2023 Elouan Reserve Pinot Noir

2023 Harvest Report

The 2023 growing season in Oregon began with a cold, dry winter, followed by a wet and chilly early spring. By late April, a shift to warm, dry conditions accelerated bloom and ripening, with veraison arriving three weeks early. August's heat ensured optimal maturity, while brief fall rains extended hang time. For our Elouan Reserve Pinot Noir, we selected fruit from eight distinct clones, each contributing depth and complexity. The resulting wine bursts with cranberry, raspberry, blueberry, and ripe plum, balanced by vibrant acidity and layered with aromas of sage and forest floor. Harvest spanned mid-September to early October, capturing the vintage's exceptional character.

Winemaker Notes

We harvested early in the morning so the fruit would arrive at the winery while the grapes were still cool to preserve their vineyard-fresh flavors.  After destemming, but not crushing, the berries, we cold-soaked the must for 14 days to soften the skins and allow for ideal extraction. Both punch-downs and pump-over techniques were used to ensure balanced extraction of flacor, aromatics, structure, and color. To allow both the sweet and structural influences from the barrels to intermingle seamlessly with the rich fuit and ripe tannins of the wine, we aged our Elouan Reserve Pinot Noir in 100% French oak, 40% new, for nine months with limited use of SO2 to maintain the phenolic profile.