Oregon's Ribbon Ridge Defined
Brick House Vineyards
Twenty-seven producers from the Ribbon Ridge sub-AVA gathered for a trade tasting in early April. Samantha Cole-Johnson of Jancis Robinson recently wrote of her tasting experience and describes the defining characteristics of our 3,500 acre sub-AVA. We’re thrilled to read how well our Brick House wines scored on their 20 point scale.
“At the end of the day, the balance of elements that make Ribbon Ridge more difficult to distinguish than Eola-Amity Hills or Dundee Hills would probably make it Goldilocks’ favourite AVA.”
2023 rosé of Pinot Noir—16 pts
Fourth vintage. Pommard fruit from six- to eight-year-old vines. Direct press. Ferment 50/50 in old Chardonnay puncheons and stainless steel. 175 cases produced
2022 Cascadia Chardonnay—16.5 pts
Partially crushed and direct-pressed. Fermented in French oak (under 10% new) and one new acacia barrel. Fined not filtered. Oxidative handling of juice prior to fermentation. 200 cases produced
2022 Block Three Chardonnay—17+ pts
Partially crushed. This cuvée uses nearly 100% free-run juice. Fermented in French oak (under 10% new) and one new acacia barrel. Unfiltered, unfined. 60 cases produced
2022 Select Pinot Noir—17+ pts
Sourced from all sections of the vineyard. Varying degrees of whole cluster – on average 35% in 2022. Mostly pumpovers. Average 25 days on skin. 8–10 months in French oak barrel – very little new wood. All ambient-yeast fermentation. 680 cases produced
2022 Les Dijonnais Pinot Noir—17.5 pts
Single-block selection – mix of three Dijon clones planted in 1995. 30% new oak and about 35% whole cluster. 580 cases produced
The wines below will be released this fall. Club members receive priority access to these limited-production wines. If you’re interested in purchasing these wines we encourage you to join our (fully customizable!) club to ensure acquisition.
2022 Halliday Hill Pinot Noir—18+ pts
1.4-acre block across the street from the Brick House Estate – they began making it in 2006. 2022 yielded four barrels. 75% new oak. 50% whole cluster. This will be released in autumn 2024. Only the third vintage where this has had its own bottling – in 2018 and 2022 it was single-vineyard designated but it varies depending on vintage and yield. 100 cases produced
2022 Evelyn’s Pinot Noir—18+ pts
This wine is made only when they have the right blend. Seven barrels total and five were new. 170 cases produced.