St Innocent Pinot Noir Freedom Hill Vineyard 2019, Willamette Valley, Oregon

Freedom Hill Vineyard is located in the foothills of the coast range, 10 miles southwest of Salem, Oregon. The site is protected from strong coastal winds by hills to the west. It has a southeast exposure at an elevation of 450-500′ and benefits from heat rising off the valley floor. The wine comes from a block at the north edge of the vineyard planted in 2004 with Pommard and Wadenswil clones on well-drained, silty clay loam. Production notes: The de-stemmed grapes were fermented in 4-8 ton stainless steel fermenters with no SO2, allowing the fermentations to proceed naturally. After gentle pressing and settling, the wine aged in French oak barrels, 24% of which were new, for 16 months before bottling by gravity without fining. Tasting notes: The 2019 Freedom Hill is deep ruby-red color. It has a very spice driven nose with dark cherry, plum, and white pepper. The mouth is an explosion of dark fruits, punctuated by bright acidity followed by sweet, savory spices, smoky oak and rich fruit tannins. This is a big wine that will enjoy some time in the glass and hearty dishes. It should also age beautifully.