2023 Estate Vineyard Old Vine Pinot Noir

The Blocks: The vineyard is divided into seventeen individual sections wrapped 360 degrees around a hillside that are all picked, fermented and barreled separately. The primary blocks of the Estate Vineyard bottling are:

Ceremony Block: Planted in 2000 to Pommard, this block is named after a cleansing and healing ceremony Patty and Jim did with their friend Julianne Allen shortly after buying the property. This was in an effort to provide some energetic change at a time when the vineyard and property truly were in need of that. This block lies adjacent to the east of the Wadensvil Block in the northeast corner of the vineyard. Just as that block took many years to come into its own, this block has gone through some trials to reach the point it has. Initially planted as a nearly 3.5 acre block it wasn’t until 2018 that we realized that around 1.75 acres of it would be better suited for Chardonnay and that portion was grafted in 2019 allowing for the remainder to begin to come into focus.

Hallelujah Block: This is a 1990 planting on an east sloping section of the vineyard, originally planted to Pinot Gris. In 2002 we finally had the time to graft it over to Pinot Noir. Hence, the name of the block. This 1.71 acre block has been the backbone of the Old Vine bottling for several years. The Old Vine flavor profile of red fruits, quartz-laden minerality and finely tense structure is exactly what this block provides. Other blocks contribute more specific facets but no block has more of the Old Vine character across the board than the Hallelujah Block.

Patty’s Block: This 1.81 acre block planted on the steeply sloping southwest hillside planted in 1998 has become the signature block of the vineyard over the past couple of years. It was renamed to Patty’s in 2024 when we realized the wine in barrel had achieved a level of quality beyond all the other blocks in the vineyard. Every aspect of what this vineyard does is on display here only dialed up to levels that is completely unique.

Sammy’s Block: This is another of the interplanted blocks of differing aged vines in the vineyard. The older plants, of which there is still a small number remaining, were planted in 1987 while the interplanting was done in 2000. Those vines now are the dominant aspect of this block and over the past couple of years has moved from the bolder Estate-based qualities to the more well-defined nature of the Old Vine bottling. This east-southeast section was renamed in 2023 after the Director of Sales’ beloved boxer who passed away earlier in the year.

West Etzel Block, Pommard Clone: This is the second oldest section of the vineyard, having been planted in 1986. As with all the pre-1990 plantings this section has suffered a loss of plants over the years due to phylloxera. There is still 0.64 acres left interplanted with the Dijon 114 that makes up the majority of the block so that in high-yielding years like 2023 we still get a whole fermenter of grapes from here. This west-northwest facing section brings the darkest and most sauvage-natured qualities to the wine.

Winery Block: The OG planting of the winery, done in 1984 making it the second oldest planting in the Ribbon Ridge AVA. The majority of those plants have been removed due to phylloxera but there are a not insignificant number still contributing. An inter-planting done when we arrived in 2000 carries the day in this block now. This section has a clay and shale subsoil which is unique in the vineyard and at about 250’ elevation it is the lowest part of the otherwise very hilly site. At its best this block contributes the most dense and deeply red fruit laden with umami-oriented texture.

Farming Practices: We have done the management of this property internally since we purchased it in 2000 with the exception of 2014 and 2015 when Sterling Fox’s management service did the work. Also, at that time, the vineyard was switched entirely to organic farming practices and remains so to this day. The vineyard has always been dry farmed.

Picking Dates, Tonnages, Tons/Acre: Due to the size of the site and the breadth of differences between blocks the picking schedule is vast. That has been the norm. As we all know, it is not normal anymore. The majority of the site was picked on September 14th-17th and all of these blocks were picked within those 4 intense days. Ceremony Block 09/16; 4.65 tons at 2.66 tons/acre. Hallelujah Block 09/16; 5.86 tons at 3.42 tons/acre. Patty’s Block 09/15; 7.95 tons at 4.39 tons/acre. Sammy’s Block 09/17; 6.82 tons at 4.08 tons/acre. West Etzel Block, Pommard Clone 09/14; 1.88 tons at 2.94 tons/acre. Winery Block 09/17; 3.38 tons at 2.11 tons/acre.

Vinification: This wine was created with 100% destemmed fruit and a combination of pumpovers and pigeages.

Winemaking: Fermentations were managed exclusively by pigeages to ensure gentle handling, extraction and delicate tannin construction. Cold soaks were generally 4-5 days across all the fermenters. Full fermentation from beginning to pressing ranged from 16-19 days. A 48-hour settling of pressed wine occurred prior to being racked to barrel. All wines were on full lees until assemblage for bottling. Bottled without fining or filtration.

Barrels: This 59-barrel bottling consists of just 4 new barrels (7%), a combination of sixteen once and twice-filled barrels (27%) and a large selection of neutral barrels (66%). Wine was in barrel until late July and bottled in late August allowing for around 10 months in barrel.

Ceremony Block: 1 barrel
Hallelujah Block: 17 barrels
Patty’s Block: 10 barrels
Sammy’s Block: 11 barrels
West Etzel Block, Pommard Clone: 4 barrels
Winery Block: 7 barrels

Notes: The Estate Vineyard, Old Vine bottling is the flagship wine of Patricia Green Cellars. It exists because it is both delicious and unique but also because it shows a particular aspect of this vineyard and the Ribbon Ridge AVA as a whole. This bottling is made up nearly entirely from vines with between 24-38 years in vine age, with a large amount being right at 32 years. We have discovered that at around 25 years of vine age we often see a change in the vines’ nature as they become bigger and healthier plants with deep root systems. Once this happens the fruit and resulting wines shift from the darker fruit spectrum to a brighter, redder style. The wine gains length and a wonderful counterbalance of austerity to its rich texture. As well there is a sense of minerality intermingling with the long chain tannins that draw the wine out and provide exceptional length. The wine finished with numbers of a TA of 5.4, a pH of 3.54, a free sulfur level below 25 ppm and a total sulfur below 65 ppm.

Tasting Note: Please be aware that I am loathe to write tasting notes on our wines. Each person has an individual palate and therefore unique experiences with every wine. Also, what a person has tasted in their life and what they enjoy informs them on what a wine is like. If I tell you a wine tastes like cherries and you either have never had a cherry or don’t like cherries what I am saying is irrelevant information. That being said I have been asked to include my thoughts on each wine (since we have so many).

The 2023 Estate Vineyard Old Vine Pinot Noir is the beginning of seeing the vision of this vineyard realized. Vines that were planted in our first vintage owning the property (2000) are now making up some chunk of this bottling while the vines planted in the 1980s and 1990s are in their fully mature glory and providing enormous depth and complexity to this bottling. This bottling now weaves together ripe red fruits, clear minerality and deep structure in the way that only Ribbon Ridge AVA wines can in Oregon. This allows for both even more pleasure for early drinking and more reward for long-term aging. In that you find the most Patricia Green Cellars thing about our most important wine.