Latitude and Attitude Sharing Left Coast Wines

As we get through these trying days and weeks ahead remember it’s about attitude. Try and keep a good one, because we are all in this together.

Funny I looked up the definition of latitude and besides the obvious with it says “scope for freedom of action or thought.” Many people have lots of thoughts these days, but we have to remember to smile and keep our sense of humor.

Wine connects us all. For now we pour ourselves a glass and login to our community and family online and share in a glass together.

I am going to share with you what I got to share with my daughter in Nashville back in January. She likes Pinot Noir, so when we went out to visit I brought Left Coast Cellars Pinot Latitude 45˚Pinot Noir and Cali’s Cuvee to share with her.

2017 Cali’s Cuvee Pinot Noir - This is their flagship Pinot Noir. Named in honor of the owners’ daughter Cali. The wine was fermented in stainless stell then aged in 100% oak. Of that oak 15% was new French oak. Light on the tannins, this wine is full of blackberry, black raspberry, clove with black pepper nuisances dancing throughout mixing with the clove and black currant towards the finish. SRP $24

2016 Latitude 45˚Pinot Noir - The grapes for this wine come from the Latitude 45˚vineyard which is the oldest vineyard on the estate. It also is directly intersected by the 45th parallel like the great vineyards of France. The grapes are 100% Dijon Clones 114, 115 and 667. The wine was fermented in 100% French oak and aged in 75% New French oak and 35% neutral French oak for 15 months. The wine showed expressions of red raspberry, black cherry, cardamom and black spice. SRP $38 What was really special about sharing this with Melanie at her new place is we got to drink them from my mother’s wine glasses.

Left Coast also produces a line of sparkling wines. I was really lucky to be able to try their 2013 Blanc de Noir. Truth, we had this before our drive out to Nashville. This sparkling was made in the traditional method and aged for 4.5 years. This was a beautiful sparkling wine. Nice crisp acidity with lovely notes of toast and green apple that follow through on the palate with some orange blossom and citrus notes. This is a nice romantic sparkling that you want to share with a love one. SRP $55 and only 135 cases were made.

Left Coast Estate Dinner at Kitchen 330 - Getting Personal With Taylor Pfaff

I thought I’d make this a Left Coast week, from one left-hander to a family of them. (you’ll see what I’m talking about in the podcast) Today we hear from Taylor Pfaff, CEO of Left Coast Estate and next article will be their summer wine selections. Enjoy.

Last fall I hosted Taylor Pfaff from Left Coast Estate for a wine dinner at Kitchen 330 in Stone Harbor, New Jersey. Chef Gus prepared a fabulous menu that paired 5 Left Coast wines with some amazing dishes.

In this podcast Taylor, the youngest child in the family, currently the CEO talks about Left Coast, his family, the wines and the clones used in producing 3 different Pinot Noirs. At times he gets pretty geeky with the clones.

Learn about the name of the winery, the Pinot Noir clones, the Lewis and Clark Label, and Truffle Hill explained.

Grab a glass of Left Coast or any wine for that matter and listen to Taylor talk so passionately about Left Coast Estate and his family.

Podcast:

Catching East Coast Fish Pairing with Left Coast Cellars

This summer seems to be the summer of fish and white wine pairings for me. It’s a great time to eat fish,especially when your husband catches it. There is such a variety of white and rose wines that pair so well with fish and Left Coast Cellars produces some rare and exceptional wines that fall into that category. There is nothing better than eating fresh fish and drinking good white wine that leads to great memories.

Last year I got introduced to Left Coast Cellars and was quite impressed with their wines. I’m going to admit, I was never a fan of Pinot Gris until I had it from Oregon and now I am hooked. Left Coast Cellars not only produces a Pinot Gris but a wine you don’t see very often being made, a White Pinot Noir and I am always intrigued with wines out of the norm.

What is a White Pinot Noir? 

At Left Coast it all began as an experiment. One of those experiments that you undertake and hope for the best others just happen. This experiment was a huge success. The grapes are crushed at extremely cold temperatures so there is minimal coloration from the skins. There is no time for them to sit and extract of color and tannins from the skins and seeds. Once pressed, the juice is then fermented in stainless steel and aged on the lees.

My thought was what do I pair with a White Pinot Noir? This 2017 vintage of Left Coast Cellars White Pinot Noir SRP $24 is 91% Pinot Noir and 9% Pinot Planc from the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Once the grapes are pressed they are aged for 4 months in stainless steel. The wine shows aromas and flavors of white berries and white flowers, nectarine, peaches with hints of wet stone. I paired it with the Sheepshead Fish Paul caught and grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream. The wine went well with both. With the fish, it cut back on the acidity. With the grilled peaches, it was the perfect way to end a nice dinner.

The Orchard Pinot Gris

Left Coast The Orchard Pinot Gris 2017 SRP $18, a blend of 91% Pinot Gris and 9 % Pinot Blanc from Willamette Valley, Oregon. This wine paired well with the Sheepshead Fish too. Yes it was a two bottle evening. This is a very exciting Pinot Gris and complex as well with aromas of pineapple, white flowers, and wet sand. On the palate it is soft and exciting with flavors of apricot, white plum and ripe pears. A delightful wine with a white fish or just on it’s own.

Sharing the Estate Rose

Left Coast Rose 2017 SRP $24 is a blend of 54% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier and 9% Pinot Blanc aged in 100% neutral French oak for 4 months. A nice food friendly Rose or drink on it’s own. Aromas of strawberry and black cherry has a hint of earthiness. Flavors of cherry, mandarin orange with a slight hint of white spice layer on the palate. I believe in sharing and brought this wine to the restaurant to share with my favorite people Bob & Vickie. I think this will pair very will with our Halibut and Lobster dish that is topped with a provencal tomato nage.

Left Coast Cellars is a family run winery located in Rickreall, Oregon. Take a tour of their estate below and if you are in the region, make sure you stop in for a tour and tasting.

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Left Coast Estate from Left Coast Estate on Vimeo.

Have You Tasted White Pinot Noir?

You most likely haven’t tasted a White Pinot Noir. I know I didn’t until I tasted Left Coast Cellars White Pinot Noir last year. I always thought Pinot Noir was red, a beautiful light garnet color with the aromas and flavors of strawberries and raspberries. The red color comes from the juice sitting on the skins, this extracts the color and tannins. Pinot Noir juice is actually white. Left Coast Cellars in the Willamette Valley in Oregon makes a nice White Pinot Noir.

A little about Left Coast Cellars. They are LIVE certified which is a certification of environmentally and socially responsible wine growing through a third part certification of collaborative science-based wine growing standards of Integrated Production. They use fewer and less toxic pesticides, they promote biodiversity, focus on fish and wateshed protection through their partner Salmon-Safe, conserve energy and water, promote safe and healthy work environment. Their winery is solar powered and they have a 17 acre spring fed lake that collects rain water for their gravity fed irrigation. They also have a ground mounted solar panels by their Latitude 45 vineyard that provides 100 percent of the power to their guest cottage, front gate and all the estate irrigation needs of their vineyards and landscaping. Pretty impressive!

Left Coast Cellars 2016 White Pinot Noir is a blend of 91% Pinot Noir and 9% Pinot Blanc. It’s crushed in very cold temperatures so no coloration from the skins bleed into the wine. The wine is then fermented in stainless steel tanks and ages on its lees for 4 months. Nuisances of pear and pineapple fill the glass leading into delicate minerally palate of wet stone, honeydew melon, hint of peach and orange zest. I paired this with Tofu Quesadilla picnic on the beach. SRP $24

Not to be ignored is another white selection from Left Coast Cellars their 2016 The Orchards Pinot Gris. I was never big on Pinot Gris until I tasted some selections from Oregon and they won me over, like this one. This is a blend of 91% Pinot Gris and 9% Pinot Blanc aged in stainless steel for 4 months. The site of the vineyards use to be a historic apple and pear orchard that dated back to the pioneers who settled Oregon. I found a lot of citrus showing through on this wine, lemon curd, lime, grapefruit with a hint of pear and honeydew melon. I served it with sausage and peppers from my garden. There was a hint of sweetness to this that really blended well with the hot peppers from my garden. SRP $18

Discovering White Pinot Noir

Red and Rose wine get their color when the juice sits on the skins and the color is extracted into the wine.  Rose wines sit for very short periods of time like the drive from the field to the winery or up to 24 hours on the skins to get the pink color.  Red wines can sit on the skins for 7 days or more.  Not only are they extracting color but flavor and tannins as well.

So what's the deal with a White Pinot Noir? The Pinot Noir grapes are brought to the winery and pressed immediately and made into a wine before they have time to sit on the skins and extract any color.  Now you have a White Pinot Noir. An the taste, well let's explore.

I tasted Left Coast Cellars 2015 White Pinot Noir from the Willamette Valley in Oregon. My first White Pinot Noir experience. It's always good being the first because I had no expectations. The grapes were fermented in stainless steel and sur lie aged in stainless steel for 5 months.

The wine was almost crystal clear and very acidic, It looked like a glass of water. Aromas of stone fruit filled the glass with hints of lemon and spiced pear.  Citrus flavors with a touch of honey filled my palate. There was hints of minerality throughout the experience.  

Try something different.  The SRP is $25

Heading Left to the Left Coast - Cellars

When you think of the left coast bet you automatically think of California.  Right?  Well, left coast is left and not necessarily California, in this case it's Oregon. The Left stands for left handed as three of the family members of Left Coast Cellars (and myself I might add) are left handed.

Left Coast Cellars was founded in 2003 by Suzanne and Robert Pfaff and in 2011 Joe Wright joined the team as winemaker. They have one of the largest contiguous vineyards in the Willamette Valley with 350 acres and 150 of those acres under vine.  In the vineyard there are eight unique micro climates that contribute to the uniqueness of their wines and 90% of the winery is solar powered.

Left Coast Cellars produces Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, White Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc.

I had the opportunity to taste their 2013 Cali's Cuvee Pinot Noir and the 2014 The Orchards Pinot Gris.

I want to begin by saying that Pinot Gris was not a favorite wine of mine but since tasting a few coming out of Oregon and this wine included, I have become a huge fan.

The Orchards Pinot Gris I paired with a scallop dish over pasta and it was wonderful.

The wine was aged in 100% stainless steel for 4 months.  Aromas of bartlett pears, herbs and dancing minerality filled my glass.  The wine was nicely balanced with hints of citrus and green apple with crisp and fresh minerality.

The vineyard this wine comes from happens to be planted on the site of a historic apple and pear orchard dating way back.  As you can see the soil must still hold the past as it shows in the wine.

Looking at my notes as I write this post two words described this wine... "Love It." SRP 18

The 2013 Cali's Cuvee Pinot Noir did not disappoint. (Sorry I forgot to take a personal photo of it. Got to carried away with the Pinot Gris)

This Pinot Noir was fermented in 5-ton open top stainless steel tanks then aged in 10% new French oak with the balance in 2,3 &4 year French Oak barrels for 8 months.  This wine was named after their left handed daughter Cali who has a passion for landscape design.

I immediately smelled aromas of clove coming from my glass.  As the wine opened up plum and cherry aromas became apparent.  The wine had a nice garnet red color.  On the plate flavors of red berry raspberry and cranberry burst in your mouth.  Towards the end of the taste it finishes with hints of clove.  SRP $24

If you see a selection from Left Coast Cellars in your wine shop, you can't go wrong.