Shea Wine Cellars Estate Pinot Noir 2008
Shea Wine Cellars Estate Pinot Noir 2008 -
93 POINTS
WINE SPECTATOR
"Roses, berries, cherries and violets mingle in an intoxicating perfume. Delightful, sweet black raspberry and black cherry flavors are joined a moment later by incense, smoke, and spice. A succulent, lengthy finish adds to this deeply satisfying Pinot that will evolve and offer years of pleasure." - Harvey Steiman, Wine Spectator 5-12-2010
The Shea Estate is a blend from multiple sections of Shea Vineyard, showcasing the diversity of the vineyard.
14.2% alc.
A blend that expresses the overall vineyard containing every clone include Pommard, Wadenswil, and several Dijon clones. Moderately dark robe in the glass. The nose is flush with nuanced aromas including black cherries, ripe strawberries, red licorice, violets, subtle oak, and a few scents I can’t describe. The wine kept pumping out these lovely aromas for over an over in the glass. Pretty flavors of dark red and nicely spiced stone fruits and berries and the best grape soda you ever had. Moderately rich, with fine grain tannins, a satiny mouth feel and a pleasing acid lift on the finish. This is a nicely composed elegant wine that is the best Estate bottling from Shea ever. - Rusty Gaffney, Pinotfile
Previous Vintage Tasting Notes
2007 Vintage Tasting Notes
Shea Wine Cellars Estate Pinot Noir 07 -
The Shea Wine Cellars Shea Vineyard Estate Pinot Noir 2007 has awesome, effusive aromas of deeply spiced dark raspberries, roses, doug fir forest and hints of violets. A supple initial burst of fruit turns juicy, concealing the fine tannins that linger on the finish with sweet earth. The flavors are still developing, with yummy raspberries and black cherries. An especially sophisticated Shea Estate bottling that will age with ease over the next several years. Highly recommended.
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 91 points: "The 2007 Pinot Noir Estate, a blend of 17 parcels and all of the clones grown on the property. Dark ruby-colored, it offers up a fragrant perfume of smoke, incense, earth notes, black cherry, and black raspberry. On the palate it is already exhibiting complexity with its amalgam of spice notes, succulence, black fruits, and depth. It will evolve for 2-3 years and provide prime drinking from 2011 to 2019." - Jay Miller, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
MORE INFORMATION
2006 Vintage Tasting Notes
Tasting the wine, big sweet fresh fruit and spice flavors herald another vintage of note from Shea. The 2006 offers lots of succulent fruit: fleshy red plum, dried bing cherry, and that sweet red cherry candy aspect characteristic of the Shea Vineyard's Pommmard clone grapes. Dark notes of fresh blueberry and blackberry, qualities of the Wadenswil clone of Pinot noir, show in the finish and give the wine structure. The wine finishes with a note of black fruit creaminess, mingling with white pepper and sweet pie spice. Even when first opened, the tannins of the 2006 Shea Estate are silky and integrated. After four hours of decanting, tannins are seamless, and nose and flavors have added complexity - scents of herbs, violets and rose petals mingle with an unusually broad collection of fruit flavors. -
jean ------------ Rich, round, robust. Forward aromas of ripe red berries, dressed in pie
spice with extra cinnamon, and graham. Two swirls later, black and
huckleberries come strolling in. Broad and fleshy, the 06 Estate isn't
shy with its red fruits-raspberry, plum, currant and dried cherry-but
hides some of the darker flavors of blackberries and blueberries inside
a velvet envelope of caramely toast. The sappy finish leaves a m?lange
of red and blue fruit, with a subtle, finely-detailed fresh earth and
white pepper accent. -Marcus 2005 Shea Wine Cellars Estate Pinot noir Tasting Notes Avalon tasting notes: Very impressive. The nose offers raspberry, red cherry, black cherry, black raspberry, toast, and red raspberry jam. Flavors are of red and black cherry, raspberry, and sweet rich fruit.
We're even more excited about the 2005's than we were at this point with the 2004's. A transparency to the flavors is present, allowing layers and layers of intriguing fruit and fascinating spice/incense/perfume notes. The finish is long and reiterates the flavors, adding a sense of silky tannins and velvety lushness to the experience.
There's less sense of barrel toast and more sense of integration in the 2005 than there was in the 2004 at this point in its development. Integration, intensity, and complexity are all words that come to mind in describing this wine.
2-23-07 - Wine Spectator's Harvey Steiman, in his wine blog, drank the 2005 Estate at a restaurant and had this to say about it: "...our waiter (at Roaring Fork, in Scottsdale, AZ) pointed us toward the Pinot Noir he declared was his favorite: Shea Vineyard Estate 2005, an Oregon wine I have not yet rated (though I gave the 2004 a 95-point score).
Shea's style is fruit-centered, and the 2005 vintage (like the 2004) represents a more typical, balanced character than the results of the hotter years that preceded it. The wine has rich cherry and raspberry character, plus some nice hints of vanilla and cream, but no overt oak. Those are good signs, because oak and alcohol can react badly to peppery heat.
Wine Spectator 95 points: "Lithe, supple and expressive, offering layers and layers of white pepper-accented currant and cherry, with a mineral note that adds depth and distinction. Broad and open-textured, lasting beautifully on the finish against superfine tannins. Best from 2007 through 2016. 1,200 cases made. -HS"
Shea Estate Pinot noir 04 is intense in both scent and flavor. It's a gloriously aromatic Pinot, with violets and rose petals wafting through the wine. Starting with the scent of toasted cocoa and coffee beans, this wine explodes with aromas of classic red cherry and black cherry, red raspberry, blueberry, all underlaid by the scent of sweet violets. Flavors of classic blackberry, black raspberry, blueberry, and soft hints of cinnamon and clove are followed by rich cassis and black plum notes, and tantalizing hints of violets and rose petals, again. The finish is very long, and most pleasing. Drinking well now with decanting, this wine has a fresh acidity and silky, a bit gripping tannins that call fo cellaring 3-6 years for continued enjoyment.- Avalon 2003 Shea Wine Cellars Estate Pinot noir Tasting Notes 2003 Estate notes: Aroma of Bing Cherries, purple floral notes and fresh tilled earth. Flavors of black raspberries, minerals and roasted spices. This Pinot is made from grapes carefully selected from throughout Shea Vineyard. It is already quite accessable and showing layers of flavor normally not revealed until Shea wines have another full year of bottle age.
This Pinot Noir is a blend from vines carefully selected throughout the vineyard. It is a big, rich wine that is representative of Shea Vineyard and this wonderful vintage. A great value.
2002 Shea Wine Cellars Tasting Notes 2002 notes: The Shea Estate Pinot noir 02 is a supple and elegant wine, with deep hints of smoke and toast on the nose, and mocha/char notes in the flavors of blackberry, black plum, dark cherry, and minerals. A long finish is ripe and appealing.
