Sparkling in the Willamette
Dundee, Oregon, USA
Tasted in August 2015
By Sean Overpeck
Take an old fashioned paper world map, or for those too young to remember what those are, just go onto google maps and find the Willamette Valley in Oregon just south of Portland. Then if you have the old paper map lay down a ruler and draw a line straight across the map. If using google it can get tricky but try to hold your mouse steady and follow a straight line heading east. You will pass north of Yellowstone, Wyoming, over Minneapolis, Nova Scotia, and into the Atlantic. Next land mass is Europe, and you will end very close to the Burgundy Wine Region south of the city of Dijon. You can practically draw a straight line. Burgundy of course is known for its chardonnay’s and pinot noir wines. The most expensive wines in the world are grown in this region from Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, with the Romanee-Conti Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, which sells for around $12,000 American Dollars (£8,320.00) per bottle.
The point of this story is that this area of France for thousands of years has been producing the best chardonnay’s and pinot noir’s out there, and the Willamette Valley in Oregon is at the same latitude of Burgundy. It just so happens, not just in my opinion, but many wine critics as well is that the best chardonnay and pinot’s in America are produced in the Willamette. Now what happens when you add Sparkling Wines to that mixture and they receive 92, 93, or higher points from the professional tasters like Robert Parker? Well, you have a recipe for Argyle Winery. Since 1987 Argyle has been producing some of the top wines in the region, and in August of 2015 my fiancé and I stopped by on a wine tasting tour, where argyle was number two on the list of visits that day. Two days before, I was in Iraq, so it was a pleasure to drink some great wine.
Follow Wine, dine, and Play:
From vineyards home page:
Prospecting the New World's coolest latitudes, Brian Croser and Rollin Soles staked a claim in Oregon's Willamette Valley, a place ideal for late season ripened Pinot Noir and Chardonnay fruit.
Since 1987, Argyle Winery has produced world-class methode champenoise Sparkling wine, barrel fermented Chardonnay and 'silky' textured Pinot Noir from low yielding vines on winery farmed hillside slopes. Argyle was named "OREGON'S PREMIER WINERY" by Wine Spectator in 2000.
Argyle farms three vineyards: Knudsen Vineyard, Lone Star Vineyard and Spirit Hill Vineyard. The 120 acre Knudsen Vineyard was first planted between 1972 & 1974. The high elevation blocks of this landmark Dundee Hills site are key components in Argyle's sparkling wines. Knudsen provides Argyle a mix of old vine blocks and new high density blocks planted with "Old World" Dijon clones.
In 1996 Argyle purchased a spectacular 160 acre vineyard site in the east slopes of Eola Hills, known as Lone Star Vineyard. Located 15 miles south of Argyle's winery in Dundee, this warm site is planted primarily to Dijon clones of Pinot Noir. This vineyard has the potential to be one of Oregon's best Pinot Noir vineyards.
Our newest and largest vineyard, Spirit Hill was purchased in 2007 and has 135 acres planted. This high-elevation site in the gusty Van Duzer corridor of the Eola-Amity Hills AVA is ideal for our sparkling wine varietals.
Main review:
Argyle had just renovated and reintroduced there new tasting room a short while before we had arrived, maybe a few months before. A lot of money went into the design of the building, with the old Nut House tasting room still located on the property near the new parking lot. A large open area with a metal canopy covered a square of land filled in with a cement floor and a center brick open fire place was perfect for wine tasting and food gatherings, or wedding receptions. Outside this canopy area were more wood picnic tables with umbrella to protect you from the son.
The main tasting room building was made from strong light and dark brown colored wood, similar to a newer style cabin in the woods. On the inside the open space was massive and full of natural light from the windows. Across from that the main bar. There were several tables, able to sit four or more, inside picnic tables for party’s of six or more, and some comfortable chairs where my fiancé and I sat, which had a small wood table next to it, where we would do our tastings.
For the tasting we were presented with a champaign style slim glass that could double as a regular white wine tasting glass, a chardonnay/riesling glass and a large format pinot noir Burgundy glass.
Our three tasting flight for the day for $15.00 consisted of the 2011 conducere Brut, the 2013 Nuthouse Chardonnay and 2013 pinot noir. All these wines ranged from $40.00 to $60.00 per bottle. The wine tasting notes from the winemaker and my notes are located below. Argyle’s focus is on the old-world varietals of chardonnay, pinot noir, riesling and pinot meunier and their chardonnay portfolio is uniquely as diverse. The Spirithouse label has won several awards and has the eye of the critics. We unfortunately did not taste this wine while there.
Now lets see how I and the critics rate the wines, plus give you some tasting, cost, and general winery information….
96 - 100
|
is Extraordinary
|
90 - 95
|
is Outstanding
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80 -89
|
is Above the Average
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70 - 79
|
is Below the Average
|
60 - 69
|
poor / appalling / “Cac”
|
Review basics:
Wine, Dine, & Play’s Rating
|
91
|
| Wine Speculator | 91 Points on the 2012 Spirithouse Pinot Noir |
| Wine Enthusiast | 92 Points on the 2012 Spirithouse Pinot Noir |
| All Accolades | Argyle Wines |
| Wines Produced | Red: Pinot Noir Chardonnay, Riesling, Rose |
| Regulatory | AVA: American viticulture Association |
Cases Produced:
Per Year:
2011 Conducere Brut
|
425 |
2013 Nuthouse Chardonnay
|
1596 |
2013 Nuthouse Pinot Noir
|
2000 |
These wines remind me of:
I haven’t visited a lot of wineries that focus on pinot noir or chardonnay, but feel comfortable in saying that to start with as far as the tasting room and the customer service of argyle, I give top marks and compare it to the tasting rooms of Yarra Yering in the Yarra Wine Valley of Australia, or the tasting room at the Napa Wine Company in Oakville, California. So very impressive and receives top marks. The bar tender was extremely friendly and as you can tell from the pictures above, very photogenic. Their chardonnay I would compare to some tastings that I did at the William Fevre Estate or the AOC Domaine Guy & Yvan Dufouleur, where they had a 1st Cru with similar profiles to the Nuthouse chardonnay. Both of these wineries were in the heart of Burgundy.
The wines are very approachable, even the sparkling which I’m not really a huge fan of in general no matter where it comes from. The Conducere and chardonnay would go well with a wonderful cheese and charcuterie like local Oregon favorites on Juniper Grove Farm, or Rogue Creamery, both of which you can purchase from across the street at the Red Hills Market. These wines can also stand up to a nice plate of chicken alfredo, or go into the red wine territory of foods with a duck dish or sirloin. The pinot noir with lite tannins and smoky flavor pair perfect with a grill chicken, or even a nice wild caught salmon, and a New York strip steak as well.
Cost of wine tasting in USD (p/p):
The House Flight:
|
$15.00 |
| The Red Diamond Flight: | $15.00 |
| The Pop Flight: | $15.00 |
Bouquet & Palette Notes:
Wine & Grape:
|
Nose (Bouquet):
|
Palette Experience:
|
2011 Conducere Brut
|
Winemaker: Fruit forward, showing hints of nectarine and lychee. I got a lot of forward aromas of peach and pear along with a gravel earthy smell, most likely as a result of the grape being a Dijon clone. |
Winemaker: Subtle acidity balances with slate minerality and backed with lightly toasted pistachio and honeydew melon. Well Balanced, lite fruit, with subtle hints of butter from their barrel malolactic fermentation process. |
2013 Nuthouse Chardonnay
|
Winemaker: 91 Points, Wine Spectator, White peach, baking spice, and roasted hazelnut is framed around supple, textural delicacy. Entirely barrel fermented, the wine was allowed to age gracefully on full lees for 12 months in French oak, of which 20% were new. I got hints of spice and nutmeg with walnuts, flowers, and pineapple |
Winemaker: The creaminess and juicy mid-palate is enhanced through its long, mineral finish. Mild fruit with a hint honey, yet watery as it went down with no lasting finish. |
2013 Nuthouse Pinot Noir
|
Winemaker: 93 Points, International Wine Report, with bright raspberry, spicy floral and black tea flavors, all woven into a rich, yet energetic frame. I got a smoky spice and flowers on the nose |
Winemaker: A mild grip of tannins is carried through a long, savory finish. Very lite tannins, but nice forward fruit. The wine needs to open up for a good while before you drink it. Very young, can age 10-15 years and be perfect. |
Bottle Prices
(excluding taxes)
$£€¥ - Under 50.00
$£€¥ x 2 - 51.00- 99.00
$£€¥ x 3 - Over 100.00
$£€¥ x 4 - Over 200.00
$£€¥ x 5 - Over 400.00
**Currencies chosen reflect the world’s major travelers and restaurant connoisseur’s**
Wine Selction:
|
Currency in the top wine producing countries: | Price Chart : |
2011 Conducere Brut (750 ml)
|
||
$60.00
|
United States Dollar (USD)
|
$$
|
$81.00
|
Australian Dollar (AUS)
|
$$
|
£42.00
|
Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)
|
£
|
$80.00
|
Canadian Dollar (CAN)
|
$$
|
¥391.00
|
Chinese Yuan (CNY)
|
¥¥¥¥
|
€55.00
|
European Union (EUR)
|
€€
|
$88.00
|
New Zealand Dollar (NZD)
|
$$
|
R920.00
|
South African Rand (ZAR)
|
R
|
2013 Nuthouse Chardonnay (750 ml)
|
||
$40.00
|
United States Dollar (USD)
|
$
|
£28.00
|
Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)
|
£
|
€36.00
|
European Union (EUR)
|
€
|
2013 Nuthouse Pinot Noir (750 ml)
|
||
$50.00
|
United States Dollar (USD)
|
$$
|
£35.00
|
Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)
|
£
|
€46.00
|
European Union (EUR)
|
€
|
Vineyard Owner:
Brian Croser and Rollin Soles
Winemaker:
Nate
Vineyard &Tasting Room Address:
691 Highway 99W
Dundee, Oregon
97115
GPS Coordinates:
45.278021
-123.010016
Contact Information:
Tasting room:
|
503-538-8520 |
| Website: | Argyle Winery |
| Email: | Contact the Tasting House Customer Service Wine Club |
| Social Media: |
Facebook Link |
| Twitter @ArgyleWinery | |
Tasting Room Information:
Monday - Sunday: 11:00 am - 5:00 pm
Pacific Standard Time (GMT -8:00)
Review by:
Sean Overpeck (CFE)
I am based out of St. Petersburg, Florida working in the food service industry for the past twenty years, and am currently with the American Embassy as the Executive Chef in Basra, Iraq. Formally I have worked with groups contracting in Afghanistan, Dubai, and Antarctica, also working in restaurants in and around Atlanta prior to the wars. I have also owned a catering company and served proudly in the United States Army food service program. The idea for the Wine, Dine, and Play Blog started in late 2012 after a trip to Jordan, when I was asked by others to write down the experiences from a few Jordanian restaurants, plus the wine from the region that I tasted, and locations of interest such as Petra, and the culture. Since that time, nearly 200 articles have been written on restaurants, including fifteen from the worlds top 100 lists of San Pellegrino and the Elite Travelers Guide; exotic world locations such as Dubai, Petra, and African Safari’s; food recipes & Grand Food Dictionaries; country cuisines such as Afghan and Peruvian; and of course wine from vineyards in California, Oregon, the Carolina’s, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia
Who is John Galt?
“I like cooking with wine; sometimes I even add it to the food.”
TTFN
