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- Northwest restaurateurs purchase Basel Cellars in Walla Walla
- Hayden Homes CEO buys interest in Pepper Bridge, Amavi wineries
- Walla Walla Community College to receive $15 million gift from MacKenzie Scott
- Brian Carter Cellars adds Latin influence with marketing hire
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- Armstrong Family Winery turns Discovery Vineyard Syrah into best wine at Great Northwest Invitational
- VineLines Dispatch: Harvest of Walla Walla Valley
Underwood Cellars 2011 Pinot Noir, Oregon, $12
Best Buy! Wines such as this one by Union Wine Company’s Ryan Harms and Greg Bauer provide a remarkable gateway to the exploration of Pinot Noir produced in Oregon. This entry-level tier — and their largest single production bottling — blends fruit from Melrose and Vehrs vineyards in the Umpqua Valley, La Colina in the Dundee Hills, and Carabella and Chehalem Mountain vineyards. The intriguing nose sends out fruity hints of cranberry and boysenberry as well as complexity from just-picked rosemary, forest floor, porcini mushroom, saddle leather and fresh-baked brownie. There’s some depth to the drink that hints at juicy flavors of raspberry and Montmorency cherry with a backing of sandy tannins. A light hand with the barrel allows the spotlight to shine on the finish of Rainier cherry, crushed leaf, new leather and black olive. Some spots along the West Coast will offer this screwcapped wine for $10. Come spring, you will be seeing it in single-serving aluminum cans.
Rating: Outstanding!
Production: 28,000 cases
Alcohol: 13%
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