Tony Soter has dedicated his life to crafting wines of distinction. And while his lengthy resume includes consulting for Napa Cabernet kings like Araujo, Dalla Valle, and Spottswoode, Tony’s true love is Pinot Noir from his native Oregon. He and his wife, Michelle, have created a biodynamic wonderland in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA, but today’s “North Valley Reserve” Pinot Noir reaches beyond their estate’s boundaries to celebrate the broader Willamette Valley and its inimitable terroir.
In addition to sourcing impeccable fruit from their “home” AVA in Yamhill-Carton, the Soters widened their lens to include vineyard sources in Ribbon Ridge, Eola-Amity Hills, and Dundee Hills. Each vineyard is chosen for its “cru” quality fruit, and farmed sustainably to their exacting standards. The result is an exceptionally sophisticated expression of the Willamette Valley, a wine in direct conversation with Pinots from Morey Saint-Denis and Chambolle-Musigny: This 2016 is playful, open-knit, and redolent of crushed cherries and that wonderful wet-garden earthiness I’ve come to expect from the Wilamette’s finest. This is pound-for-pound one of the greatest-value Pinots I’ve enjoyed in recent memory—it’s a benchmark Willamette Valley bottling that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the greats of Burgundy.
Tony and Michelle’s Mineral Springs Ranch, a 240-acre biodynamic farm founded on their mutual reverence for the environment, is home to their winery operations. The natural beauty of the Ranch asks you to stop and appreciate the magnitude of what they’ve created. Every tiny detail is geared towards holistic farming: Sheep and goats “mow” between the vine rows, while hawk boxes stud the horizon and provide organic pest control. The Soters even did a series of solar radiation studies before choosing the orientation for their rows of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The entire operation is dedicated to carbon neutrality, and the air hums with pollinators and birds. While the Soter Vineyards wines originate from this home property, their North Valley Wines have broader origins. Associate winemaker James Cahill is in charge of grower relations, and can be found working in those source vineyards anywhere from flowering until harvest. It’s an intimate and friendly group of growers, each dedicated to the same purity of fruit and environmental activism that has guided Tony and James’ work.
Each source vineyard represents an important puzzle piece in the gorgeous jigsaw of this Reserve Pinot Noir. This wine encapsulates a diverse set of clones, soil types, and microclimates. For example, the Yamhill-Carlton fruit is grown in ancient marine sediment layered over fractured sandstone—some of the Willamette’s oldest soils. Fruit from Yamhill is generally bolder, spicier, more mineral and savory because of nutrient-deficient soils. Meanwhile, grapes grown in Dundee Hills’ volcanic Jory-based soils tend to be softer and fleshier, with more lifted red fruit notes and natural sweetness. This careful blending of structures is a key factor in creating an organic whole—ripeness balanced with great acidity, hedonistic fruit aromas with fine tannic structure. Each separate lot is fermented in a small, open-topped tank, with a small percentage of whole-cluster inclusion for additional structure. The wine is matured in 40% new French oak for toastiness and richness without adding too much flavor to an already very expressive wine. The North Valley Reserve feels like a harmonious quartet as a result. Each component on its own is beautiful, but combining them creates an entirely new resonance and epitomizes Oregon terroir.
The wine is clear, deep red in the glass. That high-toned Pinot Noir perfume rises in a heady bouquet of cherry blossoms, forest strawberries, and warm vanilla pudding. There’s a touch of fresh fennel on the nose which brings an additional herbaceous lift. The palate is a careful balance between perfectly ripe morello cherries, hibiscus flowers, and cooler, earthier notes reminiscent of freshly tilled earth. Velvety, supple tannins and fresh acidity make for a smooth, light body with the tiniest hint of grip. 2016 was a warmer growing season, which amplifies the glossy red fruit in this wine without eclipsing the savoriness and mineral verve indigenous to the Willamette. This will continue to evolve over the next five years, but it’s open-knit and charming right now after a 30 minute decant. Serve this in Burgundy stems around 60-65 degrees. The fruit and freshness on this Pinot Noir takes my mind right to a more delicate, gamey meat like quail. Try the attached recipe for skewers of quail with pomegranate molasses—the fruit, earth, and herb notes of this dish will compliment the wine perfectly. Enjoy!
