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2005 Pinot Gris
Vitae Springs Vineyard Release Date: 8/28/06 Retail Price $: 18.00 Availability: 568 cases Production Notes Vitae Springs Vineyard, established in 1986 and expanded in 1999, is located in the rolling hills five miles south of Salem, Oregon. The grapes come from two blocks. The original planting is at the base of the 'home block' on a warm south slope of well-drained Jory clay at an average elevation of 400'. The more recent 'Inwood' vineyard is planted on a steeper hillside on thinner, volcanic Nekia soil running from 400-500'. We produced this Pinot gris in a style to bring out ripe fruit and spice flavors without the influence of barrel aging. The must was tank fermented, aged for eight months on the lees, and lightly filtered before bottling.
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Winemaker Notes
Most of my Pinot gris eggs are in this basket. Six years ago I asked Earl Van Volkinburg, the grower, to quadruple the acreage, and those vines are now in into production. The Vitae Springs Pinot gris used to be the smallest production lot at St. Innocent (one year we only produced 83 cases), but no longer.
Pinot gris intrigues me because of its unique spiciness. We make two gris - Shea and Vitae Springs Vineyards. Vitae Springs is done in a fruit forward style with no barrel aging. It emphasizes purity of fruit. The wine captivates your nose and mouth with its intriguing balance of fruit and spice. The wine ages beautifully and attains an even greater richness of fruit and viscosity after 4-7 years.
Tasting Notes
The majority of the grapes for this wine come from the younger Inwood planting. These vines are 6-7 years old and are now appoaching maturity. The vields are still ridiculously low by any standards - 1.7 tons per acre compared to the average Alsace yield of 5 tons per acre. The vines are small because the soil is poor, but the quality of the fruit is very high.
When Pinot gris is planted on great soils and is picked at ripeness, it has a unique spiciness. The 2005 Pinot gris, Vitae Springs Vineyard has an intensely spicy nose with orange peel and citrus notes. That spiciness continues into the mouth with pear, apple and citrus flavors. It is very textural in the mouth. Completely dry, it is a great match for Asian-influenced foods, appetizers, and fish entrees.