2019
David Paige WinesWillamette Valley
Elk Cove Vineyards, Reserve Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
This is a wine built for ageing. A blend of the nine finest barrels in the cellar, it is a bigger Pinot Noir, made to...
2019
Elk Cove VineyardsWillamette Valley
Lemelson Vineyards, Jerome Reserve Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
A reserve Pinot Noir built to age that offers a wonderful drinking experience now. The best 20 barrels of Lemeslon make the Jerome Reserve bottling....
2019
Lemelson VineyardsWillamette Valley
Lemelson Vineyards, Meyer Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
These high-elevation Pinot vines grow in a former nut and fruit orchard perched high in the Dundee Hills. The Meyer Vineyard Pinot bottling from Lemelson...
2019
Lemelson VineyardsWillamette Valley
Martin Woods, Hyland Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, McMinnville, Oregon, USA, 2019
The 2019 vintage plays right into the hands of Evan Martin, winemaker for Martin Woods. The Hyland Pinot Noir is yet another example of his...
2019
Martin WoodsWillamette Valley
Martin Woods, Jessie James Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Opulent floral aromatics meet sweet berry fruits, mushrooms and Christmas spice from this single vineyard Pinot Noir, dry-farmed in one of the higher elevation sites...
2019
Martin WoodsWillamette Valley
Zena Crown Vineyard, Slope, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
A study in balance this Pinot from two blocks of the Zena Crown vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills delivers energy and depth with mastery. Inky...
2019
Zena Crown VineyardWillamette Valley
Cristom Vineyards, Eileen Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Cristom's Eileen vineyard is their highest elevation site buffetted by the winds through Oregon's famed Van Duzer Gap—aromatics of dusty raspberry, pine bough and dried...
2019
Cristom VineyardsWillamette Valley
David Paige Wines, Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
A blend of vineyards from across the Eola-Amity AVA, this wine offers bright, delicate aromatics of dusty raspberry, spearmint, and forest floor. The palate is...
2019
David Paige WinesWillamette Valley
Gran Moraine, Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton, Oregon, USA, 2019
Perfumed nose, sophisticated and inviting aromas of red forest fruits. Savoury and complex on the palate. Silky texture with a pleasant savoury twist. Long, salivating...
2019
Gran MoraineWillamette Valley
Lemelson Vineyards, Chestnut Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Oregon, USA, 2019
A fresh, bright Pinot Noir from one of the coolest sites in the Willamette Valley in a cooler vintage means lots of bright aromas and...
2019
Lemelson VineyardsWillamette Valley
Sokol Blosser, Goosepen Block Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
From a historic block initially planted to Riesling, where a flock of geese once tended to the grasses in the vineyard rows. Phylloxera meant the...
2019
Sokol BlosserWillamette Valley
Anam Cara Cellars, Reserve Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Oregon, USA, 2019
Rich aromatics from this small Chehalem mountain estate tend towards forest floor, pine bough and floral characteristics. This former nut orchard shows exemplary terroir year...
2019
Anam Cara CellarsWillamette Valley
Argyle, Spirithouse Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Argyle's Spirit Hill Pinot Noir comes from a cool site at a higher elevation within the Eola Amity Hills. This is evident in the wine's...
2019
ArgyleWillamette Valley
Cristom Vineyards, Louise Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
An amply structured Pinot Noir from the lower elevation estate site Louise vineyard. The lower elevation offers a unique feature within the Cristom estate silt...
2019
Cristom VineyardsWillamette Valley
Grochau Cellars, Redford-Wetle Farm Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
From an organically farmed vineyard planted by one of the founding names in the Willamette Valley, Myron Redford. This Pinot is made with an eye...
2019
Grochau CellarsWillamette Valley
Le Cadeau, Rocheux Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Oregon, USA, 2019
Le Cadeau's Rocheux Pinot Noir comes from rocky soils on the western side of their vineyard. It is aromatically compelling, with fresh savoury herbs, bright...
2019
Le CadeauWillamette Valley
Montinore Estate, Vineyards Verses, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Oregon, USA, 2019
A multi-block blend from Montinore's 40-year-old vines. Blocks 1,3 and 7 comprised of four different Pinot Noir clones. This vineyard blend exhibits rich aromatics of...
2019
Montinore EstateWillamette Valley
Sokol Blosser, Watershed Block Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Pinot Noir from one of the winery's original blocks, planted by the founders in the 1970s and then replanted in 2006 and 2009. This is...
2019
Sokol BlosserWillamette Valley
Atticus, Atticus Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton, Oregon, USA, 2019
This Pinot Noir from the Atticus Vineyard blends Dijon 667 and Pommard for a show of depth and darker-hued fruits. Aromatics of turned earth, black...
2019
AtticusWillamette Valley
Kramer Vineyards, Estate Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton, Oregon, USA, 2019
A focused, bright and linear Pinot Noir from the Kramer family estate, where second-generation winemaker Kim Kramer crafts the wines in Yamhill-Carlton. Bright and light...
2019
Kramer VineyardsWillamette Valley
Stoller, Reserve Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
This is a rich, redolent Pinot Noir from the heart of the Dundee Hills and the warmer site at Stoller Vineyards. Aromas of dark and...
2019
StollerWillamette Valley
Chehalem, Reserve Ribbon Ridge Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge, Oregon, USA, 2019
This 2019 Pinot comes from the Ridgecrest vineyard on the Chehalem estate. It is on the lighter side, with slightly shy aromatics that evolve over...
2019
ChehalemWillamette Valley
Willakenzie, Estate Cuvee, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton, Oregon, USA, 2019
This is a bigger, riper Pinot Noir, a blend of barrels and parcels from the Willakenze Estate. This wine is marked by dark fruit, plenty...
2019
WillakenzieWillamette Valley
