Oregon Wines

You might not have had the chance, or even thought about looking to the beautiful Pacific Northwest for your last purchase of wine. Well it is understandable. If you are not from the area you might not know that there are 153 wineries in Oregon producing quality wine, and trying to get the word out to you and the rest of the world. Many wine writers have talked about “Discovering the wines of Oregon”. Well maybe we are still busy discovering the wines of Australia, Chile, New Zealand, Spain, New York and South Africa. That’s all fine and well, just drop all of them for now and lets look at Pinot Noir country. (o.k. Chard country too)


Before I go on and give you a reason or two to keep an eye on Oregon wineries and their tempting and flavorful offerings, I will touch on a few reasons you may not have found a selection at your wine store. Maybe “selection” is the wrong word. You might have seen 2 wines from Oregon stocked at your local wine store, and let me guess what they were. King Estate Pinot Noir and Argyle Brut Sparkling Wine. These are both nice wines, but also the few made in large enough quantities to be shipped nation wide.

One reason for low export numbers out of Oregon is the fact that the state drinks most of their own wine. Well of course they do, who could blame them, it’s good stuff. They should be proud of it, but it is keeping us folks east of the Cascades relatively high and dry. About 65% of the wine made in Oregon stays there, leaving the other (hold on let me get my calculator) 35% for the rest of the country and the world to split up.

Reason number two is that Oregon has about 10,000 acres of wine grapes planted and producing fruit. That is not a lot. The combination of a rather small harvested amount of grapes and the small amount of wine escaping Oregon leads to wine drinkers all over the country with out the chance to get their hands on sensational wines they may have read about in the Wine Speculator or other publications.

One more little factor is the obvious presence of that rather large wine producing state directly to their south. Some wine lovers may have enough trouble (if you can call it that) staying on top of the ever expanding California wine scene (1150 wineries, producing juice from over 360,000 acres of grape vines) that they might not be interested in learning about, or hunting down wines from Oregon. Many retailers may also feel the need to display an array of California wines leaving no shelf space for the few Oregon wines they may have access to.

So it may well be that getting your hands on some of the all star wines from this region is not going to happen, (at least not from your local wine shop) especially with some of the reserve wines being produced 200 to 300 cases at a time.

But enough of this whining about being to far from the source and not having much to choose from out here on the east coast. Where there is a will there is a way, and if you really want to get a bottle or two, direct shipping and the online wine stores are there to help you out.

Now we can start looking at what Oregonians are drinking. It has been Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that have grown and flourished so well in the Willamette (will-AM-it, not, will-UH-mett-ee) Valley that have put Oregon wines on the mind and palate of wine critics and wine drinkers alike. The temperate marine climate and long hours of warm sunshine (during the growing season) create ideal growing conditions for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The state straddles the 45-degree North Latitude Parallel that seems to produce some of the world’s best grapes.

Oregon has five American Viticultural Area growing regions. The Willamette Valley being the largest and the most prominent in producing stunning wines year after year, followed by the Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley, Umpqua Valley and the Rogue Valley. All gained AVA status in 1984 except the Rogue Valley, which was officially established in 1992.

The Willamette Valley AVA has the largest concentration of wineries (84) out of the five growing regions. It stretches from north of Portland down to just south of Eugene. This is where top producers such as Sokol-Blosser, Eyrie, Bethel Heights, Argyle, Amity, Panther Creek, Archery Summit, Domaine Drouhin, Ponzi, Duck Pond, Raptor Ridge and Witness Tree (to name some of the best) make and grow their wine. These are some of the wineries to search out and keep an eye on if you want to taste some of the best of Oregon.

The Pinot Noirs coming from this area are generally silky and soft with bright forward dark cherry fruit flavors that are fused with earth and mineral notes, and have a tight structure of acids and firm, but balanced tannins. Most drink well upon release, and many have the potential to improve with 3-5 years of age. Pinot Noirs from this part of the world are fantastic and worth the effort put into hunting them down. Regular bottlings from many Willamette Valley wineries are fantastic, and the Reserve and small single vineyard selections are as awesome as they are hard to find. Perfect for your cellar, but also ready to try the day you bring them home. The best of both worlds.

Chardonnay is only coming in second place to Pinot Noir here because it is taking up less space in the vineyards. Many wineries focus on quality Chardonnay as much as Pinot, and there are some superb examples out there. The Chardonnays are coming across as citrus fruit concentrated wines with real soft hints of melon and spice, surrounded by acids that hold everything together and keep most structured and tight. Usually less expensive than the Pinots, the Chardonnays are definitely a place to start if you are going to give these wines a try.

Oregon has had vinifera vines planted as early as 1854, and has been producing wines of character since the early 70′s. Soil, climate and beautiful landscapes have attracted winemakers to the valleys eversince. When visiting the area it seems as though the vineyards should have always been there, and the great wines of Oregon known around the world. There is passion in the winemakers’ voices when they talk of their grapes and each upcoming harvest. The fact that there is still room to grow and talented people are always entering the scene all these wineries should be ecstatic about the future.

This is going to be the place to watch for the next decade. There will be more vines planted here, and more winemakers looking to get land and open up their dream winery here, than anywhere else in the west. So production will increase, and if quality remains the focus (I’m sure it will) all of us may soon be finding more access to these cool climate gems.

Some other varietals you may see trickling out of Oregon are Pinot Gris, Riesling, and some Gewürztraminer. I think Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are the wines to go for if you are just getting into Oregon wines, but the Pinot Gris from a select few wineries are getting rave reviews.

Many wineries are finding a following outside of the Northwest. It is becoming essential for powerhouse wine lists everywhere to include some of the top producers from Oregon in their pages. Quality has been maintained even in difficult vintages, and the small productions have brought an almost cult status to some of them. As the interest and demand continues I think that the new heroes will thrive, and the already established will continue to grow.

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