honestly do not remember how I knew to visit Adelsheim when BrooklynLady and I toured Willamette wine country in the unusually sunny and warm first week of January, 2005. One that I particularly remember is the 1994 Elizabeth's Reserve that we drank while packing the night before our Loire Valley trip. But back to Pinot. MORE >>

In that spirit, BrooklynLady and I dug into the ol' wine fridge and sampled five Oregon Pinots from the Willamette Valley. 2004 was a tough year in the Willamette Valley because a cold spell and then later on a rainy spell threatened the crop. I've been a bit neglectful of my Oregon wines lately. Okay, so far so good. MORE >>

Pinot Noir in Oregon's Willamette Valley is, in my opinion, still trying to figure out what it wants to be. From what I've experienced, the majority of Willamette Valley Pinot is made in the new world style, and that's fine. Is it a new world style wine, dense, concentrated, and fruit forward? The new vintage costs $45. MORE >>

2002 was supposed to be the vintage of the millennium in the Willamette Valley, but I haven't been loving the wines. No, this is not some sort of euphemism. I've used my Weber grill to smoke pork ribs plenty of times, but never a beef brisket. out of 10 times at the BBQ joint I order ribs, so at home I cook ribs. know.who really cares. MORE >>

This took a while to open up. The fruit seems to have faded and the sweetness is gone. It's dry, complex, and drinking very nicely this year. Mushrooms, figs, dessicated currants and black truffles. MORE >>