Arguably one of the greatest vintages ever in the Willamette Valley, these wines are extremely long lived and have taken considerable time to get to the window of maturity. However, they are finally entering that window and recent bottles have been exceptional. The Willamette Valley is deeply hued, dense, and powerful. The Hommage is a study in dark fruit, surrounded by spice and florals, balanced by bright acidity and distinct structure. It takes an hour to open up. 2005 also saw my first single vineyard wine, 50 cases of Whistling Ridge Pinot Noir. The 2005 Whistling Ridge is in a stage where I recommend either drink or hold. 2005 Souris, when last tasted summer of 2024, was beautiful and available after a brief period open. The wine was durable after opening and drank well many hours after opening. I had this wine twice in 2024, and really enjoyed each bottle.
*Under cork, wines over 10 years of age develop considerable bottle variation. Our thoughts on these wines are based upon recent samples, but each bottle is unique. *
**This post covers Matello wines**