Oregon Pinot Noir and Gris for $6.99

Today I had a rep bring in 2 wines under the Rascal label. Both are 2007 and will retail for $6.99. They are a little on the light side but really good for this price. They both would be picked as Pinot Noir and Gris. I would expect that we will be seeing more of wines like this in price but will they match the quality .
These are made by Linda at Stone Wolf. A very nice job indeed, especially at this price.

Today I had a rep bring in 2 wines under the Rascal label. Both are 2007 and will retail for $6.99. They are a little on the light side but really good for this price. They both would be picked as Pinot Noir and Gris. I would expect that we will be seeing more of wines like this in price but will they match the quality .
These are made by Linda at Stone Wolf. A very nice job indeed, especially at this price.

Linda just told me today she came out admitting she made these wines. I new when she first sent them to Roth's.

Like I said before, I think she has done a very good job. I have only met here once back at least 4-5 years at a Valley trade tasting. Hopefully if she is around Tualatin some day I may get to meet her and ask a few questions. Now that I think about it, her daughter was there while Linda was out in the crowd.

Like I said before, I think she has done a very good job. I have only met here once back at least 4-5 years at a Valley trade tasting. Hopefully if she is around Tualatin some day I may get to meet her and ask a few questions. Now that I think about it, her daughter was there while Linda was out in the crowd.

When I said "admitting she made" the wines I certainly wasn't implying anything about quality! She asked me to keep quiet about the fact that she made these - and I did - although I was sitting in her office when the labels came in and was there for bottling. I don't think she was at all worried that the wines would be inferior in any way - it's my feeling that she didn't want to inadvertently incur the wrath of industry folks.

I think it's great.

OK, we have all this excess juice here in Oregon. Smart people will come up with ways to utilize it and be able to make money as well. Linda has also made some nice wine at a great price. For me and my store, the people who will be buying this would not be buying $10 wines. My $10 wine people don't want to spend $15. I have tasted plenty of other $6.99 Pinot Noirs and they can be horrid. This is a good thing. This will not impact most other Oregon producers.

I would like to know where these wines were sourced from. They are labeled as Willamette Valley but that doesn't mean much . I expect to see lots more but not as good as quality as Rascal. We shall see. Nice job Linda. I still want to taste your Stone Wolf.

Michael, et all... Chef you too !!
We made all of the wines in the Rascal label, as opposed to purchasing bulk juice. Although I think you are right Michael, there does seem to be a goodly amount of bulk on the market, and my gut has been telling me for months there is more to come - we shall see. 2009 appears to be a BIG crop so far, will be interesting to watch how folks farm, will they drop, bet on the weather, try to squish into full cellars, or will there be a nice spot market at the end ?? Time will tell.
I am going to use my memory here as I am at the beach tonight with no cheat sheets, but here goes. The Pinot Noir was sourced from 3 different vineyard sites, in 3 very different parts of the valley. One is our home estate (Lindsay) in the McMinnville AVA, one is in Rickreall, Farmer Rd, that we actually owned for 10 years so were very familiar with and lastly was Kraemer, and most of thier sites are located in the Mt Angel area. We have been buying from this family for years and must say, they are Farmers with a capital F - they KNOW grapes, and berries and peppers and you name it ! All of our Pinot Noir is made in the traditional (labor intesive) style, then of course aged in barrels, then blended.
The Pinot Gris all came from the Kraemer farm, again we have years of experience with these grapes. We slow ferment to maintain the esthers (aromas) and enhance the palate, also this year kept it on its lees a while longer than normal to give it some extra body. It's sister wine recently won Best of Class and Double gold at the national womens wine competition - so we should have a chance of at least half the population liking it
Its made in a fruit forward style, off dry yet not sweet ( we have nothing to hide behind sugar in this wine ). I said when the '07s came in and the press was quick to trash our vintage, that I felt the whites would be stellar and I think they are. I also thought in 2007 that the Pinot could be more kinder, softer, feminine which I think is how Pinot should be, and also that it would be a winemakers vintage... it's still a bit too early to tell, but I will stand by this.
Anyway, thanks for the nice words, and will try to get out to see you this week
Wine should be FUN !

Had our first poke at the Rascal PN this evening and it definitely punches waaay above its' weight. Nice wine at a sub-$10 price...not often I get to say that.
I think "Bork" would like it!

Had our first poke at the Rascal PN this evening and it definitely punches waaay above its' weight. Nice wine at a sub-$10 price...not often I get to say that.
I think "Bork" would like it!

Bill, I opened a bottle of the pinot on Saturday, and revisited it this evening, and it is better today than when first opened. Lean, but full of herbs. I haven't tried the pg, but fully expect it to bet top notch for the $$.

[James Roscoe]

Are we going to see this on the east coast? In particular, are we going to see it in the DC area?

Hopefully Linda can find a rep to bring the wines into Alberta, nudge wink!

At this time there are no plans to take Rascal out of the Pacific NW. We honesty don't make enough to sell on a national level and have commitments for all of our production here locally.
Thanks for the kind words, and keep exploring !
Linda

[James Roscoe]

So Chef, would you ship "olive oil" to Maryland if I sent you the funds to get me some of Linda's extra special?

So Chef, would you ship "olive oil" to Maryland if I sent you the funds to get me some of Linda's extra special?

Well, if you're that into olive oil I'll see what I can do.

Had our first poke at the Rascal PN this evening and it definitely punches waaay above its' weight. Nice wine at a sub-$10 price...not often I get to say that.
I think "Bork" would like it!

It would be great if Bork and Bib would like it!

JB

So Chef, would you ship "olive oil" to Maryland if I sent you the funds to get me some of Linda's extra special?

Well, if you're that into olive oil I'll see what I can do.

No, no, no! I say let JR come to Oregon, like the rest of us, for his olive oil!

JB

Someone brought the 2009 Rascal Pinot Gris to our wine club tasting last night, and we're in DC so it must be here?? My guess is she got it from Schneiders.