Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir 2011 Vintage 90 Points Bright red. Wild red berries, cola and a hint of vanilla on the fragrant nose and in the mouth. Puts on weight with air, picking up notes of licorice and mocha, along with a subtle touch of smokiness. Closes with very good tangy cut, building tannins and lingering spiciness. Josh Raynolds, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar - July 2014 91 Points Medium reddish purple color in the glass. Invigorating aromas of black cherries, strawberries, spice, mocha and cedary oak lead to a satisfying mid palate attack of black cherry and black raspberry fruits complimented by spice and oak. The tannins are firm but integrated, and the juicy acidity brings the fruit to a vivid finish. Rusty Gaffney, M.D., PinotFile - June 25, 2014 If you seek the crème de la crème, the best of the best, the epitome in pinot noirs, this is it. All too often our American pinot noirs are compared to the megabuck French Burgundies. Well, you can stop the rivalry here and now; in our opinion, we win. Yes, the wine is expensive, but so is a Mercedes, and if you want the best, it will cost you. This wine is more than worth its price. When the wine is poured the intense aromas of black cherry, herbs and pepper balanced with notes of violet, toasty oak, spice and vanilla rise from the glass. The first sip exposes the flavors of cherry, red currant, plum and raisins being the most prominent. There are also other flavors laying in the background with oak and an earthy mushroom flavor being the most obvious. These flavors trail off to a soft, almost jammy, fruit-filled finish that is longer than long. The wine is drinkable now or can be left to age for as long as five years. Needless to say, this wine impressed us, and we can assure you we have several bottles tucked away in our library. Ben Bodenstein, Syndicated Wine Columnist - May 2, 2014 Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir Page 1
2010 Vintage 93 Points This bottling shows maraschino cherry, popping-withripeness blueberries, clove, cinnamon, vanilla and cake batter. It s super smooth and thoroughly integrated from start to very long finish. Drink: 2014-20 Christy Canterbury MW, TimAtkin.com Oregon 2014 Special Repo - July 2014 92 Points Silky and elegant with bright raspberry and lively acidity; supple, nervy and quite charming; lovely texture and a long, delicious finish. Anthony Dias Blue, The Tasting Panel Blue Reviews EXTRA! - May 2013 2009 Vintage 90 Points - Dark and earthy, this well-built red leads with smoky plum and soil-like scents. There's a richness to its flavors held in check by firm, leathery tannins and an earthy core. Currently driven by its structure, this wine should fall into balance with a little more time in the cellar. Wine & Spirits Magazine - August 2012 90 Points - Dark red. Pungent, smoke-accented aromas and flavors of cherry and black raspberry, with a gentle floral nuance building with air. Fleshy and smooth in texture, picking up spiciness and a note of licorice in the mid-palate. Shows very good energy on the finish, which features cola and anise qualities. 2008 Vintage Josh Raynolds, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar - July 2012 90 Points - Bright ruby-red. Pungent aromas of dried red fruits, cherry-cola and herbs, with a slow-mounting floral quality. A large-scaled, deeply flavored pinot that offers chewy raspberry and bitter cherry flavors with smoky spice and rose nuances. Supple tannins come up on the long finish, adding shape and back-end grip. I'd let this one age for a while. Josh Raynolds, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar - July 2011 Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir Page 2
90 Points - With broad flavors of sassafras, cola and sarsaparilla, this ripe wine has sweet extracted cherry fruit at its core. Its juicy richness would be irresistible with a Kobe beef burger. Wine & Spirits Magazine, October 2011 90 Points - The 2008 Pinot Noir Homestead Block does the best job of these wines in combining elegance with power. It sports an alluring nose of spicy red fruits and floral notes, succulent red fruit flavors, a plush palate presence and excellent concentration and balance. It will be at its best from 2012 to 2020. Jay Miller, erobertparker.com, October 2010 2005 Vintage Great wine for a summer patio BBQ with salmon or poultry. Refreshing acidity with bright fruits. Food Pairings: Star anise braised lamb, grilled salmon. Very well balanced with dark cherry aromas... The velvety finish on the palate lingered. It went fantastically with a pork dish I created, that was a Coffee and Cocoa encrusted Pork Tenderloin cooked on a mesquite plank. It took me 5 minutes to taste the wine because I was enjoying the nose so much. This is a perfect Oregon Pinot. The smell immediately transformed me to another place, maybe Burgundy. Food Pairings: Bass with butter sauce, grilled lamb with chimi chusi, raw tuna with raw quail egg, spicy sauce. Food Professional Tasting Panel - June 2009 Moderately dark reddish-purple color. Darkly fruited aromas, particularly mu shu plum sauce and black raspberries, draw you into the glass. Earth-dusted black fruits cascade through the palate still encased in noticeable but refined tannins. Oak plays a supporting role in the background. A full-bodied fruit-driven wine displaying the appealing smooth texture characteristic of all the Van Duzer Pinot Noirs. This wine is still a Lolita and will benefit from even further cellaring. Decant if you can t wait. Rusty Gaffney, M.D., PinotFile - September 5, 2009 Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir Page 3
boeuf bourguignon. Recommended Pretty floral, red cherry, and graham aromas are fresh in the nose. Youthful flavors of black cherries are accented by notes of dust earth, cola and dried rose petals on the tongue. An interesting amalgam of fruit, spice, and floral qualities gives this Pinot plenty of character. Allow it time in the glass to open before serving with Northwest Palate Magazine, March/April 2010 2004 Vintage Recommended - Always a big wine, made from juicy, silky lush old vine (24 year) Pommard vines, less than 300 cases of this big wine were made. The original farm house was built on this plot, ths the "Homested" designation. Note that 12.6% alcohol, quite low for an Oregon Pinot noir, and makes this wine about flavor, not "kick." Big, weighty, this wine takes its time opening up but rewards with big flavors. Scents of rose, hibiscus, and violet mingle with hints of black cherry, cedar, barrel toast and mint. Flavors restate the sentents, and add off-the-charts intense juicy dark cherry, with cedar, sweet oak and creamy pie spices adding to a classic Pinot "meaty" quality. The meaty, savory, massive quality steps into the background with age and aeration, opening up to those rich red and black cherry flavors we love in a Pommard. This is a big, weighty wine. It's tight and young, needs cellaring or, if you must, lengthy decanting to show itself at its best right now. There are very finegrained, silky tannins in the creamy finish. The balance and layered flavors make this wine our favorite of the last three vintages, especially for cellaring. Drink from 2008-2014 - comparable to much more expensive Pinots with aging. 2003 Vintage AvalonWine.com - October 2006 89 Points - Big and rawboned for a Pinot Noir, with plum and berry flavors against an alcoholic feel, picking up savory meaty notes as the finish persists. Best after 2007. Wine Spectator - December 15, 2005 Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir Page 4
2002 Vintage Deep, brooding aromas of black cherry, plum, and cola. Big, warm, and opulent, with concentrated flavors of black fruit and plum. Round and well balanced, with a note of black tea in the long finish. Serve with pomegranate/molasses-glazed roast duck. Northwest Palate - November 2004 92 Points - Plump and generous, brimming with currant, white pepper and spice flavors that linger beautifully on the fine-grained finish. Impressive for its persistence without apparent weight. Drink now through 2012. Harvey Steiman Wine Spectator - May 31, 2004 Acclaim for Homestead Block Pinot Noir Page 5