Wine & Words

King Estate 2007 Signature Pinot Gris
King Estate is located southwest of Eugene, Oregon near the town of Lorane. The 1,033-acre certified organic estate (including 465 acres of organic vineyards, as well as 30 acres of fruits, vegetables, and flowers) provides a spectacular mountain vineyard site with elevations ranging from 800 to 1,100 feet and cool, prevailing northwest winds that moderate vineyard temperatures.
King Estate is Certified Organic by Oregon Tilth. People ask me whether wines made with organic grapes are "better" than those made with conventionally grown grapes. I answer, "Not necessarily." I have tasted some beautiful organic wines and some that were flat and uninteresting. The point is not so much what chemicals were or weren't' used as how much care was taken in the growing and handling of the grapes. I think wineries that manage their vineyards in a sustainable way, not forcing things with chemicals but rather working in harmony with the soil and climate conditions that make great vineyards, will thereby make the best wines. And I like the idea of my wine coming from a place where the birds and bees are welcome, where flowers bloom between the rows, where those who work the vines are healthy and happy. The fact that wine is an agricultural product is one of the things I like about it. If it's clean and healthy, that's even better.
This Pinot Gris is a beautiful example of what they're doing with this cool-climate grape in Oregon.  I like its combination of lush mouth feel combined with a long, complex, dry finish.  The "experts" like it, too.
From: Restaurant Wine (Five stars)

Excellent Pinot Gris, in a full, supple style. It is crisp and long on the palate, and persistent in the finish, tasting of pink grapefruit, pear, roasted nut, and lemon peel.

From: Wine & Spirits, 92 Points

This sunny young wine leads with aromas of ripe apple spiced with mace, accented with a touch of green herb. On the palate it's as fresh as white wine gets, with a succulent mid palate that's leavened, elegantly, with a fine, talc-like minerality.

I say, "Yummy!"