2021 Antoinette WV Pinot 1.5-L Magnum
Levitation: The promise to float
A Story: Antoinette was the name of our grandmother and is, in our view, synonymous with elegance.
The Cliff Notes: Red ruby is the color that shows up in glass. Watermelon, cherry and oiled wood aromatics abound. The attack is cherry-pomegranate, linear and elegant. What follows in mouth is light-on-its-feet sweet cherry, tangerine, cardamom, with warmer clove and orange accents. The seamless combination of acid and tannin suggest elegance, and that’s really the watchword of this wine.
The Building of: Seven best barrels selected, wild-yeast fermentations in wood and stainless steel, 100% barrel aged for 13 months: one new, one once-filled, five neutral. Bottled unfined and unfiltered in December 2022.
Ageability: We absolutely recommend that you consider decanting to get it some air within its first three years. This wine should easily climb in complexity beyond ten years.
Vineyards: Temperance Hill’s (41-year-old) later and cooler high-elevation vines, at the top of the Eola–Amity Hills AVA, deliver old-vine complexity with fresh acidity. These own-rooted vines are from the Front Block, the oldest at Temperance, and their massive root systems go deep to deliver high flavor and nuance to the limited yield.
— Jim Prosser, owner/winemaker
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Vintage | 2021 |
Varietal | Pinot Noir |
Appellation | Willamette Valley/Eola-Amity Hills |
Vineyard | Temperance Hill Vineyard |
PH | 3.50 |
Alcohol | 12.50% |
Volume | 1500 ml |
Cases Produced | 169 |
Country of Origin | UNITED STATES |
State of Origin | Oregon |
94 points
Bright violet. Expressive, finely detailed raspberry, boysenberry, blood orange and exotic spice aromas take on succulent herb and mineral flourishes as the wine opens up. Deftly blends weight and vivacity, offering juicy red and blue fruit preserve, star anise, candied lavender and cola flavors that steadily firm up through the back half.
— Josh Raynolds, Vinous, 2.10.2022