Pinot Noir Around The World: Week 2: Primarius Reserve Pinot Noir 2016 from Willamette Valley, Oregon
Happy Pinot Noir Day everyone! It’s week two of my series of posts focusing on wine regions around the world that are known for their Pinot Noir and this week I’m tasting a wine from one of my favorite regions: Willamette Valley in Oregon. Williamette Valley is Oregon’s Largest AVA and produces some of my favorite Pinot Noir. If you’re pulling a Zach Morris “Time Out” right now, don’t worry. I got you!
AVA stands for American Viticultural Area. It’s pretty much the American equivalent to a French appellation. It’s an area where wine is grown. But unlike in France, America doesn’t really have the same restrictions on what types of varietals are grown in an AVA. The only regulation that AVAs have is that if you put a certain AVA on your wine label, at least 85% of the grapes used to make that wine MUST come from that AVA.
“Time In”
So as I was saying, Willamette Valley is Oregon’s largest AVA spanning 150 miles long and 60 miles wide with many sub-AVAs.
Willamette Valley has a lot of unique factors that make it ideal for producing amazing Pinot Noir.
1) Ideal Climate
Willamette Valley has sunny warm days during peak growing season, then mild winters and often long and rainy spring and fall seasons which are ideal for fully ripened grapes.
2)Soil Types
It has over 100 different soil types! There are three main categories these soil types fall under: Volcanic, Sedimentary and Loess. Wines grown in each of those soils will give the wine a different flavor profile. You can have two wines made in the exact same way using the exact same vines but that have been grown in tow different soil types and they will both come out tasting TOTALLY different. That’s why you have spectrum of Pinot Noir that ranges from bright and light and acidic and then goes all the way through earthy and mushroomy.
So take the climate, take the soil and combine that with factor #3, A Coastal Maritime Influence, and you have all of these amazing conditions that come together to produce a crazy variety of Pinot Noir.
Now that you have the quick rundown on Willamette Valley Pinot, let me get to what wine I’m tasting this week: Primarius Reserve Pinot Noir 2016.
Label: A regal red with gold foil embossing. So as I said before, since this wine is labelled with the “Willamette Valley” AVA, 85% of the grapes used must be from Willamette Valley. That’s why the winery has put the percentage breakdown of the vineyards the grapes have come from on the back of the bottle. On the back, it also explains the wines name: “Primarius, Latin for distinguished.”
Eyes: Rich Garnet color.
Legs: Not that strong BUT the wine does have a pretty hight alcohol content, coming in at 14.2%
Nose: Dark Cherry, Oak, Tobacco, Smoke
Palate: Chocolate, Blackberry, Cinnamon, Raspberry, Vanilla, Soft Tannins, Smooth, Silky Finish.
Food Pairings: Roasted Duck, Cedar Plank Salmon, Mushroom Risotto, Herb Crusted Chicken, Pork Loin AND Thanksgiving Dinner! (Be on the lookout for this wine on my Thanksgiving Wine Guide later this year)
Price Point: $27 at my local wine store, Vin de Table in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn.
Final Fact about Primarius: They have a FEMALE WINEMAKER.!!!!
Her name is Sarah Cabot. She’s been making wine for over 12 years and she’s been reported to be “responsible for more Oregon wine production than any other woman winemaker in the state for several consecutive years.” And if you didn’t already think she was a badass, you’ll think she’s one after you hear this: When she’s not winemaking, she’s playing FULL CONTACT FOOTBALL FOR THE OREGON RAVENS! I mean come on! Who’s gonna mess with that woman?!
Cheers to Sarah Cabot and cheers to Primarius!
Next Tuesday I’ll be continuing my Pinot Noir journey and tasting a wine from a different region. Any guesses on where I’ll be heading to next?
