St. Innocent thread

jal · Post by **jal** » Mon Oct 12, 2020 11:53 pm

2016 St Innocent Justice Pinot Noir complements perfectly a sous vide Texas style smoked brisket. Fresh and vibrant with a very focused core of fruit, good structure and finish, not very complex but really nice.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Tue Oct 13, 2020 12:14 am

It will get complex in time, Jacques, but I also love it as it is now.

With chicken thighs tonight we drank 2014 Ken Wright McCrone PN. Pure, balanced, and fruity, but not at the level of the Justice you drank. It will deepen in time.

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 1:32 am

I am generally bullish on 13 OR PN and time is their friend for now.

A warm vintage early on, then massive rainfall in late September that would not end. Some picked before the rain and risked under ripe fruit, while others waited out the rain or picked in the rain, or a combination. IIRC Mark V picked during and after the rains. Good 13's have plenty of acidity on a leaner frame, not unlike 11 in some ways. Still improving.

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 1:42 am

I went long on 08 Le Cadeau PN. The Rocheux block is incredibly rocky with volcanic basalt up on Parret Mountain.

I tasted there with owner Tom Mortimer and admired his diversification of blocks, clones, rootstocks and even separate winemakers for each block!

This wine was a stunner. A very generous and complex nose. Ripe strawberry, roses and red fruits, medium plus body like great PN does best, plentiful acidity, mineral accent. Long and driving finish.

A top 10 Oregon Pinot Noir experience. Fantastic.

JimHow · Post by **JimHow** » Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:02 am

Got my mixed case of St. Innocent today, I'm excited but I definitely want to give them at least a blanquito or two.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Oct 25, 2020 2:23 pm

At an outdoor concert we drank another 2016 SI Zenith to go with turkey pate and brie. Lucie and I love this bright and light Pinot Noir. It is maybe my favorite Zenith. After arriving back home I popped the cork on a 2016 SI Temperance Hill. This is also an excellent PN, but very different from the Zenith. The TH is full of basalt and has some dust.

I am a big fan of the SI 2016 PNs. There are vintages that have more concentration and depth, but IMO the characteristics of the individual vineyards come out more strongly in 2016 than in any other vintage. It would be fun to taste all 2016 SIs at the same time, maybe with the first pass knowing what you are drinking and blind in the second pass to see if you can tell which vineyard you are tasting.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Sun Oct 25, 2020 3:22 pm

My five bottles of the 1999 SI Shea arrive next week!

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Mon Oct 26, 2020 4:25 pm

Last night we drank 2016 Domaine Drouhin Laurene with grilled quail. This is a Domaine wine from the Dundee Hills and is fairly pricey. The 2016 is approachable now but really should be aged for 7-10 years, I think. Right now it shows balance and class, but is not as fun to drink as any of the SI single vineyard PNs.

JCNorthway · Post by **JCNorthway** » Mon Oct 26, 2020 10:29 pm

Thanks, Stefan, for the comments about the 2016 Zenith and Temperance Hill wines. I have 6 bottles of each arriving this week.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Mon Oct 26, 2020 11:21 pm

Let us know what you and Paula think about them, Jon.

Tonight we will recalibrate with a 1997 Jadot Clos des Ursules.

JCNorthway · Post by **JCNorthway** » Fri Oct 30, 2020 7:32 pm

Stefan, or others, do you think Domaine Drouhin's regular Pinot is a buy at around $35?

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Oct 30, 2020 9:26 pm

What is Domaine Drouhin's "regular Pinot", Jon? If you mean the Dundee Hills, it is a great price. With my discount as a top tier wine club member I paid $36 a year ago for the 2017.

JCNorthway · Post by **JCNorthway** » Fri Oct 30, 2020 9:54 pm

I think it is the Dundee Hills.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Nov 01, 2020 3:47 pm

With chicken thighs and mustard greens we drank 2016 Longplay Lia's Vineyard Pinot Noir. I think Longplay sells only direct. The Lia tastes of strawberries and red raspberries. This pure Chehalem Mountains PN is easy on the wallet, too.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Thu Nov 05, 2020 2:10 am

The 2015 SI Zenith that we drank last night and finished tonight is another winner. It has the purity of the 2016 and perhaps more concentration and less brightness. At dinner (scalloped potatoes and pork) today we continued with 2015 Domaine Drouhin Dundee Hills PN. The fruit is darker and the nose has a touch of asphalt. I think Lucie liked this even more than the Zenith. The two wines are very different. I guess that the Drouhin will be better than the Zenith in ten years, not that I expect to have more than one bottle left by then.

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Thu Nov 05, 2020 4:12 am

I am ready to bite on the 16 SI Holiday Pack. PB, Zenith and Shea.

William P · Post by **William P** » Fri Nov 20, 2020 5:38 pm

Sometime today I should get my bi-annual St. Innocent Wine Club shipment. Six bottles - 2017 Shea, Momtazi, Justice (2), 2016 Justice (2)

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Nov 20, 2020 6:55 pm

Last night with shrimp marinara we drank a bottle that had gotten lost--2013 SI Pinot Gris. I was afraid it would be too old, but in fact it tasted very fresh and I liked it better than I did when it was young because it was less sharp on the tongue.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Thu Nov 26, 2020 4:10 pm

Last night with baked chicken thighs and turnip mashed potatoes we drank 2014 SI Temperance Hill. At one time I did not like TH very much and bought little of it. I don't know if it has changed or I just appreciate the basalt in the wine more. The 2016 is more expressive than the 2014 at this point, but the 2014 will probably mature into a more complex wine.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sat Nov 28, 2020 1:31 am

With Thanksgiving leftovers we drank 2011 Evening Land OR PN. It is better than I expected and better than I remember. It is pretty basic and, like all 2011 OR PN, has less fruit than usual, but the balance is OK and the tannins are resolved. Still, that there is almost half a bottle left says a lot.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Dec 13, 2020 3:12 pm

2018 Goodfellow Durant Vineyard Chardonnay with shrimp scampi. I received a few mixed cases of Goodfellow wines this month and we have enjoyed drinking several of Marcus' Chardonnays. The Durant should age well. It saw 20 months in French oak (untoasted, I think), and Lucie thought the oak was prominent now, but I did not. With a couple of hours of air the bouquet becomes quite nice with a hint of jasmin. The taste is consistent and one dimensional and the flavor holds. So far I like the Goodfellow Chardonnays more than those from St. Innocent. Eventually I hope to understand the vineyard characteristics of the Goodfellow Chardonnays from different locations, but for the time being I am just enjoying trying the wines.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Dec 18, 2020 2:32 am

Tonight's SI wine showed me how bad I am at judging young Oregon PN. I'll repeat what I have written earlier about 2013 SI PN. stefanJr drank some on release, liked them, and I bought a lot. A month later we drank several over Thanksgiving and none of us were impressed. stefanJr said they had changed in that short time. In the years since we have drunk some from time to time. They were at best OK. However, in the past year they have come around. Zenith, which traditionally matures the earliest, is really nice now. It has that usual Zenith lightness but without hollowness in the mid palate. The earlier wateriness is gone and the flavors last. It does not have the depth of Shea or Justice, of course, but it is a lovely wine that is much, much better than my projections. It was great with pork loin, onions, and leeks.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Dec 25, 2020 7:49 pm

I was too hungry to wait for my sister and husband to get back from their walk and Lucie to finish dressing, so I poured myself a glass of 2016 St Innocent Temperance Hill PN to go with a ham and cheddar sandwich. I have drunk several bottles of this wine in 2020, and like the volcanic earthy mineraliness (new word) of the wine. However, this bottle, from the same case, tastes different. The volcanic soil does not show itself and there is some green pepper in the nose and mouth! I do not remember every tasting green pepper in a Pinot Noir. The wine itself is still quite good with no obvious flaws, but strange.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Jan 15, 2021 1:50 am

This past week we drank two 1998 St Innocent PN wines; 7 Springs and O'Connor vineyard. The 7 Springs was pruny and, I think, defective. It suggests storage at room temperature for an extended period. But I assume it came from the same cellar as the O'Connor, which tastes of fresh plums rather than dried ones. The balance is just right. The O'Connor provides wonderful company for Lucie's delicious ragout of mushrooms over polenta.

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Fri Jan 15, 2021 2:15 am

O'Connor is now Zenith. Too bad about the 7 Springs.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Jan 15, 2021 2:17 am

I have two more of each, Glenn, so not a problem if it was just a bad bottle.

I think you meant that O'Connor is now incorporated into Zenith, yes?

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Fri Jan 15, 2021 2:41 am

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:56 am

With chicken cutlets & polenta, and while listening to Per Enflo performing Mozart's 17th piano concerto on Spotify, we drank

2002 Beaux Frères Belles Soeur's Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir. While a good wine, this Shea is not in the style we prefer. It has too little acid, is too sweet, and lacks the complexity we expect from a mature Shea. For me it comes up short in comparison with any 2002 from St Innocent. The black raspberry fruit morphs into prunes in the glass. this wine might be useful to transition a lover of CA PN to the far superior OR PN.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Sun Jan 17, 2021 3:02 am

99 SI Shea. Didn’t show too well on day 1, but very good on day 2 with lots of richness. The bouquet is almost claret-like, quite earthy. Has a brown rim and is fully mature, but seems to be holding well. Very nice.

Claret · Post by **Claret** » Sun Jan 17, 2021 3:42 pm

It is time for me to dig out an 02 SI Shea.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Jan 24, 2021 5:05 am

Maybe I spoke too soon about the 2013 SI Zenith. The bottle I drank last night was thin and too acidic, although it was not hollow in the mid palate and the flavor was typical for Zenith. I think this bottle was stored at a cooler temperature than the previous one, so maybe it just needed another year to come around. The two bottles came from the same case.

Tonight I drank 2014 SI Temperance Hill, which is a beautiful example of TH with volcanic earthiness and, thankfully, without the green pepper that invaded the bottle of 2016 that I drank last month.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sun Feb 14, 2021 10:17 pm

Last night we drank 2016 Goodfellow Durant Vineyard Pinot Noir Heritage #8. This nice OR PN is not fully developed but does show its volcanic soil and excellent structure. In the St Innocent line up, the closest comparison would be to Temperance Hill, but the 2016 SI TH is more developed than this Goodfellow Heritage.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Mon Feb 15, 2021 10:23 pm

For the second day in a row we will drink two bottles of wine. Lucie decided not to abstain during the "winter apocalypse", as our daughter calls it. With our first course of turkey vegetable soup in front of the fire place we drank

2017 SI Momtazi. Purer Pinot than usual for Momtazi, but I imagine the dustiness will develop in time. Great balance and tasty red fruit. Lucie was particularly impressed with this wine. I think it is time for me finally to order our 2017 SI.

JimHow · Post by **JimHow** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 9:23 pm

Jesus, Bill, I hope you guys are doing alright there in Texas. These power outages due to cold and ice are very dangerous, especially for elderly. We had a hell of an ice storm back in ‘98, power out for as much as two weeks in the middle of winter, very dangerous.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 9:34 pm

Our outages have been from 15 minutes to just under one hour. We have a gas fireplace that helps us keep warm during extended outages and will protect us if the outages get much worse. Our outdoor kitchen does not require electricity, so we have used it for some things. Two bottles of wine a day help. There are swimming pool problems that I hope are not very serious. But we are in no danger.

JimHow · Post by **JimHow** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 9:39 pm

That’s good, hope the swimming pool is okay.

JCNorthway · Post by **JCNorthway** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 10:17 pm

Glad to hear you are hanging in there, Bill. The reports of that storm and its impact sound scary. Here in Michigan, we had a paltry 6 inches of snow last night with temps in the teens. Going to -5 tonight, though.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Wed Feb 17, 2021 2:51 pm

The advice given is not to turn on your furnace for 20 minutes when you are rolled back on in order to reduce the surge. I am sure that wold help as the power stays on for 15 to 20 minutes before you are rolled back off

DavidG · Post by **DavidG** » Fri Feb 19, 2021 4:12 pm

Stay warm and safe Bill. Peggy's sister and cousins are dealing with more prolonged outages. Gas fireplaces and wood-burning stoves seem to be helping a lot.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Sat Feb 20, 2021 1:42 am

We have had power since 11 PM Wednesday. We expect a plumber on Sunday to fix the one leak we know about.

Tonight with a wonderful Greek shrimp & feta with tomatoes dish we drank 2018 Goodfellow Berserker Cuvee Whistling Ridge Chardonnay. It tasted even better than the last bottle and seems to have put on some weight. Maybe I should have bought more than one case.