2016 Pinot Noir, Mount Richmond Vineyard MAGNUM

From Winemaker, John Abbott:

The 2016 vintage in the Willamette Valley was one of the earliest to begin and one of the shortest on record. It had a very warm spring, which led to an early bud break. Then an unseasonal hot spell condensed bloom, which allowed for more uniform flavor maturity. The hot periods in August led to the majority of the Pinot Noir from the entire valley being picked within the month of September. That warmth resulted in lower cluster weights and berry size, which contributed to the concentration and flavor.

Mt. Richmond Vineyard is one of Elk Cove’s estate vineyards overseen by Travis Watson, a very talented vineyard manager. We are fortunate to be one of the few wineries with access to fruit from their highly acclaimed estate Pinot Noir.

Our Mt. Richmond Pinot is generally a big, dense, tannic wine, and it can be a bit more tightly wound than the Freedom Hill. We have been working on balancing the structure and those tannins through our fermentation and aging practices in the winery. I do recommend cellaring this wine for at least four years, but if, like me, you can’t wait, then decant it or open it early and let it breath. The dark fruits and spice marry with the soft wood to make the extra step worth it. It is a beautiful mouthful of wine with deep, dark, sultry characters: think of plums, blackberries, walnuts, and lilacs.

I have had fun in the past pairing music with a bit more muscle but still polished in meaning and presentation. So staying in the same vein, Blue on Black by Five Finger Death Punch, Free by Mr. Big, and Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand by Primitive Radio Gods will pair nicely. Enjoy!