Description
Haden Fig, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
Pack it up, go home, there’s nothing left to see here: When it comes to value-per-dollar, Haden Fig’s 2018 Willamette Valley is the year’s best Pinot Noir value, and I say this knowing full well that we have some exceptional Pinots still to come in the waning days of 2020. But as far as I’m concerned, this affordable superstar exists in a class—no, a world—all its own. The reasoning couldn’t be simpler: top terroir, top producer, $25 price tag. Every time I taste a handcrafted creation from Erin Nuccio, and I’ve had too many to count, its shocking level of crunchy detail, intricate purity, and understated finesse never ceases to amaze me. His Pinot Noirs aren’t just the epitome of value—they’re a fundamental cornerstone to understanding, savoring, and deeply appreciating the hallowed Willamette Valley.
Truly, each new release from Nuccio further strengthens (1) the superiority of this increasingly legendary terroir and (2) our claim that these Pinots are impossible-to-beat values. Why so much buzz over this particular cuvée? Because all of his elite, sustainably farmed single vineyards—the ones you come to know and love like Croft, Björnson, and Cancilla—are masterfully blended together and aged for 16 months in French barrels, for $25. It’s a superb bottling that so vividly/perfectly embodies the enduring qualities of what has become one of my absolute favortie regions in the world of wine. Need more convincing? Keep reading, we’ve got you covered, but for the initiated, take all 12 available to you and they might make it through Christmas.
You may remember Nuccio’s story from previous offers: He got his start in wine at a retail store in Washington, D.C., then worked in distribution in Boston before following the siren call of the West Coast. He went to enology school in California while also working in vineyards, but he knew his ultimate destination would be Oregon’s Willamette Valley—a place that captured his attention since his first sips of Willamette Pinot back in D.C. He found work with Russ Raney at Oregon’s Evesham Wood (where he remains the winemaker) and simultaneously cultivated a network of vineyard sources with which to launch Haden Fig. In fact, Erin crafts and bottles today’s wine at Evesham Wood. Below, we’ve detailed a few of the all-star vineyard sources blended into today’s spectacular Willamette Valley Pinot Noir.
Cancilla Vineyard
In the 1990s, Ken Cancilla, a Washington D.C. native, moved across the country and settled just outside the northwest border of Yamhill-Carlton AVA. It was here that he purchased a sprawling, long-abandoned Christmas tree farm and slowly went to work supplanting trees with vines. Because Erin Nuccio assisted with some of the original plantings of Cancilla, Ken allows him to purchase some of this precious, Certified Organic fruit—but only from the vines Erin originally plant! The silty, clay loam soils here are categorized as “Melbourne,” part of the marine sedimentary series that served as the Pacific Ocean’s floor eons ago.
Croft Vineyard
A southeast-facing slope nestled in the eastern foothills of Oregon’s coast range near Salem, this special site is the most recent addition to the Haden Fig vineyard-designate lineup. Spanning 90 acres (with 65 in production) and farmed organically for 30 years, the site is not far from the “mouth” of the Van Duzer corridor, the break in the coast range that funnels cooling Pacific breezes into the valley. The soils are a classic Willamette mix of Belpine (sedimentary rock) with some Jory (volcanic basalt), lending the resulting wine a firm structural backbone to complement its bright, high-toned aromatics.
Björnson Vineyard
Located in the heart of Eola-Amity Hills and sustainably farmed by Pattie and Mark Björnson, this 28-acre parcel is within striking distance of world-famous Bethel Heights and Seven Springs. According to Nuccio, this special site produces the most generous, “fruit-forward” crop, which is almost amusing considering these bright, floral, Burgundy-like wines are in complete contrast with the horde of fruit-bomb Cali Pinots gunning for big scores. This site makes up the majority of the blend in 2018, which is probably why the wine is so incredibly addicting.
So, from these three special sites, plus Freedom Hill vineyard, a small crop was hand-harvested and shuttled to Nuccio’s winery. Here, the grapes underwent a native-yeast fermentation with twice-daily “punch downs.” After approximately three weeks, the newborn wine matured in French barrels, 10% new, for 16 months. It was bottled unfined and unfiltered. This 2018 Willamette Valley from Haden Fig is lights-out good from the first sniff to the last sip. Within moments of splashing into the glass, it releases high-toned notes of wild strawberry, raspberry, cranberry, rose petal, wet stone, Bing cherry, crushed earth, damp moss, loose tea, and judicious hints of oak spice. Warning: this disappears quickly. The palate is beautifully elegant with crunchy, savory textures that serve to broaden each sip. As the wine opens up in a decanter over 30-60 minutes, a vibrant core packed to the brim with forest fruit is further enhanced by a soft crushed-mineral component. It’s sublime, refreshing, savory, crunchy—a delicious case study into Erin Nuccio the winemaker and Willamette Valley the region. Enjoy now and over the next five years in your largest Burgundy stems. If you don’t take all 12 bottles, I guarantee you’ll end up regretting it once that first cork is pulled!
