Wine & Spirits - Spring 2022 - 67

Best Buys
90 | Winter's Hill
$25
2019 Dundee Hills Watershed Pinot Noir
(BEST BUY) ^ A well-priced estate wine, this is
simple, satisfying and straightforward, with
scents of juicy red cherry and crushed berry
accents. It's as rich as cherry pie but with tannins
that feel mineral and firm. -P.J.C. (350
cases) §
92 | J. Christopher
$30
2018 Willamette Valley Basalte Pinot Noir
(BEST BUY) ^ This wine leads with oak and cinnamon-stick
spice, a little muddled at first,
but after a few moments herbal, floral components-hibiscus
and red fruits, like cranberry
and pomegranate, come to the fore.
That fruit deepens with air, cordoned off with
the mineral grip of the tannins. Pair with
something like the Bo ssäm pork shoulder
at Majordomo in LA. -P.J.C. (4,000 cases) §
92 | Lingua Franca
$30
2019 Eola-Amity Hills Avni Pinot Noir
(BEST BUY) ^ Avni, Larry Stone's entry-level
wine is hardly that; this feels highly structured,
tense, sophisticated and layered. It's
squared off by spicy scents of anise and plum,
sassafras and rose petal, opening to an airy
and lifted wine with firm acids on the finish.
It's still some years from its peak. If you open
now, decant. -P.J.C. (2,000 cases) §
92 | Maysara
$32
2015 McMinnville Jamsheed Montazi
Vineyard Pinot Noir (BEST BUY) ^ Bottle age
has lent some elegance to this wine; its secondary
aromatics lead with tobacco, smoke,
mushroom and pine tips all mingling with
suave refinement. A burst of dark red-cherry
fruit pushes through the savor, the burnished
tannins ready for pan-roasted trout. -P.J.C.
(4,907 cases) §
92 | Ruby
$29
2018 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir (BEST
BUY) ^ This stylish pinot has a dark-cherry and
red-berry scent that's slightly, pleasingly sour
at the outset, but opens nicely with air. the
flavors are juicy, plush and a bit forward, but
tethered to firm wood-spice notes. In the end
the wine feels warm and generous, a value for
duck. -P.J.C. (830 cases) §
91 | Carabella
$40
2019 Chehalem Mountains Estate Pinot
Noir (BEST BUY) ^ This estate bottling leans on
Pommard clones for its savor and complexity.
Scents of tar and tanbark frame a fine and
juicy red-fruited core of flavor, with lively
acids and the structure for a cider-brined
pork chop. -P.J.C. (350 cases) §
91 | Ransom Wine
$19
2019 Willamette Valley Jigsaw Pinot Noir
(BEST BUY) ^ This is an absolute steal, overdelivering
in pretty aromatics of tobacco, forest
floor and plum. The flavors brighten with air
toward black cherry; the round tannins don't
offer a lot of structure, but the wine more
than makes up for that with exuberant flavors,
and the stuffing for duck confit. -P.J.C. §
91 | Roserock
$35
2019 Eola-Amity Hills Willamette Valley
Pinot Noir (BEST BUY) ^ Domaine Drouhin
Oregon's Roserock property produces wines
of a soft purity, and this one fits that bill,
with scents of black tea and lavender overlying
a generous red-cherry and strawberry
fruit profile. The texture is velvety and fineboned,
with the delicacy for a whitefish like
miso-glazed cod. -P.J.C. §
90 | Del Rio Vineyards
$32
2020 Rogue Valley Pinot Noir (BEST BUY) ^
Bright, round and juicy, this gives off a scent
of crushed berries and leaf litter with a Beaujolais-like
exuberance. The flavors are slightly
tense and tannic, with a firm grip for beef
stew. -P.J.C. (1,280 cases) §
89 | Wine by Joe
$19
2019 Oregon Pinot Noir (BEST BUY) ^ A
delight for the price, this has a spicy scent
of ripe plum and warm cinnamon, tawny
and juicy at once. The flavors are simple and
straightforward, but with a firm mineral grip
to the tannins, suggesting it would pair well
with paella. -P.J.C. §
88 | Christopher Michael $14
2019 Oregon Pinot Noir (BEST BUY) ^ Simple
and well made, this has a briary scent that
frames a bright red-cherry core of fruit. It's
on the lean side, with chewy, grippy tannins
for duck sausage. -P.J.C. §
88 | Kings Ridge
$18
2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir (BEST
BUY) ^ Dark and concentrated, there's a spicy
cherry fruit at the heart of this stalwart red,
with a dark oak frame and a firm texture. All
the flavors feel sturdy and correct, with the
stuffing for lamb chops. -P.J.C. § l
S PR IN g 202 2
WINE & SPIR IT S
67
https://www.jchristopherwines.com/wines/ https://rubyvineyard.orderport.net/wines/pinot-noir https://shop.dobbesfamilyestate.com/Buy-Wine/Wine-By-Joe-Joe-To-Go
Wine & Spirits - Spring 2022

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