92pts Wine Enthusiast

The wine kicks off with a clean saline aroma reminiscent of the shell lining of a fresh-shucked oyster. Then blackcap raspberry, vanilla and black tea aromas kick in. Plush tannins and modest acidity support a rich, sappy cherry flavor that is joined by lemon basil tea and a bit of thyme. A distinctly creamy texture.

93pts Wines Spectator

Sleek and steely, with fresh cherry and raspberry flavors that are anchored by notes of stony mineral and black tea, building tension toward medium-grained tannins. Drink now through 2031.

91pts Jeb Dunnuck

Pouring a deep youthful purple-ruby, the 2021 Pinot Noir Ridgecrest Vineyard Estate does needs a little air on opening before revealing more floral and primary fruit of blackberry, purple flowers, and black licorice candy. Full-bodied without being heavy, it continues with its darker fruit but turns more savory, with notes of tea leaf and turned earth, a gravelly texture, and good length on the finish. Drink 2023-2028. - Audrey Frick

Winemaker's Notes -

If the 2021 Ridgecrest Estate Pinot Noir is a home run, this is a Grand Slam. Take an amazing vintage like 2021, and then hand-select the best, most complex, age-worthy barrels, age them for an extra 6 months in oak, and bottle it up with love and care. Visually, this Pinot is deep garnet in color, clear and crystalline clear, with a hue of purple around the edge. The nose and palate harmonize with three-dimensional structure, black cherry, hibiscus, tobacco, strawberry compote, Earl Grey Tea, and dark chocolate. The palate has so many layers that continue to build, evolve, and open up with time in the glass, showing the true potential of this wine’s age-ability; very much a restrained flower waiting to open. The essence of this Pinot, dense on the core, vivid in texture and freshness, but soothing like warm wood, begs for wool sweaters and fireside chats – a true gem of the vintage.

Vintage Notes -

2021 looks excellent - of course, through the smoky rearview of 2020, it isn’t hard. Despite a growing season with searing heat spikes (116F), 2021 was a moderate vintage, beginning harvest the third earliest time in the last two decades, and ending in less than a month, October 5th. It was a “wait-until-they're ripe” vintage with a welcome splash of rain midway in September, after grapes were largely picked - just to prove we're Oregonians.

Based on full-ripeness AND generally very good acidity, 2021 may ultimately resemble 2018 in concentration, and 2008 in crop yield. Small and precise, leaving us wishing we had more to share.