81 • 2006 Archery Summit Looney Vineyard Pinot Noir, $85
Ribbon Ridge, Oregon
A pinot typical of Ribbon Ridge, a tiny AVA in the Northern Willamette Valley where sedimentary soils emphasize black fruit flavors.
Taste Black cherry fruit flavors; nice concentration and length.
Sip tip Looney is made for the cellar and will only improve with age.
Cellar life 10+
82 • 2005 Fall Line Winery Red Blend Merlot–Cabernet Franc–Cabernet Sauvignon, $32
Horse Heaven Hills, Washington
Made entirely from grapes grown at the Aldercreek/Windy Ridge Vineyards, Fall Line filled just 430 cases with this intense merlot blend.
Taste Good length and nicely integrated new French oak–vanilla flavors and scents.
Sip tip After a long day skiing the slopes at Stevens Pass, warm up by drinking this wine in front of a crackling fire.
Cellar life 10+
83 • 2006 Bethel Heights Justice Vineyard Pinot Noir, $50
Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon
Bethel Heights is run by the Casteel brothers and their highly educated spouses—there are more PhDs on this vineyard than perhaps any other in the United States. Let this pinot linger in the glass before you drink so you can fully appreciate the Casteels’ refined style.
Taste Toasty oak; plenty of dark cherry fruit.
Sip tip The rich cuisine of Burgundy—coq au vin, beef Bourguignonne—plays well with pinot noir.*
Cellar life 10+
84 • 2005–06 Wy’East Blue Chip Blend Pinot Noir, $22
Columbia Gorge, Oregon
Grown at an elevation of 700 feet by straightforward winemaker Alexis Pouillon, this is a light and lovely pinot with no pretensions.
Taste Delicate; transparent to the eye but not the palate.
Sip tip Try the Blue Chip Blend while visiting Wy’East’s charming tasting room, five and a half miles from Hood River, Oregon.
Cellar life 5+
85 • 2006 J. Albin Reserve Laurel Vineyard Pinot Noir, $48
Chehalem Mountains, Oregon
John Albin is a busy man, making wine for Oregon giant King Estate, as well as this, his personal label.
Taste Dark cherry fruit.
Sip tip A fine wine to drink on an evening when, like Albin, you just feel like treating yourself.
Cellar life 10+
86 • 2006 Tsillan Cellars Reserve Gewürztraminer, $22
Columbia Valley, Washington
Gewürz is the term for “spice” in German, and this wine gives you the intense-yet-pleasant sensation of a clove moving from your palate up into your nasal cavity.
Taste Well balanced, with enough acidity to offset the sugar.
Sip tip Drink it today and buy it today, too: Tsillan made only 205 cases of this German-style wine. It’s guaranteed to sell out quickly.
Cellar life 0
87 • 2007 DePonte DFB Estate Melon de Bourgogne, $24
Dundee Hills, Oregon
This is it, folks: the best oyster wine made in the United States.
Taste Crisp, dry; with a remarkably refreshing finish that puts it on par with some of the best muscadets from France’s Loire Valley.
Sip tip A bottle of DePonte DFB Estate Melon and a dozen briny suckers from Hood Canal, and some good company, and you have yourself a delightful afternoon.
Cellar life 0
88 • 2006 Buty Sémillion–Sauvignon Blanc, $25
Columbia Valley, Washington
Caleb Foster, former assistant winemaker to Rick Small at Woodward Canyon, has launched his own label and named it for his wife, Nina Buty Foster. This blend is a bottle deserving of her good name.
Taste To achieve his balanced blend Foster played with malolactic fermentation, preserving the sauvignon’s acid-green apple crispness and creating a rich, buttery creaminess in the sémillion.
Sip tip A great “gab” wine to bring along on a weekend getaway to the Olympic Peninsula with friends.
Cellar life 5+
89 • 2005 Zerba Syrah, $28
Columbia Valley, Oregon
On the Oregon side of Walla Walla, Zerba is combining some of the best grapes from both states—with fabulous results. This syrah stands out especially for its very good concentration of fruit.
Taste Scents of fresh mint and toasty oak.
Sip tip Warm up with some Zerba and a bowl of hearty beef stew on a wet winter evening—in 2013.
Cellar life 5+
90 • 2006 ADEA Ann Sigrid Pinot Noir, $30
Willamette Valley, Oregon
This funky little winery in the Northern Willamette Valley makes outstanding pinots and very good chardonnays.
Taste Light; red berry fruit flavors.
Sip tip Try alongside a risotto with foraged mushrooms from the Washington wild.
Cellar life 5+
Published: September 2008
