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Evesham Wood, Pinot Noir, Mahonia Vineyard

Oregon, United States 2015 (750mL)
$36.00
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Evesham Wood, Pinot Noir, Mahonia Vineyard

Today’s special micro-bottling from Evesham is the genuine article, a powerful persuasion piece for those who have long been embroiled in the Oregon vs. Burgundy argument. So let me insert my two cents: The only time and place I wouldn’t want to drink Evesham Wood’s 2015 “Mahonia Vineyard” is seven years ago during my Master Sommelier exam because, in all likelihood, I would’ve called it a polished Chambolle-Musigny.
Of course, when you have a winemaking superstar working with one of Willamette Valley’s first sustainably farmed vineyards and finessing the beautiful complexities of Pinot Noir in the cellar, there’s a reason it feels so Burgundian. Unfortunately, the tiny amount that Evesham Wood bottles from the “Mahonia Vineyard” makes a small-production wine feel insecure: Only 174 cases were produced for the world when this was released in the fall of 2017 and today’s parcel (which has never left the cellar) represents the very last of it. There’s a reason Evesham leads the pack in Oregon and is constantly touted as a Pinot Noir value leader around our already Pinot-heavy site—your dollar simply cannot stretch any further. Enjoy what you can, while you still can. This is a luxury. 
Winemaker Erin Nuccio’s story is a romantic one: East Coast retail wine guy starts to feel the pull towards actual vineyards and winemaking, wanting to put his passion into practice. He and his wife make their way out west, where he attends viticulture/enology school and working at vineyards in California. Then he scores an apprenticeship in Oregon’s Willamette Valley under Russ Raney, whose Evesham Wood property, first planted in 1986, is a model of sustainability and small-scale perfectionism (it was Certified Organic in 2000). Over the years, Nuccio becomes winemaker at Evesham Wood while also launching a brand called Haden Fig and in 2010 Nuccio and his wife, Jordan, purchase Evesham Wood. In addition to bottling wines from Evesham Wood’s jewel-box estate vineyard, “Le Puits Sec” (“The Dry Well”), Nuccio continues the Raney tradition of crafting single-vineyard bottlings from Willamette Valley that share a philosophy of sustainability. They are always among the finest domestic Pinot Noir values we find each year. 

The Mahonia Vineyard is an 11-acre site first planted in 1985, with volcanic soils known locally as “Jory” and an elevation of about 450 feet. The vineyard is located just south of Salem and therefore falls outside the southern boundary of the Eola-Amity Hills AVA, but it is nevertheless positioned in of the Van Duzer corridor, a break in Oregon’s coastal range (and a well-traveled tourist route) that funnels Pacific air inland. This cooling influence, combined with the well-drained, mineral-rich soils, is a key factor in producing Pinot Noir grapes that are ripe yet balanced with bracing acidity. Also of note: the Mahonia Vineyard is named for an evergreen shrub native to the Pacific Northwest called Mahonia Aquifolium, whose small, blue berries look like grapes, and yes, there is definitely a berries-just-off-the-bush brightness to this wine.

Because of their dedication to sustainability, classic winemaking, and small-production wines, nearly everything is done by hand: vines are hand-farmed, grape are hand-harvested, and the juice is manually “punched down” (pushing the cap of skins into the juice during fermentation). The wine aged 20 months in barrels (15% new) and was released to the public in August of 2017, excluding our batch, which has remained in Evesham’s possession since that date. Erin notes that Mahonia is showing the most forwardness right now, which is why it’s supple fruit and seductive perfume led me into thinking Chambolle-Musigny. The nose displays lots of fresh rose petals, plump red plums, strawberry pie, black cherry, loose tea leaves, forest underbrush, wild herbs, orange peel, crushed minerals, and a touch of baking spice. Inviting, lush, and perfectly savory, the palate reveals that it’s a beautiful food wine that’s ready to drink around 60 degrees in Burgundy stems. Don’t mistake it’s openness for a lack of cellar-worthy appeal, though—this will continue evolving over the next 5-10 years! 
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Country
United States
Region
Oregon
Sub-Region
United StatesWillamette Valley / Mahonia Vineyard
Soil
Jory
Farming
Organic
Blend
Pinot Noir 100%
Alcohol
13.0
OAK
Mostly Used French Barrels
TEMP.
60
Glassware
Large Burgundy Stem
Drinking
Now-2025+
Decanting
30 Minutes
Pairing
Duck Breast

United States

Washington

Columbia Valley

Like many Washington wines, the “Columbia Valley” indication only tells part of the story: Columbia Valley covers a huge swath of Central
Washington, within which are a wide array of smaller AVAs (appellations).

Oregon

Willamette Valley

Oregon’s Willamette Valley has become an elite winegrowing zone in record time. Pioneering vintner David Lett, of The Eyrie Vineyard, planted the first Pinot Noir in the region in 1965, soon to be followed by a cadre of forward-thinking growers who (correctly) saw their wines as America’s answer to French
Burgundies. Today, the Willamette
Valley is indeed compared favorably to Burgundy, Pinot Noir’s spiritual home. And while Pinot Noir accounts for 64% of Oregon’s vineyard plantings, there are cool-climate whites that must not be missed.

California

Santa Barbara

Among the unique features of Santa Barbara County appellations like Ballard Canyon (a sub-zone of the Santa Ynez Valley AVA), is that it has a cool, Pacific-influenced climate juxtaposed with the intense luminosity of a southerly
latitude (the 34th parallel). Ballard Canyon has a more north-south orientation compared to most Santa Barbara AVAs, with soils of sandy
clay/loam and limestone.

California

Paso Robles

Situated at an elevation of 1,600 feet, it is rooted in soils of sandy loam and falls within the Highlands District of the Paso Robles AVA.

New York

North Fork

Wine growers and producers on Long Island’s North Fork have traditionally compared their terroir to that of Bordeaux and have focused on French varieties such as Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

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