Wine Maker's Notes

All of our wines are from the Ribbon Ridge AVA.

2008 Estate Pinot Gris

At first, this wine serves your palate with hints of grapefruit and tart apple, but those hints gradually fade into softer, mildly sweet flavors of honeydew melon, pear and a wonderful touch of the lilac just blooming in the spring. You will discover a mouth filling fullness with hints of mineral and a crisp, clean finish.

2007 Ribbon Ridge Pinot Noir

White chocolate; berries and cream. That is what will greet you when you first open a bottle of the 2007 Ribbon Ridge Pinot. This wine offers a lovely ruby red color in the glass, with plenty of the ever intriguing Whistling Ridge Vineyards nose: a distinctive combination of earthiness with a delicate perfume of ripe berries and a hint of spice. The 2007 vintage offers flavors of raspberry fruit with a balanced acidity that leads to a long, tasty finish. Drink this wine now, or hold on to it to discover how gracefully it will age.

2006 Ribbon Ridge Pinot Noir

Bright light ruby color in the glass with red currant, fresh cracked black pepper, hints of leather and earth in the nose. Ripe Oregon Bing cherries balance with the tart finish. This wine will benefit from time in the bottle, but is drinking well now. Alcohol and tannins are present but not overpowering.

2006 Estate Pinot Noir

Rich, deep ruby color in the glass with soft red fruit and perfumed leather on the nose. This is a very intriguing wine on the palate with complex interwoven flavors of sweet plums, vanilla, toasted meringue and other subtleties. This wine has continued to evolve since bottling and shows great potential. Acidity, alcohol and tannins are well-balanced in the finish.

2006 Estate North Block Pinot Noir

This wine is a beautiful plum color in the glass. There is an amazing combination of chocolate, raspberry and mint in the nose, followed by a taste of concentrated ripe red plums. This wine is full and soft with a balance of good tannin and acid. It is drinking well now and will definitely improve with age.

2004 Estate Pinot Noir

The deep garnet in the glass anticipates the intensity and concentration in this wine. 2004 was a very unusual year with limited fruit set followed by a long even growing season. The nose is a rich, sweet blend of red fruit. On the palate the concentrated flavors of blackberry, cherry and apple mingle with vanilla and toasted pie crust. Mid-palate releases some mocha and dark chocolate. The wine is drinking extremely well, but overall this is a very big, full, cellar wine with a finish that is balanced and lingering.

Wineries Showcasing Whistling Ridge Vineyards Fruit

Contact us to place your order. Our tasting room, located at 14551 NE North Valley Road in Newberg, is open on Thanksgiving and Memorial Day weekends and by appointment.

Other wineries making wines from our grapes include:

• Matello
• Patricia Green Cellars
• Belle Pente
• Natalie's Estate Winery

 Other General Information

Grafted Rootstock

• In 1992 we planted nearly 175 experimental rootstock from Oregon State University. All of this rootstock was the Wadenswil clone on six types of grafted root stock: 3309, Harmony, 101-14, 44-53, 5C, and 420A.
• In 1995 we planted 300 grafted root stock: 200 Pinot Noir, 375 on 44-53 and 100 Pinot Noir, 113 on 420A.
• In 1996 we planted 175 grafted root stock: 15 Pinot Noir 375 on 44-53, 25 Pinot Noir 113 on 420A, 68 Pommard on 5C, and 67 Pommard on SO4.
• In 1996 we planted 531 Pinot Gris on several root stocks: 25 clone 146 on 110R, 50 clone 152 on 110R, 25 clone 146 on 101-14, 163 clone on 125AA, 75 clone 146 on 44-53, 39 clone 152 on 44-53, and 128 clone 146 on SO4.

 Oregon State University Rootstock Trials

Whistling Ridge Vineyards was chosen as one of five sites for a rootstock trial conducted by Oregon State University Extension Service. The trials included five replicated blocks of plants grafted onto the following six stocks: 3309 Couderc, 101-14 Millardet et De Grasset, 44-53 Malegue, 420A Millardet et De Grasset, 5C Teleki, and Harmony, and one Pinot Noir, self-rooted.

Soil samples were taken at each vineyard and analyzed for macro and micro nutrients. The results are available from Oregon State University or Whistling Ridge Vineyards.

Results

1995: OSU measured the effect of the rootstock on yield and yield components of Pinot Noir grapevines at each vineyard. This included fruit set, yield, fruit quality, canopy development, and vigor.

Conclusions: The rootstock effect on scion performance varied greatly from site to site. Also, it was found on each site that ungrafted vines did not perform well in yield or fruit quality.

1996: In addition to measuring the yield, fruit quality, canopy development, and vine vigor, we also measured wood carbohydrate reserves. There were no rootstock differences in either sugars or starch in the permanent wood of the vineyard.

Conclusions: As found in 1995, the ungrafted vines did not show the best performance in yield or fruit quality.