Tunnell’s 2011 Pinot Noir Les Dijonnais was – as is usual for this cuvee from assorted Dijon clones – vinified with only a low level of stems. It distinguishes itself from its immediate siblings in a way I hadn’t expected given its clonal origins, namely by the dark mossy, wet stone and forest floor intimations that share the stage here with tart-edged elderberry and cassis. Smoky, faintly bitter black tea infusion reinforces this Pinot’s decidedly noir cast. Almost somberly sustained, it lacks the lift or precision, ingratiating florality or salinity of the best Brick House 2011s. (Tunnell opened more than one bottle for me, as I wanted to make sure I wasn’t misrepresenting this wine’s character.) I would anticipate it being well worth returning to though, through at least 2017, and hopefully well beyond.
Willamette biodynamic pioneer Doug Tunnell – for much more about whom and about whose property and portfolio consult my Issue 202 introduction – brought in all of his 2011s in the last days of October and first days of November at close to 12.5% natural alcohol, and they were then chaptalized (in part simply to extend fermentation), but remain just under 13%. With the exception of his “Moe’s” bottling from Momtazi Vineyard in McMinnville, Tunnell utilized a higher share of whole clusters and stems in 2011 than he had in 2010. He claims that it’s critical to combine the use of stems with extended maceration even after reaching dryness, which supports a hypothesis I’ve developed since last year that the many vintners who refer to Ribbon Ridge Pinot as inherently tough are probably pulling their young wine off of the skins as it takes on obvious tannins rather than, as it were, letting it get over a hump. “It took me time to understand this,” says Tunnell. “You watch those tannins climb, and climb, and climb. But don’t pull the trigger; restrain yourself! Then they start coming together.” The chance to taste additional older wines with Tunnell on this recent occasion has enhanced my respect and admiration for his work as well as encouraged my belief that the wines he is crafting from recent vintages are going to number among those Ribbon Ridge Pinots that serve as future benchmarks for what is possible with this grape in the Willamette Valley. (Incidentally, Tunnel could not locate even a single bottle of his “basic” 2011 Pinot Noir Select for me to taste in July and I failed to subsequently connect with one.)
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