During this recent stretch of warm and stunning vintages in the North Willamette Valley, Van Duzer Vineyards seems ideally situated just west of the Eola-Amity Hills appellation. Thanks to the coastal winds through the Van Duzer Corridor, the 84 acres of vines established in the early 1980s by Stanford grads Carl and Marilyn Thoma have been tracked as much as 13 degrees cooler than their friends to the north, and Burgundy native Florent-Pierre Merlier continues to achieve delicious balance in the cellar. His work here with primarily Dijon clones is reminiscent of cranberry-rhubarb pie filling, as it bubbles and caramelizes during baking, with the perfect accent of cinnamon and clove in the background. The mouth feel is medium bodied, with pleasing earthy and black cherry components, and a lingering finish of orange zest. This earned best of class and merited the Cole Danehower Memorial Award as the Best Oregon Wine of the 2017 Cascadia Wine Competition.
Rating: Outstanding!
Production: 429 cases
Alcohol: 13.5%
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