Hundred Suns 2023 Pinot Noir Bednarik

$56.99 bottle / $299.94($49.99) six-pack

The Bednarik vineyard is one of the great older vineyards in the Willamette Valley. This bottling is from own-rooted Pommard and Wädenswil clones of Pinot Noir planted in 1988 on marine-sedimentary soils in the cool costal foothills. The enticing nose offers scents of cherry, violets and damp forest floor - thank you old vine Pommard and Wädenswil! The palate will stop experienced tasters in their tracks as it shows gorgeous old vine fruit in a subtle manner, but what really stands out is that the wine is structured and spherical like a great red Burgundy from Chambolle-Musigny. Aged primarily in neutral barrels to allow the fruit and terroir to shine forth, the 2023 Bednarik vineyard is still a baby, but already reveals its ultra-pure fruit and white truffle notes along with sneaky concentration and velvety tannins. Amazingly, at this point, the wine is most impressive on the long, long finish - a great sign of its future potential. It's pretty damn delicious now, but if you can keep your hands off it, it will continue to gain in complexity for many years to come. This is serious Pinot Noir that competes with the best in the country.