A new division of King Estate Winery, Next Wines is the first of five proposed direct-to-consumer brands to be unveiled under the King family's King Vintners project. This Oregon icon pulled from three strengths of the Columbia Valley - Syrah (39%), Merlot (38%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (23%) for a purple-toned drink with approachable tannins that hints at Marionberry, elderberry … [Read more...] about Next Wines 2014 Red Blend, Columbia Valley, $30
Oregon
Le Cadeau Vineyard 2015 Rocheux Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $50
The Pommard/Dijon clone 777 blending program for this 20-year-old vineyard targets the rockiest western section of Le Cadeau Vineyard. Tom and Deb Mortimer, who developed the Parrett Mountain planting, named their site for the French phrase meaning "the gift." And yet, nothing was given to them during the early phase of their vineyard's development. Jim Sanders continues to … [Read more...] about Le Cadeau Vineyard 2015 Rocheux Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $50
Elk Cove Vineyards 2015 Mount Richmond Pinot Noir, Yamhill-Carlton, $60
One of Campbell family's earliest-ripening sites, Mount Richmond became apart of the Elk Cove portfolio in 1996 when founding vintners Pat and Joe Campbell purchased the land as a partnership with second-generation winemaker Adam Campbell and his wife, Carrie. They've used cuttings from their venerable Roosevelt Vineyard to grow it into Elk Cove's largest planting at 105 acres. … [Read more...] about Elk Cove Vineyards 2015 Mount Richmond Pinot Noir, Yamhill-Carlton, $60
Ledger David Cellars 2016 Sauvignon Blanc, Rogue Valley, $23
Varner-Traul Vineyard was established near the Southern Oregon town of Central Point in 2007, and Lena Varner and David Traul have reshaped what was one of the state's first 100-acre orchards in 1902. Despite their earliest budbreak of April 3, Varner's viticulture team managed this lot of Sauvignon Blanc beautifully, picking it at 23.8 Brix on Sept. 15. Their seven months of … [Read more...] about Ledger David Cellars 2016 Sauvignon Blanc, Rogue Valley, $23
Yamhill Valley Vineyards 2014 Estate Riesling, McMinnville, $18
This often-overlooked North Willamette Valley producer continues to excel with its cool-climate program, and while Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay grab most of the headlines in Oregon, Stephen Cary and Ariel Eberle continue to prove that Riesling deserves to be the discussion, too. They work with two blocks of own-rooted Riesling planted in mid-1980s, which they cropped … [Read more...] about Yamhill Valley Vineyards 2014 Estate Riesling, McMinnville, $18