The video above is from Jessie James Vineyard high up in Eola Amity Hills. If you look closely you can see the vineyard workers running down the rows. They are holding twenty pounds in each hand as they run…exhausting. I’m the one in the red shirt on the trailer being precious with my decisions about which grapes make the cut. I no longer get fruit from Jessie James but I have fond memories of working with the fruit and continue to love the wines from that site.
I started out making two wines: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Over time, the project has evolved and the focus more recently has been on working with unique Pinot Noir sites within the Willamette Valley while seeking out less common white varietals to work with each year. The Retina Pinot Noirs made each vintage are what I believe to be honest expressions of the varietal that perform well above their moderate price point. Wines in the single-vineyard series are often even smaller production and focus on vineyards/vintages that I believe to be extraordinary for their quality or individual expression.
2022 Dupee Valley Vineyard Chardonnay
I didn’t intend to make Chardonnay in 2022. I got a text message from a local vineyard manager with a photo of Chardonnay grapes sitting in picking bins. “I have an extra ton of nice CH just picked so searching for a home. McMinnville AVA, Mt Eden clone. Interested?” I knew the site and was intrigued by the clone, which I had never worked with before. I decided to bring it in and make something a little different.
Tasting Notes
Chardonnay styles can vary widely. These grapes, picked at the end of the season in a very cool site, came in at a low potential alcohol (low sugar) and stunning acidity. The intent was to make a Chardonnay closer to Greek Assyrtiko (salty, mineral, citrus) or maybe Chablis than the Chardonnays more commonly found in the valley. Fermented in stainless steel drums to preserve fruit and drive minerality, the nose shows nectarine and citrus along with lifted, stony aromas that give this wine a sense of place. The palate is fresh and bright with citrus but rounded by time in a puncheon barrel with lees stirring for the last few months prior to bottling that give this wine’s finish a distinct saltiness. This is great food wine, meant for fish but capable of pairing broadly from Asian to Italian cuisine.
The Art
Betz Cell in Cerebral Cortex, Rezza, circa 1912
The Details
Vineyards: Dupee Valley Vineyard
AVA: McMinnville
Clones: Mt. Eden
Harvested October 23rd, 2022
Brix at harvest = 19.3
11 months in stainless steel drums, 5 months in neutral puncheon
Alc. 12.5%
65 cases produced
2022 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
I’ll let you in on a secret; this wine is from the same vineyard as the 2021 Bellevue Cross single-vineyard bottling that sells for almost twice the price. Every year is different and the frost of 2022 meant the ripeness at Bellevue was a little more variable than 2021 and the wine just isn’t as expressive and pure. Meanwhile, it’s a great vineyard and this wine is a steal.
Tasting Notes
The aromatic nose is filled with spice and savor, showcasing dark cherry with subtle nuances of herbed olives, toasted walnut, licorice and safe flowers. The palate is classic Bellevue Cross, with vibrant red fruit and citrus driving to the long, tense finish. This wine has honestly improved with each month in the bottle and is showing well beyond its price point.
The Art
Structure of the retina, Tartuferi, circa 1887
The Details
Vineyards: Bellevue Cross Vineyard
AVA: McMinnville
Clones: 115
Harvested October 19th, 2022
Brix at harvest = 23.3
100% destemmed prior to fermentation
16 months in 27% new French barrels
Alc. 13.5%
87 cases produced
2022 Retina Pinot Noir
The 2022 Retina Pinot noir is a stylistic departure from previous vintages of this blend with all of the grapes fermented as 100% whole cluster rather than 30-50% like in past vintages.
Tasting Notes
The 2022 blends organic fruit from Temperance Hill Vineyard in Eola-Amity Hills with a minor contribution (20%) from the own-rooted and biodynamically farmed Meredith Mitchell Vineyard in McMinnville AVA. Made with 100% whole cluster fermentation, the 2022 Retina has warm, inviting aromas of dark berries, crushed stone, cinnamon, violets, and subtle licorice. The harmonious palate leans towards red fruit and citrus with fine-grained tannins, balanced acidity and mineral notes carrying it through to a long finish.
The Art
Human retinal ganglion cells as drawn by Alexander Dogiel in 1891
The Details
Vineyards: Temperance Hill and Meredith Mitchell
AVA: Willamette Valley
Clones: Dijon “mix” and Pommard
Harvested October 19th, 2022
Brix at harvest = 23.2
100% whole cluster
16 months in French oak barrels
Alc. 13.6%
59 cases produced
2021 Bellevue Cross Vineyard Pinot Noir
I first heard of Bellevue Cross Vineyard in 2018 when the owners reached out to me looking for a buyer for some of their fruit. It was a tiny unpolished gem of a vineyard planted in 1991 with own-rooted vines. Since then, the block at the top of the vineyard (planted to clone 115 Pinot Noir) has been the red-fruited core of the Retina blend. In 2021, it finally stands alone.
Tasting Notes
The nose is cherry and blood orange with sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, star anise and vanilla bean. The palate is the centerpiece here with vibrant red fruit and citrus driving to the long, tense finish. This wine is super fun to drink now but this wine promises to reward time in the bottle with darker fruit nuances and an improved silky texture.
The Art
Glial Cell of Human White Matter by Berluchi, circa 1920
The Details
Vineyards: Bellevue Cross Vineyard
AVA: McMinnville
Clones: 115
Harvested September 24, 2021
Brix at harvest = 23.2
100% destemmed prior to fermentation
17 months in 30% new French barrels
Alc. 13.5%
74 cases produced
2015 Johnson Vineyard Chardonnay (Library)
The 2015 Johnson Vineyard Chardonnay comes from the certified-organic Johnson Vineyard in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA. Eric Lemelson owns the vineyard, having purchased it from the Johnson family, who famously farm grass seed across the Willamette Valley. I’ve worked with Johnson Vineyard for years and have come to believe in its potential as a great Chardonnay site.
Tasting Notes
The 2015 Johnson Vineyard Chardonnay was on the very earliest side of harvest to avoid the excessively tropical characteristics of clone 76 Chardonnay. The flinty nose still tends towards pineapple, but I prefer to call it (and think about it) as chamomile and Meyer lemon. With time in glass, more Chardonnay-ey notes of nutmeg and (very subtle) vanilla bean emerge. The palate is racy in its youth: electric and pure with hints of the power that it will have in a year or two in bottle. You can feel the potential in this wine and, if I were to (hopefully intelligently) guess, this wine will be beautiful in 3 years and will begin to show aged Chablis–like nuance in 5-10 years.
The Art
Human cerebral cortex by Albert von Kölliker in 1893
The Details
Vineyard: Johnson Vineyard
AVA: Yamhill-Carlton
Clones: Dijon 76
Harvested September 5, 2015
Brix at harvest = 20.9
14 months in 20% new French oak (Damy) combined with neutral Chenin barrels
Alc. 13%
97 cases produced
Looking for Past-Vintage wines?
Notes on our sold-out, past-vintage wines are available for you to view. We sometimes have small quantities of these wines in our cellar; please email for availability.
