I’ve been drinking wine for years but it was always very casually. I usually knew some of the good regions for the main varieties but that’s about it. I’m trying to become a little more knowledgeable now and decided to give this a try after someone recommending it in a post here.
I could not get over how good this was. The nose, the mouth feel, the taste. I’m so unrefined that I don’t have the words to describe most of it, but what I do know is that I REALLY enjoyed drinking this one.
What other wines should I try? I paid $80 for this one, and would love to be able to drink something like this more regularly that’s around the $40 price point. Is that a pipe dream? I could probably buy a bottle of this monthly and be fine, but I’m 30 and still saving for a good life, so don’t want to get too carried away until I can really afford it… 😅
by -i–am—lost-
28 Comments
Looks like I need to post some tasting notes so my post isn’t removed!
Nose: very fruity. I kept thinking of Blood Orange or maybe even Guava. It also had some floral qualities I liked. It just smelled like a really good perfume that I wanted to drink. 😄
Taste: Berries? Very fruity and juicy but not sugary, which I notice with cheaper Pinot’s. It was just so good. That’s all I’ve got right now. 😅
Cristom Mt Jefferson and Lingua Franca Avni!
Their WV bottling is about $40 and also quite good.
Dom Drouhin Oregon wines are great, you may want to seek out St Innocent Freedom hill or Shea Vineyard.
Cristom, St.Innocent, Illahe, Anne Amie, Brittan Vineyards, Flaneur, Arterberry Maresh, Lingua Franca!
Oregon makes some great Pinot Noir.
Roserock is also pretty freaking good. DD Zephirine and Laurene are bottles I think about a lot. They were discontinued in my local wine shop cos there were only two of us buying it on the regular lol.
Resonance…Appasionata…Cameron…
Whatever you do stay away from Burgundy or you’ll never save a dime.
Failla’s WV is $28 and I have yet to find better PQR for Oregon Pinot (or Pinot in general for that matter)
Roserock, Goodfellow, Kelley Fox, Patricia Green,
Walter Scott
And for under $20, try Cloudline too! (Related to Drouhin family)
I’d give the Laurene more time if you want your pants knocked off
i really enjoy soter’s chehalem mountains pinot from that area
If you have the $, Penner Ash is my favorite Oregon producer.
This is one of my favorites, Flowers PN is also good and is in same price range.
Would also like to add Nicolas Jay to the pile.
Not too long ago, I was in a similar spot. If you want to start with Pinot, that’s a great varietal. Others have named a bunch of PN from Oregon. I would broaden your pallet and try wines from other regions too (california, burgundy, Germany, and NZ all have noteworthy Pinot). See what styles you like and what you don’t.
To start exploring in the 40ish price range, here are some options:
Oregon: Cristom, Ken Wright, Patricia Greene all have “entry level” offerings around 30.
California: try regions like Sonoma Coast and Sta. Rita Hills. Melville, Roar, Kanzler, Sandhi and many more come to mind.
Burgundy: harder to navigate but many villages wines can be had at your price point, particularly if you load up at discount sites like last bottle or WTSO or at auction (like WineBid).
Germany: consult others as I have had a tough time getting a lot of these.
NZ: Burn Cottage and Felton Road are generally available in U.S.
Anything from Rose & Arrow.
Their Dundee Hills is a good QPR around $40 from what I recall. I’m not sure it will knock your socks off in quite the same way, but I wouldn’t turn down a glass.
There isn’t much that Drouhin makes that isn’t just an excellent example. Burgundy is very much about place but it even more about an outstanding grower producer.
That bottle is around $40 here in Arizona. Thanks for the review, may grab more at Costco.
Joined their wine club after visiting last year. The Roserock Zepherine is awesome.
Anything from ribbon ridge. James’ stuff at Trisaetum!
Au Bon Climat makes a nice Pinot from Sonoma in the ~30-35 dollar range
Ceritas. You want cool and clean Pinot with only the subtlest notes of oak. All the other Oregon labels mentioned are deeper into elevage. Drouhin is fresh! a serious sense memory wine for me. I remember exactly where I was when I tasted it. Great bottle to bookmark
Cloudline is by the same people (wont find it on the label tho) and is damn good for $15. Great daily drinker PN.
Try their other winery run by the daughter called Rose Rock in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA.
I will add to this discussion Eyrie Vineyards, not the best for value these days, but their Pinots are deserving of their laurels. David Lett put Oregon Pinot on the map 60 years ago, and the estate is still family run.