Unique blends, alternative varieties, and minimal intervention Pinot Noir

All grapes are grown without systemic herbicides or irrigation. All wines are fermented with native yeasts, and I never use new oak.

2018 "Cascadia"

Willamette Valley AVA   •   $20

This cofermented, foot-stomped, minimal-intervention blend of 88% Pinot noir, 8% Grüner veltliner, 3% Gamay, and 1% Syrah – all sourced from the Willamette Valley – is named for our “Cascadia” volcanic province. I farmed most of the Pinot (including a 30 year old block of own-rooted Pommard clone) and used 50% whole cluster fermentation for vibrancy, spice, and structure. 

Give it a light chill to make its brilliant fruit and aromatics even more effusive. The nose shows roses, steak tartare, and boysenberry. It’s both lean and silky on the palate, and finishes with a note of orange zest. It's great with salmon, but the pairing opportunities are endless.

13.2% alc •   5.2 g/L TA   •   3.70 pH   •   0 g/L RS (totally dry)

2018 Havlin vineyard Grüner Veltliner

Willamette Valley AVA   •   $22   

Whereas my other Grüner veltliner is crisp and fruit-driven, the Havlin Vineyard Grüner Veltliner, which is aged in 2/3 acacia barrel and 1/3 neutral oak barrel, is more texture-driven. It’s taut, focused, and mineral – drinking this is more like drinking rocks than fruit. And yet, thanks to its subtly creamy texture, the wine is not the least bit austere.

You'll find aromas of yellow plums, meadow flowers, Rainier cherry, and baking spices. On the palate, crisp acids frame fresh orchard fruit, zingy white pepper, and the aforementioned rocks. This beautifully balanced wine finishes with a saline undertow, and additional complexity should emerge over the next several years.

11.9% alc •   5.6 g/L TA   •   3.35 pH   •   0 g/L RS (totally dry)

2018 Acadia Vineyards Grüner Veltliner

Columbia Gorge AVA   •   $18   

Sited on the knife edge between desert and rainforest, and perched at 1300’ elevation above the Columbia River, Acadia is a windswept, dry farmed, certified organic vineyard planted in an ancient pyroclastic flow on the slopes of extinct Underwood Mountain. Cool climate varieties thrive thanks to the deep ashy loam soils and significant diurnal temperature swings.

So how does the wine taste? Imagine running through a meadow of spring flowers, leaping over a salt block, and diving into a bushel of luscious, ripe Comice pears. It’s bright and medium bodied, and equally at home with grilled meats as it is with summer salads.

Fermented in stainless steel, this is the one wine I make that is both fined and filtered.

12.2% alc •   6.8 g/L TA   •   3.22 pH   •   5.6 g/L RS (dry)

2017 Havlin Vineyard Syrah

Willamette Valley AVA   •   $28

Although the Van Duzer Corridor AVA in the Willamette Valley seems an unlikely spot for Syrah – it’s even cooler than the neighboring Eola-Amity Hills – the variety excels here, thanks to the shallow soils and Ironstone bedrock at Havlin Vineyard.

Decant this bright, young, acid-driven wine at least an hour before serving to allow the aromas to blossom and the tannins to integrate. You’ll then experience aromas of Aleppo pepper, cured meat, violets, and even garrigue. The palate is energetic and spicy, and yet also ethereal. The medium-long finish shows plum, black raspberry, red currant, and minerality.

As always, the wine was made without any funny business: a simple 20% whole cluster fermentation and 18 months in neutral French oak, with a modest touch of SO2 the sole enological addition.

12.9% alc •   6.1 g/L TA   •   3.64 pH

2017 EOLA-AMITY HILLS PINOT NOIR

Eola-Amity Hills AVA  •  $24

Even though 2017 saw an extraordinarily hot summer, you'd swear this garnet-hued Pinot was harvested from one of our cooler vintages. After all, it's just 12.4% alcohol, and the aromas suggest roses, grilled lamb, and red fruits such as raspberry and cranberry. It's lively and red-fruited on the palate, drinking beautifully now, and it has the right balance and proportions to gain complexity over the next 5+ years. 

10% whole cluster fermentation and aged for 10 months in neutral French oak, it's unfined, unfiltered, and untouched by enological additions beyond a modest touch of SO2.

12.4% alc   •   6.1 g/L TA   •   3.65 pH

2016 Havlin vineyard Pinot Noir

Willamette Valley AVA   •   $28

Spicy. That's the first thing I think when I stick my nose into a glass of the 2016 Havlin Vineyard Pinot Noir. And not the kind of spice that comes from a barrel, but exotic cardamom spice, which is the signature of the "north field" block at Havlin Vineyard. The terroir signature is strong, and it's present in all the grapes I purchase from this site. 

There's more going on than just spice, though. With its lovely red fruit, fresh herb characteristics, and structuring tannins, the Havlin pinot drinks well now and indications point to a terrific future. 10% whole cluster fermentation, aged for 10 months in used French oak barrels. Racked once, unfined and unfiltered, no additions other than minimally effective sulfites..

13.3% alc   •   6.0 g/L TA   •   3.67 pH

Previous Vintages

The below wines are generally no longer available for purchase. Some of the below wines have been set aside for special events or for future release as library selections.

2017

• 2018 For Heaven's Sake, Don't Move Here (orange wine)

2017

• 2017 For Heaven's Sake, Don't Move Here (orange wine)

• 2017 Acadia Vineyards Grüner Veltliner

• 2017 Cascadia

2016

• 2016 For Heaven's Sake, Don't Move Here

• 2016 Eola-Amity Hills Pinot Noir

• 2016 Havlin Vineyard Syrah

• 2016 Havlin Vineyard Grüner Veltliner

• 2016 Cascadia

2015

• 2015 Havlin Vineyard Grüner Veltliner

• 2015 Havlin Vineyard Pinot Noir

• 2015 Eola-Amity Hills Pinot Noir

2014

• 2014 Havlin Vineyard Syrah

• 2014 Havlin Vineyard Pinot Noir

• 2014 Eola-Amity Hills Pinot Noir

• 2014 Zena Springs Vineyard Pinot Noir

• 2014 Zenith Vineyard Pinot Noir

• 2014 Havlin Vineyard Grüner Veltliner

2013

• 2013 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

• 2013 Willamette Valley Grüner Veltliner

• 2013 Havlin Vineyard Syrah