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2003 Pinot Gris, Shea Vineyard
Release Date: 2/1/05 Retail Price: $24/750ml Availability: 232 cases Production Notes This Pinot gris was picked with no botrytis. After whole cluster pressing, the juice was fermented 88% in tank and 12% in a new French barrel. The wine was bottled after 13 months of lees aging. Crop Level 1.8 tons/acre I believe that this is one of the greatest Pinot gris sites in Oregon. The wine will compliment rich white meat, fish, and shellfish entrees and will benefit from aging for up to 9 years. Mark Vlossak, winemaker |
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Winemaker Notes
The raw material from Shea Vineyard's Pinot gris vines is exceptional. The flavors and the concentration are unusually intense from this great Pinot gris site. To further increase the wine's concentration, the crop load is reduced from the usual 4-5 tons per acre in Alsace and Oregon, to less than 2 tons per acre. My winemaking style focuses on building texture and complexity into the wine. By fermenting 12% of the juice in new wood, another layer of texture is added. The wine is aged for 12 months (most Pinot gris are bottled 4-8 months after harvest) and this additional time lets the wine evolve more completely before bottling.
Tasting Notes
Shea Vineyard produced St. Innocent's richest and most textural Pinot gris. Aromas of white fruits - peaches, kiwi, melon, and pineapple are layered with intense spice. The flavors of fruit and spice are enhanced by the wine's depth of flavor and complexity on your palate.
My Alsatian winemaking hero, Andre Ostertag, speaks of how great Pinot gris moves on your palate. The Shea moves laterally over your palate and the place you taste it is constantly changing. Try it in comparison to the Vitae Springs Pinot gris, which is a much more linear wine, and you can experience the textural differences.
The finish is long, with spice and lingering hints of dried fruit. I expect this Pinot gris to continue to develop over several years. There are no old Pinot gris from this site, however the 1998 Shea Pinot gris has remarkable complexity and purity of fruit at five years of age. It is still young and, with the dry fruit characters still increasing, I expect it to improve for at least four more years
Because of Shea Vineyard's richness, the best matches are with more richly flavored shellfish and white meat dishes prepared with complex or slightly spicy sauces. Prawns, scallops, and game birds, as well as pork tenderlion, that are sauced with salsas, fruit reductions, or sauces with hints of hot peppers would be great matches.