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1996 Ridgecrest Vineyards Pinot Noir

(updated 8/18/00)

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The Wine

One of the three best Pinot noirs we have ever made. Ridgecrest remains the ONLY vineyard designated pinot noir from Chehalem, a vineyard regularly giving big, intense, black-fruited wines which the Willakenzie soil type on Ribbon Ridge is known for; from a classic vintage where there is both power and finesse, look for black cherry, smoky woods, chocolate and brown spices, all wrapped-up with a broad and long, chewy texture. Only bottled in February, look for magnificent growth over the next year and, considering the good fine tannin level, great long-term aging. A big boy that can dance!

Stats

Selected barrels from 4 Ridgecrest fermentation lots, harvested from 10/14-19/96 @21.50 brix, 3.08-3.23 pH, from 80% younger, dense plantings; chaptalized by 1 brix; minor saignee; approx 12-18 days total with 6-8 days pre and 1-3 day post maceration; finished with RC212, 254, BM45 yeasts; 11 months in barrel without racking, in 30% new French oak barrels from 5 coopers and several forests plus 40% 1 yr heavy toast barrels; egg white fined; Bottled 2/20/98 without filtration @ 13.6% alcohol, 3.69 pH, 5.3 g/l acid, 0.02 residual sugar. 1240 cases made.

Quotes

Friends of the Vine (Japan): Gorgeous color, delecatable sweet black cherry flavors that are dense and rich all the way through the mid-palate and finish. Hint of chocolate and tasty oak flavor fill out the mouth. Impeccable balance and with the potential for long aging. This is one of the best Oregon Pinots we've ever offered.

Wine.com, June 22, 2000: A powerhouse wine that comes right at you and leaves you begging for more. Big, full-flavored fruit, ripe aromatics, and a finish that won't stop. Not shy-more in your face.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Ft Worth, TX), October 13, 1999: "Drink in the elegance of pinot noirs." The best West Coast Pinot Noirs we have recently tasted are.Chehalem Ridgecrest Vineyard 1996. This has a soft, but rich and concentrated extraction of berries. This is your elegant, massive pinot noir with smoke in the nose and a broad, chewy texture.

Toronto Globe and Mail, September 4, 1999 (David Lawrason): Now nicely evolved with sour cherry fruit framed in autumnal, smoky oak, licorice and olive scents. Good acid centres the supple fruit. Very good to excellent length. Now to 2002.

Oregon Pinot Noir Club, August, 1999 (Bob Wolfe): ...concentrated black berry fruit ...good structure, with ripe tannins in excellent balance with the fruit. Loam and earth notes add palate interest and complexity, and the entire package is dusted with a light veneer of toasty oak...

Wine Spectator, April 30, 1999 (Harvey Steiman): 86. Has a wild, gamy sidethat adds interest to the light, supple mineral and orange peel flavors. Fine tannins don't get in the way of the berry flavors echoing on the finish. Drink now through 2001.

Honolulu Advertiser, March 3, 1999 (Randal Caparoso): While slightly beefier and a little more agressively oaked than Rex Hill, the Chehalem style is nevertheless finely poised with both dense and soft qualities on the palate.

International Wine Cellar, March 1999 (Steve Tanzer): 85. Medium red, some development. Animal fur and coffee grounds on the nose. Sweet, fat, and easy; aromatic in the mouth and suited for early drinking. Like the above wine, the smoky red fruit flavors show a slightly cooked quality and could use more shape and grip. But not bad.

Northwest Palate (Portland, OR), January-February 1999: Highly Recommended. Bright, brick-garnet color. Perfumed aroma of black cherry fruit and barrel toast. Slightly tannic on the palate with sweet, jammy black cherry fruit flavors. Vibrant and focused.

Vintage Assessments (Toronto), January 1999 (Michael Vaughn): I spent almost two hours tasting three flights of Oregon Pinot Noirs and suggest you make a beeline to Chehalem whose stunning 1996 Ridgecrest Pinot Noir just edged out their equally delicious 1996 Rion Reserve.

The Vine, January 1999 (Clive Coates): 14.0. Good colour. Soft, quite evolved nose. No style. No grip. A lightish wine on the palate. Rather Hollow, spicy and sweet on the edges. A little "hot" too. Quite good at best.

Toronto Sun (Toronto), January 24, 1999 (Gordon Stimmell): ...there were succulent examples of Pinot Noir that transcended the disappointing vintages. Ones to scout out include:.Chehalem Ridgecrest 1996 [5 listed].

Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Ft Worth, TX), January 13, 1999 (Renie and Sterling Steves): Wine of the Week: Chehalem Pinot noir Ridgecrest Vineyards 1996, whose grapes never lack for intensity, has elegant but massive character.A rich, concentrated extraction, which is not in the least bit harsh, has a soft berry smell and a bit of smoke in the nose. It's full of personality, with a broad and long chewy texture.

Atwater's Annual Pinot Noir Dinner, June 6, 1998 (Michael Vaughn): Tie for 1^st in blind tasting of 35 1996 Oregon pinot noirs (4 of top 16 wines were Chehalem).

A Customer: 1996 Ridgecrest Pinot Noir and 1996 Rion Reserve Pinot Noir: ... both are absolutely marvelous wines. The Ridgecrest is the big boy of the two and goes well with many things but the complexity and sublety of the Rion makes it special. It is outstanding with upland game birds and whole roasted chicken. Congratulations on great wine.

Another Customer: ...a very beautiful wine. I say bravo. It is drinking very nice right now, but I feel it has quite a few years of aging left, if it lasts that long in my cellar.

Richmond Times-Dispatch (Lane V. Witherall): This is a classic Oregon pinot noir at its best, riper and fleshier than their regular bottling. A terrific duo [with 1997 3 Vineyard].