Description
Evesham Wood, “Le Puits Sec” Pinot Noir
We hold Evesham Wood’s extraordinary Pinot Noirs in such high regard because they are (1) profound case studies on Willamette Valley’s hallowed terroir and (2) powerful persuasion pieces for those who have long been embroiled in the Oregon vs. France argument. At the peak of Evesham’s stellar lineup is “Le Puits Sec,” a limited flagship cuvée that we believe exists as one of the world’s great Pinot values.
I’ve repeatedly stated that the only time and place I wouldn’t want to drink these special gems is during my Master Sommelier exam in 2012 because a Chambolle-Musigny call would’ve been a real possibility. Today’s 2018 release, however, is the epitome of textbook, best-in-class Willamette Pinot Noir, a category that never ceases to stun me. Coming from their dry-farmed, own-rooted, organic estate vineyard and aged for 18 months in fine French oak, “Le Puits Sec” is one of the smartest ways to spend your wine buck—especially if you’re a Burgundy aficionado. It is a wine of exceptional purity, terroir expression, and mesmerizing elegance that’s tantamount to the ludicrously priced legends of Côte de Nuits. It’ll age right alongside them, too.
This should come as no surprise to those of you who’ve enjoyed the many excellent wines we’ve offered from Evesham Wood. Erin Nuccio’s rapid rise through the wine ranks has been documented here: He started his career in wine at a retail shop in DC; moved west with his wife to attend enology school and apprentice at wineries; then landed a job with Evesham Wood founder Russ Raney, whose vineyard, first planted in 1986, serves as a model of sustainability—it’s been Certified Organic since 2000. Over the years, Nuccio became winemaker at Evesham Wood while also launching Haden Fig (another SommSelect favorite), and in 2010, Nuccio and his wife Jordan purchased Evesham Wood outright. In addition to bottling wines from Evesham Wood’s jewel-box estate vineyard, “Le Puits Sec” (“The Dry Well”), Nuccio continues the Raney tradition of crafting single-vineyard bottlings from sustainably farmed sites across the Willamette Valley.
Russ and Mary Raney first cultivated the treasured “Le Puits Sec” vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills back in 1986. The complex soils, rich in volcanic basalt, coupled with east-facing slopes of 300+-feet elevation, offer the perfect site for world-class Pinot Noir. Russ and Mary embraced organic viticulture early on along with minimal intervention. They do not irrigate their prized “old vines;” instead they dry farm in an effort to allow their vines to dig deep in the earth for nutrients, which further concentrates the fruit. With the passion and dedication of their predecessors to fuel them, Erin and Jordan strive to maintain a consistency of quality by allowing the vineyard to speak for itself.
After a manual harvest in late September of 2018, the fruit underwent a three-week cuvaison that consisted of a steady pump-over and punch-down regimen. The wine was then transferred into French barrels (15% new) for 18 months of undisturbed aging before an unfiltered bottling. The result is a complex and refined Pinot Noir that captures the charming allure of Burgundy. Although a cooler vintage, there is so much power and depth to this wine, so a minimum 30-minute decant is required if enjoying it in the near term. With time, the wine unwinds with gorgeous, high-toned notes of goji berry, wild raspberry, red cherry, spiced plum, pu-erh tea, damp earth, and soft oak spice. Lifted acidity hums across the medium-bodied, red-fruited palate and ultra-fine-grained tannins allow the wine to glide into a gloriously long finish. It’s a paragon of high-end Oregon Pinot and an indomitable alternative to the much-pricier Premier Crus of Côte de Nuits. Enjoy now and over the next 10 years.
