Wine & Spirits - October 2020 - 54

YEAR'S BEST WILLAMETTE VALLEY CHARDONNAYS
91 | Chehalem

$40

2017 Dundee Hills Reserve Chardonnay ^
This starts out with a burst of citrus and apple
aromas, only to lengthen and firm up as the
oak steps in at the finish. You'll appreciate its
sneaky richness, the whiff of hazelnut that
creeps in, the tinge of orange enriching the
broad flavors. (250 cases) §
521215

91 | Stoller

$40

2017 Dundee Hills Reserve Chardonnay ^ Nutty and round-shouldered, balanced
between golden-apple fruit and wheaty, nougatty savor, this wine feels like a classic American chardonnay in its generosity and richness. The terse, citric finish gives it the cut to
pair with fennel-rubbed pork. (2,200 cases) §
521265

90 | Bergström

$80

2018 Dundee Hills Bergström Vineyard
Chardonnay ^ Exceedingly lean and tense,
this has a lemon-lime tartness that streamlines and elevates its flavor. The wine takes
on some richness with air, simple and energizing at once, one long note in the key of
lime. It would benefit from six months to a
year in the cellar. (65 cases) §

EO L A - A M I T Y HIL L S
521224

95 | Walter Scott

$65

2018 Eola-Amity Hills Seven Springs
Vineyard Chardonnay ^ Ken Pahlow and
Erica Landon are among the few who have
a contract with Evening Land to get a small
amount of chardonnay from its Seven Springs
Vineyard. Their fruit comes from 1.7 acres
on the shallow south ridge, where the soils
peter out to almost pure basalt. They deliver
a translucent wine: It seduces in seconds, a
heady savor of bread dough and apple pie,
with just a hint of caramelly oak behind the
lees accents. But the wine feels as light as gossamer, lacy and fine, with a golden sheerness
one taster described as sunlight seen through
piecrust. Very expressive now, it has the acid
structure and vibrancy to cellar. (320 cases) §
521170

94 | Drouhin Oregon
Roserock

$35

2018 Eola-Amity Hills Chardonnay (Best
Buy) ^ Roserock lies on the southern reaches
of the Eola-Amity Hills near the outskirts
of Salem, Oregon's state capital. It's a large
vineyard, planted mostly to pinot noir save
for about 11 acres of chardonnay planted a
little over a decade ago. Those vines grew an
opulent wine in 2018, made firm and shapely
by the coolness of the site and of the Oregon
summer. It leads with scents of honey and
peach, and has a hazelnut breadth. It's built
54

WINE & SPIRITS

OCTOBER 2020

like a Beaune wine (no surprise there); for a
chicken fricassee. (2,500 cases) §
521470

94 | Evening Land

$75

2017 Eola-Amity Hills La Source Seven
Springs Estate Chardonnay ^ Seven Springs
estate is composed of several decomposed
lava flows that band the vineyard in varying
degrees of iron-rich minerality; La Source
tends to come from a midslope parcel. This
2017 is firm and savory when first poured, all
nuts and gunflint, with a lemon-lime tartness
tugging at the bit in the background. With
air, the wine's fruit core broadens and bumps
up against the warm, nougatty character, giving contour to its ripe pear fruit. Grounded
by minerality, this is ready to drink. (318
cases) §
521196

94 | Lingua Franca

$55

2018 Eola-Amity Hills Estate Chardonnay ^ A young-vine blend of Montrachet clone
and Clone 76 chardonnay planted on this
estate vineyard's shallowest soils, this wine
changes dramatically as it takes on air: At
first it's leesy and drawn, then limey, delicate
and floral, continuing to unveil a panoply of
flavors-pineapple, honey, lemon curd, lees,
gunflint-that speak to its complexity and
sunny presence. (1,000 cases) §
521222

94 | Walter Scott

$40

2018 Eola-Amity Hills Cuvée Anne
Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^ Drawn from five
Eola-Amity Hills vineyards, Cuvée Anne
is an homage to Walter Scott partner Erica
Landon (middle name, Anne). It is a showstopper made in a flinty style, a penetrating
lemon-oil scent beneath smoky lees notes.
And yet the flavors are juicy and bright, all
mouthwatering apple and honey, the wine
finishing sleek, floral and delicate. It's electric
and lively, and at this price, a wine to snatch
up and cellar. (650 cases) §
521268

94 | Walter Scott

$65

2018 Eola-Amity Hills X Novo Vineyard
Chardonnay ^ X Novo is owned by Craig Williams, former winemaker at Joseph Phelps
Vineyards, who moved to Oregon in 2010
and planted a small vineyard with multiple
clones of chardonnay and pinot noir. This
wine leads with scents of flint, citrus, orange
bitters and white tea, to go along with flavors
that feel exotic and savory. But it's the texture
that really stands out, mineral and tacky, the
wine scudding across the palate like it's skiing through powder, with a live-wire tension
that's thrilling and energizing. (420 cases) §
521146

93 | Archery Summit

$48

93 | Drouhin Oregon
Roserock

$65

93 | Geodesy

$75

92 | Argyle

$45

92 | Evening Land

$35

92 | iOTA

$36

2018 Eola-Amity Hills Chardonnay ^
Sourced from von Oehsen Vineyard, a parcel
planted in 1977 next to Seven Springs Vineyard, this carries old-vine savor to the fore,
with an intriguing combination of mushroom and sumptuous oak. It feels polished
and balanced, marrying golden pineapple
flavors with fresh, punchy acid. This should
reward cellar time. (788 cases) §
521171
2017 Eola-Amity Hills Maigold Chardonnay ^ This is the second vintage of Maigold, a
barrel selection that Véronique Boss-Drouhin
makes out of Roserock's best chardonnay
lots. It is similar to her Dundee Hills Edition
Limitée in its succulence and build, but the
flavors are leaner, with a fine tang of acid to
draw against the breadth of the demonstrative oak. A grand wine for a grand meal, like
roast pheasant. (100 cases) §
521181
2018 Eola-Amity Hills Eola Springs Vineyard Chardonnay ^ This is open and generous, with a complex interplay of nougatty
oak, graham-cracker spice and sliced-apple
flavors. Yet the wine has a lean intensity,
driven by citrusy acids, cradled by warm oak
tones. Suave, persistent and well structured,
this is built to age. (143 cases) §
521148
2018 Eola-Amity Hills Nuthouse Chardonnay ^ Nuthouse, planted in 1995, was
among the first vineyards in Oregon to be
planted to Dijon clones. It's the source of
this ambitious wine, its sumptuous scents
of cinnamon and caramelly oak pleasingly
undercut by smoky lees. It feels dusty and
surprisingly lean in flavor, with a quininelike minerality that keeps the wine taut and
mouthwatering. (397 cases) §
521362
2017 Eola-Amity Hills Seven Springs
Estate Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^ For the
first 15 minutes this sat in the glass, this
wine seemed bound up in its lees, with a
sharp matchstick flintiness. But with a little
more time and air, flavors of crisp pear and
red apple came forth with a breezy elegance.
With its tension and energy, brisk acids and
lasting wheaty savor, all this needs is cellar
time to let those elements knit. (1,700 cases) §
521184
2018 Eola-Amity Hills Pelos Sandberg
Vineyard Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^ Pelos

Wine & Spirits - October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - October 2020