McMinnville

Matt planned a really fun winery weekend to celebrate my birthday. I was very grateful to get out of town! We went to McMinnville and stayed at the Hotel Oregon and toured 3 wineries: Youngburg Hill, Yamhill Vineyards, and Amity. It was incredibly foggy all day, but it made beautiful hoar frost. 

The itinerary: Text from Grape Escape Winery Tours with italics comments from us. We are not expert wine tasters and we didn't take notes, so I will put down my amateur comments for what I remember.  [...]



Our Escape Artist was Ralph who was knowledgable and good fun.

Yamhill Valley: We'll head to the McMinnville Foothills to begin at one of Oregon's most beautiful settings for a winery. (We will take their word and the photography of the vineyard for it since we were socked in with fog, but they have a great deck- must go back and try it in the summer!) More than a few years back, they pioneered this area, and found something interesting... grapes that produced wines reminiscent of the finest Alsatian and Burgundian style wines.

2009 Pinot Gris- We had a lot of time to swirl this one around and smell it while listening to Ralph tell us how different people hold the glass and why, how to awaken the smells, smell the smells, and taste the wine. Aerating this really brought out it's citrusy bouquet, but in the end I thought it smelled stronger than it tasted. I will say this is probably to blame on lunch which was eaten about 30 minutes prior and included a strong soup. Don't pass this one up- I think it will be better if you don't have something so strong right before it. 
 
2009 Pinot Blanc- I don't remember what I enjoyed so much about this one... perhaps it tasted as great as it smelled. We bought a bottle. I also happen to just like blancs anyways. 

2009 Pinot Noir Estate- I thought this one was a little on the light side even for a Pinot Noir. It just tasted a little thin to me and was more of a see-through cherry color than more opaque. 

They also have a 2009 Tall Poppy Pinot Noir. It wasn't available for tasting (it's $60/ bottle). It only comes around when they have a particularly outstanding vintage, which is why it is only the 6th time in 27 years it has been given the title. Where does the name 'Tall Poppy' come from? Have you ever seen a field of poppies? There's at least one that stands taller than all the rest. 

Youngburg Hill: On occasion, Wayne and Nicolette Bailey open their home/ B&B/ vineyard to share their beautiful site and wines with customers near and far. Today is one of those days. Located high atop the McMinnville Foothills, the vineyard offers unique characteristics that make thier wines sing. To top it off, the home and their hospitality provide quite a setting. Swirl, sip, and enjoy that view. 

They have an amazing deck, but the fog is not showing any signs of clearing out. Wayne came out and spent time telling us about his vineyard and the different wines that will come from different parts of the hill. The top of the hill is called Natasha after one of his daughters and the soil there is deep and rich and it gets lots of sun. Another area is called Jordan after another of this daughters and the soil there is  shallow and volcanic minerals. 

2009 Natasha Pinot Noir- I loved this one. I smelled chocolate covered cherries and it was well rounded in taste. 

2009 Jordan Pinot Noir- It's amazing that the same grapes can be raised in a different soil in the same area and come out so differently. This one seemed to have a much stronger mineral taste to it and the flavors seemed more compacted. 

2008 Jordan Pinot Noir- This is the same as the 2009, but a year earlier. This one is unique because in 2008, all the elements that go into wine making came together at precisely the right time. The summer had been warmer and drier, but since it is lower on the hill it was cooler there and a little bit of rain cooled everything off and slowed the sugars production in the grapes. This one was very good and I was torn between it and the Natasha. Last summer was pretty similar to 2008, but the timing wasn't quite as spot on. We'll get to find out how that one turned out in a few years. 

Amity Vineyards:  Last but not least, we'll head over and up into the Eola Hills to visit a pioneer winery in Oregon's wine industry. Former hippie, Myron Redford started it all in the 70's, and helped turn a few heads with his Alsatian style wines. Today, winemaker Darcy Pendergrass also shows a deft touch with the Pinot Noirs. 

2009 Eco-wine Marechal Foch- We tasted about 2 handfulls of wine here, but this is the only one we bought and we got two bottles. It has the funny description of smelling like cabbage... or kimchi. Don't get the wrong idea though because it tastes amazing. It would be particularly good with pork, I think. It has spice and earthy notes with a slightly fruitier finish. 

That evening we had dinner, drinks, and danced to Red Wanting Blue who was playing at the hotel. Click on the pictures to see the slideshow.

Vineyard cat