2004 Ribbon Springs Vineyard pinot noir

2004 Ribbon springs Vineyard Pinot noir
Ribbon Ridge AVA

Composition:
100% Clone UCD 5 (Pommard)

Alcohol:
12.8%

Production:
8 cases (750 ml)

Cellaring:
Under optimum cellar conditions, this wine will certainly
improve through 2014, perhaps through 2024.

“This complex wine exhibits layered aromas
of cocoa, tea, dried fruits and licorice. On
the palate, the wine shows hints of violets and
dark chocolate supported by a strong tannin
structure. It would pair wonderfully with
grilled salmon, domestic and wild fowl, and
other savory main dishes.”
Dave Paige, Winemaker

Wine Background:
• Lynn and Jack Loacker, co-owners of Adelsheim Vineyard, purchased this 120-acre site on Ribbon Ridge in 1995.
• With high-density plantings of Oregon’s traditional clones - “Pommard” and “Wädenswil” - and the newer “Dijon” series, this 60-acre vineyard is now our most important source of Pinot noir grapes.
• Only the very best lots go into our single vineyard bottlings; this 2004 vintage Ribbon Springs wine is only our fourth such wine from this vineyard.

Growing Season:
• The growing season began with a warm and very early spring. Bud break occurred on March 29th, much earlier than usual.
• June, July, and much of August were very hot, but our heaviest August rain storm in a couple decades brought in some much cooler weather.
• A nice stretch of dry weather, beginning in mid-September, allowed flavors to fully mature in time for harvest on October 4th and 5th.

Vineyards:
• At 400 - 600 feet above sea level in the Ribbon Ridge appellation of the Chehalem Mountains, Ribbon Springs Vineyard is considered to be a medium elevation site.
• It is oriented largely to the southeast and features many large, evenly-sloped blocks.
• The soils are sandstone-based, sedimentary in origin, and so would tend towards drought-stress problems in our usual July & August dry spell if not for the eponymous springs, and a reservoir, which can serve as a source for light drip irrigation if necessary.

Winemaking:
• After hand-harvesting, the grapes were gently destemmed into open top fermenters, followed by a four to six day cold soak for greater flavor and color extraction
• The grapes were then inoculated with a commercial yeast and punched down two or three times per day during a 6 day alcoholic fermentation.
• After pressing, the wine was transferred into traditional small French oak barrels (35% new) where it was aged for approximately 10 months.
• This intensely red-fruited wine was made from three separate blocks that were planted with the UCD 5 clone of Pinot noir (“Pommard”) between 1996 and 1998.