2015 Evening Land Anden Seven Springs Estate Eola-Amity Hills Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

12.5% alc., $100. For a brief period, following the divorce of Seven Springs Estate founders Al MacDonald and Joni Weatherspoon, the Seven Springs Vineyard was cleaved in two. Joni retained the vineyard’s upper half and the name Seven Springs, while Al christened the lower portion ‘Anden,’ a linkage of their children’s names Andrew and Kristen. The lower half of the vineyard is home to the Seven Springs’ original plantings of Pommard and Wädenswil on their own roots dating to 1984. Anden Pinot Noir celebrates the oldest corner of the Seven Springs vineyard as it slowly succumbs to phylloxera. 100% whole cluster, aged in 100% new Ermitage oak barrels and bottled without filtration. · Light ruby red color in the glass. Intoxicating aromas of cherry, mulch, burnt tobacco and spice. Light to mid weight in concentration, with a generous charge of dark red cherry fruit. Hints of tobacco, earth, toast and vegetation add interest. Elegantly composed and silky in the mouth, with imperceptible tannins and an extremely long finish reflecting the pedigree of the vines. This wine won’t bowl you over with sap, but it will seduce you with nuance. As the winery announcement said, “A subdued and timeless interpretation of Pinot Noir ….and a celebration of the finite time these vines have left.” Score: 96. Reviewed May 10, 2018

Winery: Evening Land Vineyards
From article: Willamette Valley Pinot Noir