2016 King Estate Foris Pinot Blanc, Rogue Valley
Divvy-Up
80 Points
Tasting Notes
A pretty golden straw color in the glass, the nose is a bouquet of honey, melon, guava, white peach and wildflowers. A medium-bodied entrance is round, featuring flavors of honeydew, white peach and orange zest, ending with a crisp and lingering finish.
Vineyard Notes
Foris is the southernmost vineyard in the state in the Illinois Valley sub-AVA of the Rogue Valley. The high elevation of this vineyard and its close proximity to the Pacific Ocean provide ideal growing conditions for Alsace style varietals.
In the Rogue Valley, 2016 was the third straight year of early and warm vintages. Unusually warm temperatures in April and May were followed by cooler weather through August, providing the opportunity for much longer hang times and allowing for richer flavors to develop. Quality was quite good to exceptional.
Comments
Meet The Rogue Valley AVA
Three adjacent river valleys (Bear Creek, Applegate and Illinois Valleys) extend from the foothills of the Siskiyou Mountains along the California border north to the Rogue River to make up the Rogue Valley AVA. The microclimates are progressively warmer moving from west to east, offering growers the ability to plant a broad range of grape varieties from Pinot Noir near the coast to Cabernet Sauvignon inland.
King Estate Pinot Blanc is from the western most valley, Illinois Valley, of the three and exhibits expected cool climate characteristics enhanced by the higher elevation of the vineyard.
The AVA is one of Oregon’s 19 AVAs and was established in 1991, although winemaking in the Rogue Valley goes way back. The first vines were planted in the 1840s, and Oregon’s first Winery was established in the Rogue Valley in 1873 - Valley View Winery.
Pinot blanc, a mutant of pinot noir, is often labelled as Pinot gris, Pinot grigio, or even Chardonnay. It is grown in California and the Pacific Northwest, as well as in France and Germany, bottled as a single vintage and blended, and often fermented as a sparkling wine. It can age a bit, so don’t be put off by the 2016 date on this release.
The source of this wine is the southernmost vineyard in Oregon, near the Rogue River. It was bottled by King Estate, one of the most prestigious wineries in the Willamette Valley. My wife and I drove from San Francisco to Portland for a wedding in 2014 and were strongly advised by friends to make a slight detour to King Estate, well worth the effort. We were rewarded with spectacular scenery, a magnificent building, a delicious lunch and wine tasting.
This release is crisp and clean, without a lot of butter and oak flavors that characterize much of the chardonnay on the market. It is floral, with notes of peach and vanilla, and there is a bit of minerality. At 13.5% alcohol content, it is not light-weight, and pairs well with cheese, fish, and fruit. We enjoyed it with a delicious halibut that was baked in a pizza oven with fresh tomatoes and pre-cooked potato wedges and onion.
The current release, 2017, from the same vineyard, retails for $24 a bottle. At less than $10 a bottle, this is a steal.
Sounds like this PB is right up my alley. Thanks for the review.
Headed up to Eugene, we'll have to check it out. Sounds worth the drive out.
Hey Sonoma East Siders. I put this share in the Nextdoor group "Wines Worth Sharing"
You can join here and you're welcome to join the Nextdoor group too. Maybe we'll see some more case shares popping up there.
Join the Divvy-Up: https://divvy-up.com/2016-king-estate-foris-pinot-blanc-rogue-valley?group=0c65d763-77a1-4657-a53f-5f418107abc2
Hello folks. First time posting on Divvy-Up. I received a PrevView bottle late last week and was able to try it out over the holiday week. Apologies for the late posting, a lot going on these days...
2016 Kings Estate Pinot Blanc, Rogue Valley, Foris Vineyard
Pop n' Pour (PnP) at 50 F : Slightly chilled. Initial nose is a bit muted but getting tropical fruit, lemon peel and stone fruit (white peach/nectarine). On the palate this isn't as crisp or acidic as I was expecting. Getting citrus and a honeyed character on the mid palate. Med acid, med length finish. Good balance. Initial impression is this is well made and would be good with light appetizers.
After letting the wine warm up some to 58F the nose opened up and gained intensity. Same aromas as previous, but now they are jumping out of the glass. Palate has remained much the same although the finish is a bit less cleansing and has gained some length and complexity. A bit of an alcohol note begins to creep in as it warms. I should note that I am quite sensitive to oak and really didn't pick up on much at all, in case that is a concern for anyone.
Overall we really enjoyed this. It is a great wine for a hot day, but will also work well into the fall and winter with the right fare. At the Divvy-Up price this is a great value for a single vineyard white that you don't see very often.
Cheers!
Good job on your first time review, looking forward to more. Cheers 🍷
to wine is divine