After leaving Corvallis, heading north, the Willamette River veers off to the East. We question our navigating ability and wonder if we are actually in the increasingly famous Willamette Valley of Oregon. Are these rolling fields – filled with wheat and barley and bright green alfalfa, cut into squares, wrestling for dominance with the tall, thick hardwoods – are these fields really associated with the Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris we have been hearing so much about?
Then, finally, there is a sign for a winery pointing up a long, winding road. We decide against it. We are running out of time – the afternoon is half passed and we have not tried a single wine from the region. We need a tighter concentration. It is five miles to Amity and we decide to try our luck with the auspiciously-named village.
Sure enough, Amity boasts more than one winery in its tiny city limits. And – oh, sweet relief! – we see one such winery occupying a recently renovated old mill building. We park alongside an open field and take a moment to breathe the fresh air and marvel at the sunlight dancing through the tree boughs and casting hazy shadows in the too-green grass.
We amble into the winery and a stout young man offers us his famed pinot varieties with a plate of local cheeses. Though the Pinot Gris is light, sweet, and fresh, it does not match the smoky, flavorful cheese. The young owner tells us that he is only at the southern tip of the Willamette wine-growing region. We debate: should we buy a bottle to savor later and continue onwards to try as many different wineries as possible? No. It is a shame to rush a good wine.
Then, finally, there is a sign for a winery pointing up a long, winding road. We decide against it. We are running out of time – the afternoon is half passed and we have not tried a single wine from the region. We need a tighter concentration. It is five miles to Amity and we decide to try our luck with the auspiciously-named village.
Sure enough, Amity boasts more than one winery in its tiny city limits. And – oh, sweet relief! – we see one such winery occupying a recently renovated old mill building. We park alongside an open field and take a moment to breathe the fresh air and marvel at the sunlight dancing through the tree boughs and casting hazy shadows in the too-green grass.
We amble into the winery and a stout young man offers us his famed pinot varieties with a plate of local cheeses. Though the Pinot Gris is light, sweet, and fresh, it does not match the smoky, flavorful cheese. The young owner tells us that he is only at the southern tip of the Willamette wine-growing region. We debate: should we buy a bottle to savor later and continue onwards to try as many different wineries as possible? No. It is a shame to rush a good wine.
We each purchase a glass of the Pinot Noir. The owner takes an un-opened bottle from the shelf – a squat, dark-green bottle with a black and maroon label. He peels off the foil top to reveal a wooden cork and we know that we made the right decision. We spend the next hour – the last hour that the wineries are open that day – enjoying the incredible taste of this region’s most famous variety. The Pinot Noir is a diverse wine – smelling of candy, but burning the nostrils; it is dark and sticky and smooth in the glass; and its taste is tangy and sweet, but nibbles at the back of the throat. It blends perfectly with the aromatic and somewhat bitter West Coast cheeses. It also blends beautifully with the dark chocolate that we find in front of us once our glasses are half-consumed. It is a meal in itself.
The glasses emptied, our minds work at drawing a connection between the Pinot Noir and the local area. What creates such a gorgeous taste? Maybe it’s the cool, salty, wet breezes sweeping over the hills to our West from the Pacific Ocean. Maybe it is the rich, black soil from the old grain farmlands. Maybe it is the sunlight resting ever-so-gently on the grapes growing on those ten-degree sloping hills. Probably, it is a combination of all of these things, mixed with a dash of the local culinary preference and drinking culture. And probably, it is impossible to replicate this exact taste in any other region of the world, because there are so many factors affecting the delicate, powerful taste of the Oregon Pinot Noir.
The glasses emptied, our minds work at drawing a connection between the Pinot Noir and the local area. What creates such a gorgeous taste? Maybe it’s the cool, salty, wet breezes sweeping over the hills to our West from the Pacific Ocean. Maybe it is the rich, black soil from the old grain farmlands. Maybe it is the sunlight resting ever-so-gently on the grapes growing on those ten-degree sloping hills. Probably, it is a combination of all of these things, mixed with a dash of the local culinary preference and drinking culture. And probably, it is impossible to replicate this exact taste in any other region of the world, because there are so many factors affecting the delicate, powerful taste of the Oregon Pinot Noir.
Photo: 2005 Pinot Noir from Amity Oregon, USA
Coelho winery, 111 5th St, Amity, Oregon 97101
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