We visited Bergstrom Winery over Thanksgiving weekend 2004. For those of you have not been to the Willamette Valley over the Memorial Day or Thanksgiving weekend you are missing a rare opportunity to experience some great wines in a setting that is not as crowded as you would find in Napa or Sonoma.
When we arrived at Bergstrom we found out there was a $20 per person tasting fee. At first we taken aback, but when our greeter told us that the tasting fee included a Riedel Vinum Burgundy glass etched with the Bergstrom logo and that we would have access to tasting all of Bergstroms' wines including their single vineyard pinot noirs, we realized this one of the best deals we had encountered in quite a while. The Riedel glass alone cost $16-$20 were you to purchase it in a store.
It was cool in the warehouse where we were tasting and most everyone was in wraps. This was after all November in the Willamette Valley. This did not dissuade anyone though and all who were there had a wonderful time. The decorations were nice and there was plenty of staff on hand to pour wine. They had three tasting areas set up. One for their new and current release white wines, one for their red wine offerings and the third being the reserve Pinot Noir table which was hosted by Josh Bergstrom himself. This along with an elaborate cheese, fruit and bread display in the center of the room made for a wonderful setting to experience their wines.
Carolyn and I were planning to taste wines only at Bergstrom that day so we decided to try as many as possible. To do this we used the tasting method of swirling the wine in glass to get the aroma, then taking a sip of the wine into the mouth, swishing to get the mouth-feel and then spitting. We then took a small drink to experience the finish and the rest was poured into the spit bucket. This method allowed us to try several wines since the actual alcohol intake was minimal.
We tried ten of the 2003 vintage wines which included all of the single vineyard Pinot Noir offerings. Of the wines tasted we liked and would highly recommend eight. These include the Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and their Red Wine blend. The Pinot Noirs that impressed us the most were the Willamette Valley, Cumberland Reserve, de Lancellotti , Bergstrom Estate and Arcus. This might seem high praise until you see that Bergstrom's wines have garnered critical acclaim and high scores for their 2001, 2002 and 2003 vintages. And they are that good! We are confident that Bergstrom's 2004 vintage releases will once again bring us some of the best wines in the state. We are anxious to try them.
We encourage you to visit the Bergstrom link on this page to find out more about his fabulous winery and the people responsible for these great wines. |
