Fresh dark berries shadowed by their high-toned distilled counterparts, wreathed in bittersweetly perfumed iris and gentian, and spiced with nutmeg and cardamom lend Tunnell’s 2011 Pinot Noir Evelyn’s complex and intriguing allure. This cuvee uniting Pommard and Dijon clones and named in honor of his mother is almost creamy in feel (so much for those canards about Ribbon Ridge and stems conducing to abrasive tannin!) even if – encouragingly – a sense of fine-grained tannin is evident in the finish. There is a marrow-rich sense of carnal depth; while a faint hint of caramelization – reflecting the slightly higher percentage of new oak here than in other Brick House cuvees – is entirely well-woven into this seductive, rich, yet in vintage-typical manner vibrant, fundamentally juicy, and mouthwateringly saline performance.
Willamette biodynamic pioneer Doug Tunnell – for much more about whom and about whose property and portfolio consult my Issue 202 introduction – brought in all of his 2011s in the last days of October and first days of November at close to 12.5% natural alcohol, and they were then chaptalized (in part simply to extend fermentation), but remain just under 13%. With the exception of his “Moe’s” bottling from Momtazi Vineyard in McMinnville, Tunnell utilized a higher share of whole clusters and stems in 2011 than he had in 2010. He claims that it’s critical to combine the use of stems with extended maceration even after reaching dryness, which supports a hypothesis I’ve developed since last year that the many vintners who refer to Ribbon Ridge Pinot as inherently tough are probably pulling their young wine off of the skins as it takes on obvious tannins rather than, as it were, letting it get over a hump. “It took me time to understand this,” says Tunnell. “You watch those tannins climb, and climb, and climb. But don’t pull the trigger; restrain yourself! Then they start coming together.” The chance to taste additional older wines with Tunnell on this recent occasion has enhanced my respect and admiration for his work as well as encouraged my belief that the wines he is crafting from recent vintages are going to number among those Ribbon Ridge Pinots that serve as future benchmarks for what is possible with this grape in the Willamette Valley. (Incidentally, Tunnel could not locate even a single bottle of his “basic” 2011 Pinot Noir Select for me to taste in July and I failed to subsequently connect with one.)
Tel. (503) 538-5136
粵公網(wǎng)安備 44030502006249號