Sourced from David Lett’s two original (diametrically aligned) plantings, the Eyrie 2011 Chardonnay Original Vines Reserve – harvested in the two late October days following its “regular” counterpart – represents barrels selected for synergy and mutual support. The rest – typically 5-6 out of 18-20 – are blended off into the corresponding (far from!) “regular” bottling. By its analysis, this came in at the same 11.7% alcohol as its little sibling, although the stock label reads “12.5%.” Like the 2012 original vines Pinot Gris, it evinces a piquant nuttiness and positive vegetality of lentil sprout that reinforces a sense of energetic finishing ping. And like that sibling, it delivers diverse, invigorating as well as refreshing citric traits. There’s a bit more nutty piquancy and sense of grip here, though not quite the same degree of clarity and levity. Ideally one would want to follow the pair in tandem and see how they diverge, flourish, and compete for one’s attention.
Jason Lett showed me another exciting group of wines this year that combined fidelity to the esteemed and time-tested traditions established by his dad with innovative experimentation. “With our organic approach,” says Lett, “we always do a lot of leaf-pulling, and we’re out there on the tractor an awful lot; and that paid dividends in 2010 and 2011.” As noted in my general introduction to this report, he professed himself thrilled with the back-to-back opportunities of these cool, late-harvest seasons “to make a vintage from the ‘70s again.’” That said there were some admitted drawbacks to 2011 conditions here: first and foremost that – in contrast to many Willamette vintners – Lett experienced very low yields. Nor did he feel that 2011 had in it a suitable separate South Block Pinot bottling; and there will also be no “Daphne” reserve, since that high-elevation location was too marginal for optimal ripening of Pinot, which consequently went into rose. I had the profound pleasure this July to again taste some older Eyrie vintages, which led to discussion of their care and commercialization. A careful sensory examination is being undertaken of the estate’s still vast total stocks of older wine – David Lett typically set aside double digits (up to 75 for South Block!) in cases of nearly everything he released – and the bottles that perform up to snuff used to systematically top off one another before re-corking under scrupulously controlled and optimal circumstances. (Up to 600 bottles a day can be rendered this way.) So as these re-corked treasures are sold-down – and nearly all of them have or will be given a winery retail price – oenophiles who purchase them will also be buying into an unprecedented degree of assurance about their quality: a nearly unique opportunity which I’m surprised Lett and his colleagues have not chosen to more explicitly explain and promote. (For extensive updates on this historic estate and Jason Lett’s evolution as a winemaker, consult my Issue 202 report. I have once again, for listing and database purposes, treated the wines bottled under Jason Lett’s own original “Black Cap” label – whose name refers to the eponymous varieties of chickadee, morel, and raspberry – as a sub-label of Eyrie, since they are made and marketed together, and in some instances sourced from the estate’s vines.)
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