We’ve been asked to bring wine for Thanksgiving dinner. This is intimidating for most of us. Since there will be some wine professionals in attendance there is the chance for things to get a little judgey.
Last year, as a sacrifice for you dear readers, we ate a bunch of turkey and drank a bunch of wine to find the best pairings. Our conclusion was a list of Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs. But if that is not your style of wine, don’t despair! We found other choices we liked. Click here for the article.
We are branching out this year – all the way to the Columbia Gorge AVA in beautiful Hood River, Oregon. Our lucky hosts will get to share Phelps Creek Vineyards 2010 Cuvee Alexandrine Pinot Noir. This bottle tastes as good as the vineyard view looks. And this is the vineyard view!
The Pinor Noir is the namesake of winemaker Alexandrine Roy who brings her experience as a fourth generation winemaker from Burgundy. Alexandrine hand selects the Pinot Noir grapes from the Phelps Creek estate vineyards, throws in some serious French wine making techniques, and ages the wine in French oak. The result is a lovely and complex expression of the excellent fruit. Each sip tastes like she picked those grapes with us in mind. More of Alexandrine’s story can be found in this article by the Oregon Wine Press.
Phelps is a family run boutique winery producing 5000 cases per year. Click here for ordering information. We realize not everyone will be able to pick up this specific wine. There are many lovely Oregon Pinot Noirs that are widely distributed. Bottles from larger wineries – Panther Creek, Erath, Eola, Adelsheim, Ponzi, etc are a great bet and easy to find. Some larger wineries have different tiers of Pinot Noir and the “reserve” or “estate” wines typically have more complex flavors.
If you do not follow us on facebook you are missing out. We have been sharing photos of turkey worthy wines this past week. Also for an overview of recent vintages check out this summary from Pinotfile. If you like fuller bodied, fruitier wines then choose a warmer vintage.
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