Wine

McKinlay Pinot Noir, Special Selection, Willamette Valley 2005

$33.00

There's nobody like McKinlay's winemaker Matt Kinne. Defiantly reclusive and Burgundian, he makes to my taste not only the best Pinot Noir in Oregon but also the most age-worthy; a bottle of his 1988 Willamette Valley early in 2007 was not just still alive, but probably at its peak. So imagine what his Special Selection -- his top bottling -- in a great vintage like 2005 can do. Just now starting to show its stuff, the elegant, perfectly integrated flavors of red berries, black truffle and dusty rose will only gain in depth and nuance. Reminiscent of the best Chambolle-Musigny in its equal emphasis on earth and fruit, but distinctly Oregonian in the type of earth and fruit it possesses. The Oregon Pinot to beat in 2005.

McKinlay Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, 2006

$18.00

Year in, year out, the best deal in Oregon Pinot Noir, and this vintage is one of the best McKinlay Willamette Valleys in memory. The giveaway McKinlay wild cherry and dusty rose flavors are back again, bigger and more concentrated than usual but somehow not the least bit cloying or out of balance. Some fairly chewy tannin starts to claw its way out of the medium-full body on the long, subtly spiced finish, making for very pleasant drinking now with a little decanting, but as usual at least two years of cellaring will be richly rewarded. There are more than a few top cuvées from other, better-known Oregon producers that aren't as good as this entry-level wine from McKinlay. A great house wine, worthy of multiple case buys.

Owen Roe Pinot Noir, "The Kilmore", Willamette Valley, 2006

$42.00

David O'Reilly's big, show-stopper Pinot is a little different this vintage. Still very full-bodied and overflowing with dark cherry fruit in the Owen Roe house style, but they seem to have pulled back on the oak this year. Aside from making for a better balanced wine, the absence of oak leaves room for some lusty dark floral aromas that further entice you to keep coming back for more. Make no mistake, this is still Owen Roe, and there's barrel toast and oak spice and fruit and some more fruit and even a little more fruit in there somewhere, but this is a step up for The Kilmore.

Sineann Pinot Noir, Resonance Reserve, Willamette Valley 2006

$72.00

After years of being the source of some of the most sought after fruit in Oregon, all of Resonance's fruit now goes to Sineann. Justifiably so since Sineann's Peter Rosback has consistently made the biggest, lushest, longest-lived wines from the vineyard. To commemorate his new "monopole" he's rolling out his first ever Reserve wine, and it's a true Reserve, made in tiny quantities (under 80 cases) and most of it is being held at the winery. Like most Sineann wines, this is dripping with textbook Oregon Pinot flavors of cherry and tasteful French oak and thus approachable right now, but it's heavy-bodied and tightly-wound enough to keep developing for years.