Teutonic Bergspitze Pinot Noir 2021

Teutonic Bergspitze Pinot Noir is a high-altitude Willamette Valley red from the Alsatian Coury clone.

Laurel Vineyard sits on top of Bald Peak in the Chehalem Mountains, the highest point in the Willamette Valley, at 381 metres. John Albin planted Pinot Noir there in 1981 for sparkling and rosé, and when Barnaby Tuttle asked to buy fruit for a still red in 2009, plenty thought the site too cool and the fruit too lean. Elevation was only part of the draw: the vines are the Alsatian Coury selection, which Charles Coury carried out of Alsace in a suitcase back in 1965. Loamy volcanic soils regulate temperature well, and the site is dry-farmed and organically managed. Fruit hung late, then fermented in open-tops on a vineyard pied de cuve, three weeks with daily punch-downs, before old barrels.

At 12 per cent alcohol this is ethereal, not weighty: bright cranberry and red cherry, rose, a mineral thread, and elegant structure that will carry it for years. Serve at 14 degrees. Good with salmon, roast quail or a mushroom risotto.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.