The old-world methods used to produce this wine are reflected in its flavor, aroma, and texture. Aromas of burnt caramel, dried red fruits, blackberry jam, chocolate with brioche toast, and earth with 5 spice and cinnamon.
Illahe is a Chinook Jargon word meaning “earth,” “land,” or “soil.” We feel this reflects both our location in Oregon, as well as our desire to craft wines which express the variety of soils on our beautiful 80 acre estate. Illahe Vineyards was established in 2000 by Lowell Ford, grower of Oregon grapes since 1983.Illahe is a LIVE-certified, Salmon Safe vineyard. We use cover crops on the entire vineyard. We are part of Oregon’s Deep Roots Coalition, and as such do not irrigate mature plants. We do extensive green pruning and conduct plant topping. We prune by hand and harvest by hand. We use sulfur spray to control for powdery mildew and botrytis.
This pinot is 100% estate grown and hand picked. It is from a single block at the very top of our hill that we consider to be the best block of pinot noir in our vineyard. We named this block after our Percheron draft horses. Fermentation is 100% native yeast. We macerate on the skins for 24 days and press in a wood basket. This wine is aged for 20 months in barrel with 50% new French oak barrels.
Pairs well with beef, veal, deer, venison, and poultry dishes.