‘The wines from 2019 have a youthful exuberance that is so exciting.’ Shane More of Zena Crown shares. ‘They ring with freshness, vibrancy, and vitality. Our 2019 Pinot Noirs are exhilaratingly pure and will live for decades.’
It was a cool and wet vintage in the Willamette Valley that was far more common a decade ago. After a stretch of warmer years from 2014 through 2018. Many winemakers welcomed a return of the conditions emblematic of the elegant and balanced wines that have buoyed the region’s reputation around the globe. The kind that they grew used to.
The signature style of Oregon’s Pinot Noir has been marked by its freshness. A balance of fresh fruit character and sois bois, or forest floor elements.
A sense of familiarity
‘When I think about the 2019 vintage’, says Sokol-Blosser, president and winemaker, Alex Sokol Blosser. ‘I think about an Oregon vintage that is more typical. We had a nice growing season, and then it started to rain in September before things were ripe. Rain is part of the deal here in the Willamette Valley, and it’s hard to get out of that deal unless you want to move.’
It was a cold early spring, and frost did create some challenges in the colder…
