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Story Teller Wine Company
There was one subject this year that was beaten to death in the Portland wine community: the 2007 vintage for Oregon Pinot Noir. Sure, there was some rain issues and it was cold toward the end. But after all the fretting I noticed that a lot of the barrel samples I was trying were quite pretty. There was elevated acidity and lower alcohol levels in the wines, which appeals to my personal style preference. So I was thinking we had dodged a bullet. The first wines that arrived in the bottle confirmed my high hopes. Then Matt Kramer decided to drop a bomb of bunker busting magnitude on the 2007 vintage. In a column Matt wrote in the spring of 2009 for the Portland Oregonian he declared the vintage a disaster. According to Mr. Kramer, “…let me be blunt: You want to snap up the remaining 2006 pinot noirs from Oregon while they’re still around. The reason is simple, if painful: Oregon’s 2007 pinot noirs are emerging as rather light, sometimes excessively thin wines that may prove to be overpriced for their quality…A word to the wise: You won’t get this depth or scale of pinot noir fruit in the 2007 vintage, you can be sure.” Let’s just say these words caused quite a stir in these parts! First off, it turns out Matt had only really tasted a handful of early releases when he wrote that column. After months of taking flak from just about everybody he knew he was willing to concede he had come across several 2007s that he enjoyed. But by that point the damage was done. From my point of view, this is a style issue. If you enjoy fuller-bodied, more fruit-forward Pinot Noirs, then sure, you will prefer the wines from the warmer 2006 vintage. But if you enjoy a lighter touch, with juicy acidity then 2007 was probably a joy. Were there poorly made wines in 2007? Absolutely. But there are poorly made wines every year. I also think that 2007 was a vintage that was reminiscent of the kind of weather we always used to have in the Willamette Valley. That kind of gave an advantage to the old hands who were used to dealing with the rain and cold. But I’m happy to report this story has a happy ending and it involves the two wines I am about to offer to you. 2007 Cameron Winery Clos Electrique Rouge 49.00 This is John Paul of Cameron Winery’s flagship Pinot Noir. It has to rank among the very best Pinot Noirs made in the Willamette Valley and if we did things like designate vineyards with premiere cru and grand cru status, the Clos Electrique Vineyard would be right up there among the very best. Last Sunday Matt Kramer declared it one of the two best Pinot Noirs from the whole 2007 vintage. Here is what he wrote: “Owner-winemaker John Paul of Cameron Winery professes strong opinions about the 2007 vintage, which I reported in a recommendation back in June when I strongly commended Cameron’s 2007 “Dundee Hills” pinot noir. Cameron’s best wines come from a four-acre subplot called Clos Electrique. Half of it — a scant two acres — is pinot noir. Another acre and one-half is chardonnay, and the remaining half-acre is, improbably, nebbiolo. The vines, planted in the mid-1980s (except for the nebbiolo, which arrived in the mid-’90s), are now two decades old and fully mature. Yields are minuscule. The 2007 Clos Electrique pinot noir is flat-out stunning. Exceptionally dense yet graceful, this is a pinot noir of sublime austerity, a wine that — however tasty today — is certain to evolve into a worlds-upon-worlds complexity over the years. A tiny amount is made, about 150 cases. It is, however, available at this writing. This is worth hunting down — and also worth its asking price. $50. (Self-distributed by the winery.)” 2007 Cameron Winery Clos Electrique Blanc 49.00 I love this Chardonnay. It is so reminiscent of white Burgundy it isn’t even funny. At our Cameron tasting the other night a friend brought a bottle of the 2002 Clos Electrique Blanc and it was positively singing. Minerals and nuts and citrus. John Paul figures that with proper storage these wines will age gracefully for 10-15 years. And not surprisingly, in that same column, Mr. Kramer couldn’t help but mention its greatness. Matt observed “Also look for Cameron’s 2007 Clos Electrique chardonnay. If Oregon offered a better, richer, more complex and rewarding chardonnay in 2007, I haven’t tasted it — or anything close to it, even. Just 100 cases were produced. $50. (Self-distributed by the winery.)” There you have it. Matt Kramer finally found something he could enjoy from Oregon’s 2007 vintage. The bad news is this means that restaurants and stores around Oregon that weren’t giving wines like this the time of day are now calling the winery, frantic to get an allocation. Luckily, we have a batch right here at Storyteller Wine Company. I imagine the supplies of these two wines will be wiped out by early January, so if you would like to try the crown jewels of Oregon’s 2007 vintage, this is your last opportunity. As always, there is a 10% discount for mixed or match cases. And thank goodness Matt loves the upcoming 2008 vintage because I’d hate to have to go through this again! That’s all folks. These are the last words from the Head Storyteller until 2010. I would like to wish all of you a healthy, happy New Year. I would also like to thank you for your continued support. Through economic downturns and massive snowstorms, a lot of you have stuck with us. I not only appreciate it, I will never forget you. We have thrived when many expected this business model to flounder. I guess I’m just stubborn. But as long as I have friendly folks to talk with about wine, I will be here. A friend of mine, Chef Thad Morrow, once told me that the worst day of working for yourself is better than the best day of working for someone else. After two years at Storyteller, I now fully appreciate that sentiment. Cheers, Michael Alberty Head Storyteller PS Several years ago I had the opportunity to have lunch at Charlie Trotter’s restaurant with British wine writer Hugh Johnson. It was three hours of just him and me, one-on-one, conversing about what was going on in the American wine scene. He was touring America to promote his new book, A Life Uncorked, and a friend of mine in London set up this luncheon. It was three hours I will never forget and I walked away from the experience humbled by his lifetime of experiences. Charlie Trotter personally delivered each course to the table and an acquaintance of mine, Linda Milagros Violago, was actually our sommelier. So it was a pretty special meal, capped off with Chateau d’Yquem (1997 or 2001?) poured by Linda from a large bottle. The single greatest lesson I took away from that meeting with Hugh Johnson was the importance of appreciating, celebrating and passing along to others the romance and mystery of wine. So I have decided to end 2009 with the last paragraph from the book Hugh was in the States to promote. “Its life, in the last analysis, is what sets wine apart. There is nothing else we buy to eat or drink that brings us the identity of a place and time in the same way, that memorises and recalls (if we listen) all the circumstances that made it what it is. You can, of course, like a college examiner, submit every sample to the same critical appraisal and accept or reject it. Or you can embrace the identity, enjoy the circumstances, be transported to other places and times. Embrace even the mythology: it adds to the colour of life.” See you in 2010! Visit www.StorytellerWine.com >> 5511-B SW Hood Ave, Portland \| (503) 206-7029 \| 1.800.753.2531

Story Teller Wine Company

There was one subject this year that was beaten to death in the Portland wine community: the 2007 vintage for Oregon Pinot Noir. Sure, there was some rain issues and it was cold toward the end. But after all the fretting I noticed that a lot of the barrel samples I was trying were quite pretty. There was elevated acidity and lower alcohol levels in the wines, which appeals to my personal style preference. So I was thinking we had dodged a bullet. The first wines that arrived in the bottle confirmed my high hopes. Then Matt Kramer decided to drop a bomb of bunker busting magnitude on the 2007 vintage.

In a column Matt wrote in the spring of 2009 for the Portland Oregonian he declared the vintage a disaster. According to Mr. Kramer, “…let me be blunt: You want to snap up the remaining 2006 pinot noirs from Oregon while they’re still around. The reason is simple, if painful: Oregon’s 2007 pinot noirs are emerging as rather light, sometimes excessively thin wines that may prove to be overpriced for their quality…A word to the wise: You won’t get this depth or scale of pinot noir fruit in the 2007 vintage, you can be sure.” Let’s just say these words caused quite a stir in these parts!

First off, it turns out Matt had only really tasted a handful of early releases when he wrote that column. After months of taking flak from just about everybody he knew he was willing to concede he had come across several 2007s that he enjoyed. But by that point the damage was done. From my point of view, this is a style issue. If you enjoy fuller-bodied, more fruit-forward Pinot Noirs, then sure, you will prefer the wines from the warmer 2006 vintage. But if you enjoy a lighter touch, with juicy acidity then 2007 was probably a joy. Were there poorly made wines in 2007? Absolutely. But there are poorly made wines every year. I also think that 2007 was a vintage that was reminiscent of the kind of weather we always used to have in the Willamette Valley. That kind of gave an advantage to the old hands who were used to dealing with the rain and cold. But I’m happy to report this story has a happy ending and it involves the two wines I am about to offer to you.

2007 Cameron Winery Clos Electrique Rouge 49.00

This is John Paul of Cameron Winery’s flagship Pinot Noir. It has to rank among the very best Pinot Noirs made in the Willamette Valley and if we did things like designate vineyards with premiere cru and grand cru status, the Clos Electrique Vineyard would be right up there among the very best. Last Sunday Matt Kramer declared it one of the two best Pinot Noirs from the whole 2007 vintage. Here is what he wrote:

“Owner-winemaker John Paul of Cameron Winery professes strong opinions about the 2007 vintage, which I reported in a recommendation back in June when I strongly commended Cameron’s 2007 “Dundee Hills” pinot noir.

Cameron’s best wines come from a four-acre subplot called Clos Electrique. Half of it — a scant two acres — is pinot noir. Another acre and one-half is chardonnay, and the remaining half-acre is, improbably, nebbiolo. The vines, planted in the mid-1980s (except for the nebbiolo, which arrived in the mid-’90s), are now two decades old and fully mature. Yields are minuscule.

The 2007 Clos Electrique pinot noir is flat-out stunning. Exceptionally dense yet graceful, this is a pinot noir of sublime austerity, a wine that — however tasty today — is certain to evolve into a worlds-upon-worlds complexity over the years. A tiny amount is made, about 150 cases. It is, however, available at this writing. This is worth hunting down — and also worth its asking price. $50. (Self-distributed by the winery.)”

2007 Cameron Winery Clos Electrique Blanc 49.00

I love this Chardonnay. It is so reminiscent of white Burgundy it isn’t even funny. At our Cameron tasting the other night a friend brought a bottle of the 2002 Clos Electrique Blanc and it was positively singing. Minerals and nuts and citrus. John Paul figures that with proper storage these wines will age gracefully for 10-15 years. And not surprisingly, in that same column, Mr. Kramer couldn’t help but mention its greatness. Matt observed “Also look for Cameron’s 2007 Clos Electrique chardonnay. If Oregon offered a better, richer, more complex and rewarding chardonnay in 2007, I haven’t tasted it — or anything close to it, even. Just 100 cases were produced. $50. (Self-distributed by the winery.)”

There you have it. Matt Kramer finally found something he could enjoy from Oregon’s 2007 vintage. The bad news is this means that restaurants and stores around Oregon that weren’t giving wines like this the time of day are now calling the winery, frantic to get an allocation. Luckily, we have a batch right here at Storyteller Wine Company. I imagine the supplies of these two wines will be wiped out by early January, so if you would like to try the crown jewels of Oregon’s 2007 vintage, this is your last opportunity. As always, there is a 10% discount for mixed or match cases. And thank goodness Matt loves the upcoming 2008 vintage because I’d hate to have to go through this again!

That’s all folks. These are the last words from the Head Storyteller until 2010. I would like to wish all of you a healthy, happy New Year. I would also like to thank you for your continued support. Through economic downturns and massive snowstorms, a lot of you have stuck with us. I not only appreciate it, I will never forget you. We have thrived when many expected this business model to flounder. I guess I’m just stubborn. But as long as I have friendly folks to talk with about wine, I will be here. A friend of mine, Chef Thad Morrow, once told me that the worst day of working for yourself is better than the best day of working for someone else. After two years at Storyteller, I now fully appreciate that sentiment.

Cheers,
Michael Alberty
Head Storyteller

PS Several years ago I had the opportunity to have lunch at Charlie Trotter’s restaurant with British wine writer Hugh Johnson. It was three hours of just him and me, one-on-one, conversing about what was going on in the American wine scene. He was touring America to promote his new book, A Life Uncorked, and a friend of mine in London set up this luncheon. It was three hours I will never forget and I walked away from the experience humbled by his lifetime of experiences. Charlie Trotter personally delivered each course to the table and an acquaintance of mine, Linda Milagros Violago, was actually our sommelier. So it was a pretty special meal, capped off with Chateau d’Yquem (1997 or 2001?) poured by Linda from a large bottle.

The single greatest lesson I took away from that meeting with Hugh Johnson was the importance of appreciating, celebrating and passing along to others the romance and mystery of wine. So I have decided to end 2009 with the last paragraph from the book Hugh was in the States to promote. “Its life, in the last analysis, is what sets wine apart. There is nothing else we buy to eat or drink that brings us the identity of a place and time in the same way, that memorises and recalls (if we listen) all the circumstances that made it what it is. You can, of course, like a college examiner, submit every sample to the same critical appraisal and accept or reject it. Or you can embrace the identity, enjoy the circumstances, be transported to other places and times. Embrace even the mythology: it adds to the colour of life.”

See you in 2010!

Visit www.StorytellerWine.com >>
5511-B SW Hood Ave, Portland | (503) 206-7029 | 1.800.753.2531

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