The Other Wines in the House - St. Innocent Pinot Noir

This was a mid week grab a Pinot choice and had I put some thought into it, I would have decanted it, but it was weekday wine time and no time for decanting.


This St. Innocent (just like me:) Willamette Valley 2008 White Rose Pinot Noir might have been a tad to rich for the Wild Alaskan King Salmon we cooked, but never the less it was might tasty.  Yes both the salmon and Pinot Noir.


A little history about the wine. White Rose Vineyard is located on a southeast-facing slope in the Dundee Hills AVA of Yamhill County. The vineyard was planted in 1980 at an elevation of 820' on deep Jory soil. 



The grapes were fermented in a small tank after two days of cold maceration. The wine aged for 16 months in 45% new French oak barrels and was bottled by gravity without fining or filtration.  The grapes were harvested on October 19, 2008 and the wine was bottled February 2010.  This wine will be good for another 10 years or so.  There were 267 cases of this wine produced.  I feels special to have one of them.



At first the Pinot had an earthy nose that gave way to red raspberry and oak.  As the wine begins to open the earthiness subsides a bit.  The palate is filled with red berry fruit.  At first there is a slight tart mid palate, but that diminishes as the wine begins to open and it softens up.  Towards the finish there are hints of vanilla with a short finish.