Ken Wright Cellars Savoya Vineyard Pinot Noir, Yamhill-Carlton District, USA

肯恩?萊特索瓦亞園黑皮諾干紅葡萄酒

點擊次數(shù)：2961

The 2014 Pinot Noir Savoya Vineyard comes from southeast facing vines planted in 1999. It has fine delineation on the nose, very good terroir expression with a light oyster shell influence. The palate is medium-bodied with fine delineation, a little ferrous in style with edgy red and black fruit towards the finish. This is a well-crafted Pinot Noir with good structure and it should drink well over the next decade, possibly longer.

From vines planted in 1999, the 2012 Pinot Noir Savoya Vineyard is a selection of five clones. It has a natural, understated bouquet with subtle woodland and undergrowth aromas infusing the red and black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly gritty tannin, a little chalky in texture with black fruit dominating toward the structured finish.

I can't hazard a worthwhile guess as to its aging potential. From the first vineyard that Wright purchased and developed from scratch, the 2010 Pinot Noir Savoya represents the ninth harvest from this stressfully sandy site. Dried cherry and tart rhubarb are tinged with nutmeg and cinnamon, a smoky overtone suggesting the influence of toasted oak. Tart, bright and smoky in its rather strident persistence, this displays the energy and prominent acidity characteristic for its vintage, though I suspect it will tone down and perhaps harmonize after a few years in bottle. Louisville native Ken Wright has long since become one of the iconic and most influential figures of the Oregon wine scene, a go-to for countless winery start-ups as well as valuable projects to benefit the Willamette wine community. Wright's career evolved from one of negociant-winemaker (founder of Panther Creek) and farmer of other people's vines to that of vineyard owner. "It was twelve years before I bought my first vineyard," he notes, "because before that I was in the exploratory phase of trying to find the best sites in the valley." Today, in addition to the three vineyards he owns, Wright holds 15- to 30-year leases on five others, and 80% of the vines that supply him are farmed by his own extensive (and in places site-specific) team. Wright is passionately vocal on myriad aspects of Pinot production, but one he emphasized especially in our recent session was "nutrition-based farming," which he characterizes as "a whole nother level beyond biodynamics" focused on "the uptake of minerals," which he believes is especially critical in the Willamette to encouraging ideal ripeness. It's thus the soil's microbial life he nurtures, he says, in order to get at the vine, with annual block-by-block soil and tissue analyses employed to establish what's needed and what's been accomplished. Wright makes clear that he sees ripeness as reflecting optimal harnessing of the sun's energy in the form of sugar, but indicates that he considers the use of must concentrators a more than acceptable alternative to chaptalization if grapes don't reach an optimal level of sugar. I was left with an uneasy impression from most of Wright's recent line-up of ripeness to be sure, but variously allied to phenolic stridency; firm, at times rustic tannin; or opacity of flavors. Wright appears from my limited research and my conversations with him to be the source of a considerable consensus that, in his words "as a result of doing single vineyard bottlings for so long, a pattern has emerged that basalt sites " Dundee Hills, Eola-Amity Hills - generally tend to be more fruit-focused - (whether) red, blue, or black - and marine sediments (exhibit) more spicy and floral. And since these marine soils, mostly sandstone, are so dry, that triggers a hormonal response in the vine much earlier in the year to begin the process of ripening; where with (eroded basalt) volcanic soils there's more clay, more water-holding capacity, and so the vine remains vegetative longer. And for whatever reason - I don't quite understand that - we have higher acidity in the volcanics.- I don't share that consensus - I can't say that my admittedly limited experience even entitles me to judge it - but I wanted readers to be aware of it. Tel. (503) 852-7070

The dark ruby-colored 2009 Pinot Noir Savoia Vineyard displays both finesse and depth of flavor. Cedar, spice box, incense, black cherry, and black raspberry aromas inform the nose of a medium-bodied, ripe, moderately structured, tasty wine that will continue to provide enjoyment over the next 6-8 years. Ken Wright Cellars’ 2009 Pinot Noirs range from excellent to outstanding in quality but generally lack the structure, density, and richness of the great 2008 vintage. These are pretty, elegant wines to drink while the 2008s continue to fill out in the cellar.Tel. (503) 852-7070; www.kenwrightcellars.com