Yet by the late 1960s, the potential to produce life-changing Pinot Noir had lured a handful of winemakers to the remote Willamette Valley. Emboldened by their early successes, vintners from California to the Côte d’Or took notice, and a wave of interest and investment ensued in the following years. A burst of expansion occurred in the early 2000s, when many of the last, best hillside sites were claimed and planted. Premier Pacific Vineyards developed prime vineyard land just as the valley’s vibrant styles of Pinot Noir achieved international renown. One such site, positioned on a southwest-facing slope of weathered volcanic soils, clustered amidst the most historic vineyards of the Eola-Amity Hills, is Zena Crown Vineyard.
Since its third leaf, Zena Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir has been subject to multiple interpretations; it became a sought-after single-vineyard designate for top producers like Beaux Frères, Soter, and Penner-Ash. With the 2013 harvest, however, Zena Crown emerged as a true Oregon domaine. As Shane adapts to its rhythms and natural oscillations, he seeks to explore and manifest the singular voice of this special plot of land, in accordance with the remote and rugged beauty of the Eola-Amity Hills.
Jackson Family Wines purchased the Zena Crown Vineyard just west of Salem in 2013, marking their first foray into Oregon. With cautious optimism, the desire to remain a harmonious neighbor, and the patience to watch this vineyard's story slowly unfold, they engaged Willamette Valley winemaker and passionate Pacific Northwest native SHANE MOORE to bring Zena Crown Vineyard to life.
Proximity to the Pacific, rather than the extreme seasonal flux of the continental interior, allows the Willamette Valley to accumulate annual temperature and degree-day averages similar to those in Burgundy. Yet these summations are achieved differently—in the Willamette Valley, the growing season is longer and drier, with fewer summer heat spikes and only rare episodes of hail. In July and August, the Willamette Valley experiences only moderate heat, with temperatures seldom surpassing 90° F. But despite a longer, even growing season and the gift of summer sunshine, Willamette Valley’s winemakers, like those in the Côte d’Or, endure sleepless nights as fall weather approaches with its attendant fog, capricious rains, and the specter of frost threatening a year’s work. Adaptation, and a little luck, are key to navigating the valley’s climate and preserving its promise of lithe and luminous Pinot Noir.
Burgundy’s famed limestone is absent in Oregon. Here, the ground below was forged through seafloor upheaval, volcanic power, and catastrophic floods at the close of the last ice age. The Willamette Valley’s best Pinot Noir is grown on slopes of windblown loess, uplifted marine sediment, and reddish volcanic soils. Formed from weathered basalt and younger than the marine sedimentary layers underneath, the volcanic series are associated with some of the most classic examples of Willamette Valley Pinot Noir. Volcanic soils color the Dundee Hills red and characterize many of Eola-Amity Hills’ most important sites, including Zena Crown. The nutrient-poor, well-drained Jory series is the most abundant volcanic type throughout the valley, as well as the state’s official soil. Along with the shallower basaltic series Nekia and Witzel, Jory sculpts wines of lighter color and more expressive red fruit aromas—a stark contrast to the darker fruit flavors and heft conjured from marine-derived soil series elsewhere in Willamette Valley.
In the Eola-Amity Hills, our volcanic soils help maintain aromatic lift, our climate keeps acidity buoyant, and the punishing winds piping through the Van Duzer Corridor add an overcoat of structured tannin.
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Prager Smaragd Klaus Riesling is made from 100 percent Riesling.
Franz Prager, co-founder of the Vinea Wachau, had already earned a reputation for his wines when Toni Bodenstein married into the family. Bodenstein’s passion for biodiversity and old terraces, coupled with brilliant winemaking, places Prager in the highest echelon of Austrian producers.
Smaragd is a designation of ripeness for dry wines used exclusively by members of the Vinea Wachau. The wines must have minimum alcohol of 12.5%. The grapes are hand-harvested, typically in October and November, and are sent directly to press where they spontaneously ferment in stainless-steel tanks.
Klaus sits adjacent to Achleiten and is one of the Wachau’s most famous vineyards for Riesling. The vineyard is incredibly steep with a gradient of 77% at its steepest point. The southeast-facing terraced vineyard of dark migmatite-amphibolite and paragneiss produces a tightly wound and powerful wine. The parcel belonging to Toni Bodenstein was planted in 1952.
Tasting Notes:
Austrian Riesling is often defined by elevated levels of dry extract thanks to a lengthy ripening period and freshness due to dramatic temperature swings between day and night. “Klaus is not a charming Riesling,” says Toni Bodenstein with a wink. Klaus is Prager’s most assertive and robust Riesling.
Food Pairing
Riesling’s high acidity makes it one of the most versatile wines at the table. Riesling can be used to cut the fattiness of foods such as pork or sausages and can tame some saltiness. Conversely, it can highlight foods such as fish or vegetables in the same way a squeeze of lemon or a vinaigrette might.
Review:
What a stunning example of cool climate riesling. It’s full-bodied and deep, but so cool and delicate, packing in sleek layers of honeysuckle, apricots, lemons and grapefruit married to thyme and crushed rock. So long and seamless, with tension and focus that just keeps going. Sustainable. Try from 2025.
-James Suckling 98 Points
Villa Monti Chianti Superiore DOCG Organic is made from 90% Sangiovese, 5% Canaiolo and 5% Colorino.
Ruby red color, with delicious fruity and floral aromas, with a pleasant structure and tannic density, leading to a balanced and persistent finish.
The grapes are coming from Le Tire, Paradiso La Fonte parcels with good sun exposure that gives the wine a lot of roundness and juiciness.
Red meat, Game, Cheese.