2016 Boedecker Cellars Stewart Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
93 Points, James Suckling 92 Points, Decanter 91 Points, Vinous
Tasting Notes
Sweetly spiced blueberry biscuits and notes of violets and graphite, making a fresh impression. The palate has a very plush, supple feel with smoothly resolved, fine tannins that build impressive depth on the finish. Drink or hold. - James Suckling
Vivid crimson. Displays spice-tinged raspberry and cherry scents that are complicated by suggestions of musky sassafras, herb, and floral nuances. Gently sweet and focused on the palate, offering juicy red/dark berry flavors along with suggestions of licorice and bitter chocolate. Closes with a solid finishing punch, dusty tannins, and very good, spicy tenacity. - Vinous
Dark lingonberry and cherry flavors and a soft, elegant texture balanced with a vivid core of acidity throughout.
The Vineyards
Cherry Grove Vineyard – Willamette Valley. Northern border of YC AVA cut off, on a ridgeline that runs east/west from the coast range. Marine sedimentary -YC AVA soils, 250 -300’ south facing.
Planted 2000. LIVE certified. Clones: 114, 777, Pommard, Wadenswil.
Finnigan Hill Vineyard – Chehalem Mountains, Jory (volcanic) soil, 5-7 year old vines. LIVE certified.
Clones: Pommard, Wadenswil.
The Process
Fermented in 1.5-ton open top fermenters, 30% whole cluster, 3 - 5 day cold soak, 5 - 7 day primary ferment (spontaneous - not inoculated), 1-2 day post-ferment. 19 month elevage: 10 months sur lie in 25% new French barrels, then 9 months in 100% neutral barrels.
Specs
Appellation: Willamette Valley
Alcohol: 13.4%
Production: 1000 cases
Harvest Dates: Sept. 15th - Sept. 23rd, 2016
Bottled May 2018
Release date: August 2019
2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
Attractive herbs and leaves with a wild-cherry core and a sweetly fragrant layer of baking spices. The palate has an attractive build and sappy, almost tangy red cherries. Good definition here. - James Suckling
Deep, glistening red. Pungent, spice-accented cherry and red berry aromas are complemented by suggestions of succulent herbs and flowers. Lively and focused on the palate, offering bitter cherry, raspberry, and spicecake flavors and a touch of licorice. Finishes long and spicy, with sneaky tannins and a sweetening touch of vanilla. - Vinous
Vibrant and fresh, with lively cherry and blueberry accents that take on sassafras and spice flavors, lingering on a long finish. - Wine Spectator
Rich and brooding with black currant flavors and just a hint of savory. Built on a strong tannin backbone; finishes with spice and length.
The Vineyards
Cherry Grove Vineyard – Willamette Valley. Northern border of YC AVA . Melbourne series soil: marine sedimentary over degraded sandstone. 250 -300’ south facing. Planted 2000. LIVE
certified. Clones: 115, 667.
Sustainably farmed, naturally crafted. Hand-harvested grapes and hands-on winemaking with native yeasts, spontaneous ferments, small fermenters, and French oak barrels. Eighteen to twenty-month elevage, nine to twelve months in bottle before release, to cellar for 20+ years.
Technical: 30% whole cluster, 3 - 5 day cold soak, 5 - 7 day primary ferment, 1-2 day post-ferment. 19 month elevage: 10 months sur lie in ~35% new French barrels, then 9 months in 100% neutral barrels.
Specs
Appellation: Willamette Valley
Alcohol: 13.5%
Harvest Dates: Sept. 8th - Sept. 23rd, 2016
Bottled June 2018
What’s Included
4-bottles:
2x 2016 Boedecker Cellars Stewart Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
2x 2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
Case:
6x 2016 Boedecker Cellars Stewart Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
6x 2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
Small lot, terroir-driven Pinot Noirs - Grown in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, handcrafted in Portland, Oregon
Husband and wife team Stewart and Athena Boedecker created Boedecker Cellars in 2003 and have crafted wines focused on quality, finesse, and locality ever since.
After having lived abroad in Europe for two years, Pacific Northwest natives Stewart and Athena Boedecker returned home to found Boedecker Cellars in Oregon’s revered Willamette Valley. After five years spent honing their craft at the Carlton Winemakers Studio in Carlton, Oregon, they built their winery in the heart of industrial Northwest Portland – just a stone’s throw from downtown and yet just 40 minutes from the vineyards– where they continue to make their acclaimed wines from Oregon’s Willamette Valley. When you visit Boedecker Cellars today you will likely encounter Stewart and Athena in the cellar tasting through barrels and tending their small lot, world-class wines.
Guided by both tradition and science, we use minimal intervention techniques in our winery. Every stage of the process is done by hand, including harvesting, sorting, punching down, and racking. Fermenting with native yeasts lets us highlight the unique qualities of each vineyard, bringing every aspect of terroir into the cellar. We taste, blend and taste some more, age our Pinot Noirs for a year and a half in barrel, bottle, and release the wines six months to a year later.
Boedecker Cellars is a community made up of dedicated and hardworking folks. Our winemaking team consists of Stewart, Athena, friends, and family. During harvest, everyone comes to help, putting in 12- to 14-hour days in the cellar, sharing in the craft and creation of our wines.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Boedecker Cellars Single Vineyard Pinot Noirs
4 bottles for $79.99 $20/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $189.99 $15.83/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
Boedecker 2016 Stewart Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
If you don’t need the story, skip right down to TASTING NOTES.
I don’t know if Alice picked this wine for me because she knows my tastes, but it sure seems like it!
The Holy Grail of wine for me is old Burgundy. I have quite a few in my cellar from the 50’s or even earlier. Of course, there is a great risk in pinot so old, but when you hit that rare magic bottle it’s worth all the disappointment.
The problem for me with very young pinot noir—and this is even true of great Burgundies—is that the youthful fruit often buries the potential earthy complexity of the grape and the winemaking applied to it. This complexity often takes many years to show up, even in this varietal reputed to be for younger drinking.
So I was delighted when I received my lab rat bottle to discover that it was a pinot with six years of age on it. Still certainly young, but old enough to be showing some secondary characteristics.
Oregon pinot noir got a lot of hype when they were just starting out in the 80’s, but I was often disappointed. However I’ve had some great ones lately from the Willamette Valley—where this is from—and I even joined a few wine clubs when I visited there last summer.
UPS played some delivery games with this bottle, but it did show up a day in advance, allowing me to transfer it from their oven to a 60 degree cellar, where it rested for 24 hours.
We decided to have half the bottle before and with lunch, and the other half at dinner. Tasted with two Burgundy lovers.
TASTING NOTES
Twist and pour one glass, the rest decanted to aerate.
No browning at all, just a perfect rim in the glass.
Nice herbal nose, fairly fragrant, definitely varietal, a touch of oak.
Good fruit on the palate. Very Burgundian, long, earthy, slightly sweet finish (although I’m sure that’s fruit, as it’s bone dry on the palate.) Still some nice tannins.
As it warms up it becomes creamy, almost viscous in the mouth. Cherry. Definitely not lacking for fruit. Good acid gives it a nice spritz at the end.
Develops a lot more wood as it warms. A bit of mint after 30 minutes.
Really integrated, essence of Pinot Noir. This would be a great classroom wine as it’s spot on what it should be.
One hour: pine tree and forest floor.
After an hour the dregs of the decanter really developed a wonderful smoky and earthy nose. This then showed up in the glass.
Here’s a weird but delightful note in the nose… wait for it… pickled turnip? It’s subtle but I like it. This is what’s so fun about wine.
90 minutes: definitely red licorice.
This was a great match with scratch-baked herb biscuits and Heidi’s Raspberry Red Chile Ginger Jam!
At Dinner:
OK, this wasn’t fair, but I poured a glass from the bottle, now open 6 hours, into a Zeher wine glass and OMG, the aromas just explode! Fennel, curry, cocoa, caramelized butter, and garrique until the cows come home (but no barnyard at all). Speaking of cows, there’s a bit of smoky BBQ coming though now. And still that little hint of fruity sweetness at the end.
I nursed the last sip until the ten hour mark, at which point it was finally starting to fade…
The 2017 is $42 on the winery’s website. Amazing QPR at this price.
If the winemaker stops by I’m wondering the reason for these specific vineyard blends. Seems kind of random to me. What’s the goal for each of these blends?
I was chosen to rat the Boedecker Cellars 2016 Athena Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley, Oregon. I have been on a pinot noir kick lately, so maybe that’s why Alice chose me for this particular bottle.
When I opened the bottle, I was very excited to see that I was getting to try a Willamette Valley Pinot with some age on it, and one that I have not had yet! I had high hopes.
Upon receipt, I let it rest in the kitchen for about 6 hours before I opened it up. It’s a screw cap, so no chance of the wine being corked. I poured a small glass to get my first look and scent of it.
First thoughts on the nose: strawberry, mineral, and freshly cut cedar or oak (spicy wood notes). Slow legs
The color is a gorgeous barely brown-tinged ruby. The legs are medium body and languid.
I let the wine breathe in the glass for about 15 minutes before I tasted it. First sips gave me red berries like strawberry and raspberry. Tart on the front, but fruitier in the middle, and a little tannic and woodsy on the end. No alcohol heat, but a good dose of black pepper and warming spices on the finish. Very smooth and velvety in the mouth. Eminently drinkable, goes down too easy. In my opinion,it’s a good example of Willamette Valley Pinot Noir.
After being in the glass for over an hour, I started to get more herb notes and a hit of blueberry or black currant. The tannins, while still there, softened further and the black pepper and warming spice finish remained as well.
I was making chicken vindaloo for dinner, so I didn’t have a lot of hope for the food pairing. I will say, it wasn’t the worst pairing for spicy Vindaloo, but I would have preferred a Gewurztraminer with my dinner. I could taste the wine with the food, which I thought was a win in this particular case. I had a second glass with some homemade dark chocolate with walnuts, and it paired really well with the chocolate. Might be a great choice for a Valentine’s date wine. I think it would also pair really well with pork and French-sauced dishes.
I left the bottle on the kitchen counter overnight.
On day two I poured a glass to enjoy with the salad I was having for dinner. The salad included feta cheese and pepitos with a peach balsamic vinaigrette. The wine paired well and was practically unchanged from the night before. The nose became more woodsy/forest floor-like and less fruity, but there was still a whiff of red raspberry. I found the nose to be very pleasant. The flavor of the wine remained very similar to yesterday’s notes.
I really enjoyed this wine and was hoping it would be in the $15-$18 dollar range on Casemates, but wouldn’t be surprised to find it going for $20-$25 dollars. I’m really pleased to see the Casemates case price and I’ll definitely be purchasing a case.
Dang, the descriptions from the rats make this sound pretty dang good. Fruity, but with woodsy, maybe earthy notes, and smooth sounds wonderful. And the price looks great, so I’m in.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2016 Boedecker Cellars Single Vineyard Pinot Noirs - $50 = 20.82%
@eastcoastmary crap I lost that flyer with the coupon code. Can you share the code? It’s the same for everyone and tied to each of our accounts so I see no harm in sharing, right?
2016 Boedecker Cellars Stewart Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
93 Points, James Suckling
92 Points, Decanter
91 Points, Vinous
Tasting Notes
The Vineyards
The Process
Specs
2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
92 Points, James Suckling
91 Points, Vinous
90 Points, Wine Spectator
Tasting Notes
The Vineyards
The Process
Specs
What’s Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
Not for sale online, $504/case MSRP
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Thursday, Jan 5 - Monday, Jan 9
Boedecker Cellars Single Vineyard Pinot Noirs
4 bottles for $79.99 $20/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $189.99 $15.83/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2016 Boedecker Cellars Stewart Pinot Noir
2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir
Single vineyard with three vineyards? Am i missing something?
@radiolysis details details details…ha!
@radiolysis shea vineyard is well regarded in the oregon pinot world, fwiw. https://www.princeofpinot.com/winery/121/
can’t speak to the others
Boedecker 2016 Stewart Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
If you don’t need the story, skip right down to TASTING NOTES.
I don’t know if Alice picked this wine for me because she knows my tastes, but it sure seems like it!
The Holy Grail of wine for me is old Burgundy. I have quite a few in my cellar from the 50’s or even earlier. Of course, there is a great risk in pinot so old, but when you hit that rare magic bottle it’s worth all the disappointment.
The problem for me with very young pinot noir—and this is even true of great Burgundies—is that the youthful fruit often buries the potential earthy complexity of the grape and the winemaking applied to it. This complexity often takes many years to show up, even in this varietal reputed to be for younger drinking.
So I was delighted when I received my lab rat bottle to discover that it was a pinot with six years of age on it. Still certainly young, but old enough to be showing some secondary characteristics.
Oregon pinot noir got a lot of hype when they were just starting out in the 80’s, but I was often disappointed. However I’ve had some great ones lately from the Willamette Valley—where this is from—and I even joined a few wine clubs when I visited there last summer.
UPS played some delivery games with this bottle, but it did show up a day in advance, allowing me to transfer it from their oven to a 60 degree cellar, where it rested for 24 hours.
We decided to have half the bottle before and with lunch, and the other half at dinner. Tasted with two Burgundy lovers.
TASTING NOTES
Twist and pour one glass, the rest decanted to aerate.
No browning at all, just a perfect rim in the glass.
Nice herbal nose, fairly fragrant, definitely varietal, a touch of oak.
Good fruit on the palate. Very Burgundian, long, earthy, slightly sweet finish (although I’m sure that’s fruit, as it’s bone dry on the palate.) Still some nice tannins.
As it warms up it becomes creamy, almost viscous in the mouth. Cherry. Definitely not lacking for fruit. Good acid gives it a nice spritz at the end.
Develops a lot more wood as it warms. A bit of mint after 30 minutes.
Really integrated, essence of Pinot Noir. This would be a great classroom wine as it’s spot on what it should be.
One hour: pine tree and forest floor.
After an hour the dregs of the decanter really developed a wonderful smoky and earthy nose. This then showed up in the glass.
Here’s a weird but delightful note in the nose… wait for it… pickled turnip? It’s subtle but I like it. This is what’s so fun about wine.
90 minutes: definitely red licorice.
This was a great match with scratch-baked herb biscuits and Heidi’s Raspberry Red Chile Ginger Jam!
At Dinner:
OK, this wasn’t fair, but I poured a glass from the bottle, now open 6 hours, into a Zeher wine glass and OMG, the aromas just explode! Fennel, curry, cocoa, caramelized butter, and garrique until the cows come home (but no barnyard at all). Speaking of cows, there’s a bit of smoky BBQ coming though now. And still that little hint of fruity sweetness at the end.
I nursed the last sip until the ten hour mark, at which point it was finally starting to fade…
The 2017 is $42 on the winery’s website. Amazing QPR at this price.
If the winemaker stops by I’m wondering the reason for these specific vineyard blends. Seems kind of random to me. What’s the goal for each of these blends?
STEWART?!? What are youuuuu doing here?
2016 Boedecker Cellars Athena Pinot Noir
I was chosen to rat the Boedecker Cellars 2016 Athena Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley, Oregon. I have been on a pinot noir kick lately, so maybe that’s why Alice chose me for this particular bottle.
When I opened the bottle, I was very excited to see that I was getting to try a Willamette Valley Pinot with some age on it, and one that I have not had yet! I had high hopes.
Upon receipt, I let it rest in the kitchen for about 6 hours before I opened it up. It’s a screw cap, so no chance of the wine being corked. I poured a small glass to get my first look and scent of it.
First thoughts on the nose: strawberry, mineral, and freshly cut cedar or oak (spicy wood notes). Slow legs
The color is a gorgeous barely brown-tinged ruby. The legs are medium body and languid.
I let the wine breathe in the glass for about 15 minutes before I tasted it. First sips gave me red berries like strawberry and raspberry. Tart on the front, but fruitier in the middle, and a little tannic and woodsy on the end. No alcohol heat, but a good dose of black pepper and warming spices on the finish. Very smooth and velvety in the mouth. Eminently drinkable, goes down too easy. In my opinion,it’s a good example of Willamette Valley Pinot Noir.
After being in the glass for over an hour, I started to get more herb notes and a hit of blueberry or black currant. The tannins, while still there, softened further and the black pepper and warming spice finish remained as well.
I was making chicken vindaloo for dinner, so I didn’t have a lot of hope for the food pairing. I will say, it wasn’t the worst pairing for spicy Vindaloo, but I would have preferred a Gewurztraminer with my dinner. I could taste the wine with the food, which I thought was a win in this particular case. I had a second glass with some homemade dark chocolate with walnuts, and it paired really well with the chocolate. Might be a great choice for a Valentine’s date wine. I think it would also pair really well with pork and French-sauced dishes.
I left the bottle on the kitchen counter overnight.
On day two I poured a glass to enjoy with the salad I was having for dinner. The salad included feta cheese and pepitos with a peach balsamic vinaigrette. The wine paired well and was practically unchanged from the night before. The nose became more woodsy/forest floor-like and less fruity, but there was still a whiff of red raspberry. I found the nose to be very pleasant. The flavor of the wine remained very similar to yesterday’s notes.
I really enjoyed this wine and was hoping it would be in the $15-$18 dollar range on Casemates, but wouldn’t be surprised to find it going for $20-$25 dollars. I’m really pleased to see the Casemates case price and I’ll definitely be purchasing a case.
Being out of town for the holidays, I have to ask if there is an expected shipping/delivery time?
@WkdPanda
This is one of those offers that normally would be a no-brainer for us, but we should really pass. Sounds like great stuff, especially at the price!
I forgot how to post a giphy, but I bought this. Yum!
In for a case!
/giphy crystalline-crackling-jubilance
Dang, the descriptions from the rats make this sound pretty dang good. Fruity, but with woodsy, maybe earthy notes, and smooth sounds wonderful. And the price looks great, so I’m in.
/giphy olde-quiet-fete
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2016 Boedecker Cellars Single Vineyard Pinot Noirs - $50 = 20.82%
Love Oregon PN, and hard to find a good one at reasonable price. Rattage very promising. Order name I’m not so sure about…
/giphy miniature-quiet-pickle
Love an Oregon Pinot. Splitting as a holiday treat with a co-worker!
/giphy singing-dickensian-toboggan
/giphy jolly-lucky-season
A perfect use of my mystery case coupon!
@eastcoastmary crap I lost that flyer with the coupon code. Can you share the code? It’s the same for everyone and tied to each of our accounts so I see no harm in sharing, right?
@Winedavid49 Wished we bought 2 cases. Please bring them back.