The bottling from Bethel Heights is peachy, spicy and rich, but also perfectly balanced. (Food & Wine)
Fruit from several vineyards in the Willamette Valley provide bright crisp acidity and purity of fruit; fruit from the warmer climate of the Rogue Valley adds lush, floral qualities to this wine. The wine was fermented cold in stainless steel and finished without malolactic fermentation at 0.5% residual sugar. Bottled cork-free to protect its freshness.
Detailed Info, Previous Vintage Notes, Reviews:
FRom the Winery
THE 2006 VINTAGE: As a general rule a large crop usually means
a bit less concentration in the wines, but 2006 was an exception.
Mother Nature provided the extra heat and light necessary to ripen a
larger crop, and there was plenty of moisture in the soil at the
beginning of the season to carry it through. 2006 reminds us of
2003, another exceptionally warm vintage. The difference in 2006
was that all the heat came in early to mid-summer (five days over
100? between May and July). Since the heat came before color
change, rather than at the end of the season, the grapes actually
ripened in relatively cool conditions and therefore have more
expressive fruit and more freshness than one might expect from a
hot vintage. There was no rain to threaten the integrity of the fruit
before the harvest.
WINEMAKER NOTES: This Pinot gris comes from several
vineyard sites. Bethel Heights, Elton, and Lewman are all in the Eola
Hills region of the Willamette Valley. Del Rio is in the Rogue Valley
of Southern Oregon. The Willamette Valley provides brightness and
purity of fruit; Southern Oregon fruit gives a more lush, often floral
note to the final wine. The wine was fermented cold, exclusively in
stainless steel, and finished without malolactic fermentation. It was
bottled with a screwcap closure to protect its freshness.
