Left Coast Cellars A New Guy On The Block

Slowly, with stealth and with purpose the enemy advances, growing more powerful and popular with each day. We will admit that this is a strange beginning for a wine column; but it did get your attention. The culprits in this scenario are the winemakers of Oregon and their conquests are us, the wine drinking public. Oregon is the up-and-coming winemaking region of this country. We will start by saying the best, most flavorful and interesting Pinot Noir’s and Chardonnay’s that we have tasted in recent years all came from Oregon. Left Coast Cellars is one of these beneficent invaders and if their wines are any example of what is currently coming out of Oregon, the California winemakers had better look to their laurels.

Left Coast Cellars Latitude 45 Pinot Noir ($36). Holds on there; isn’t there a French wine called Latitude 45? Yes there is, but this wine took its name not from the French but from the fact that the vineyards are located right on Latitude 45. A quick phone call gave us the information that when the winery was founded they wanted to name it Latitude 45 but the French beat them to it by many years. Left Coast does not have to trade on a French name to establish their quality; their wines do that for themselves. This wine displays a dark ruby color and a broad spectrum of flavors, with cherries, plums, and wild summer berries being the most prominent. There are also a host of other flavors lying in the background with sweet spices and tobacco being the most obvious. This very well made wine is drinkable now or can be laid down for as long as five years to gain additional complexity and depth.

Left Coast Cellars 2013 Cali’s Cuvee Pinot Noir ($24). The grapes for this wine come from the carefully tended vines of Oregon’s Willamette Valley, an area that has consistently produced award winning Pinot Noir grapes. The first clue that there is something special in the bottle is its deep ruby color, not very common in many Pinot Noir wines. The aroma is a melding of wild berries with a suggestion of mushrooms and oak quietly lying in the background. On the palate the wine offers an abundance of cherry and plum fruit trailing off to an equally fruity finish. It is excellent now and has a great and promising future with a bit of bottle aging.

Truffle Hill 2014 Chardonnay ($24). Throughout the entire process of making this wine, extra effort was taken from the picking of the grapes, to intensive monitoring during the winemaking. All of this tender loving care resulted in a wine of distinguished character and distinction, featuring the aromas, golden delicious apple, baked pears, and subtle spice with a delicate mineral note hidden behind jasmine and honeysuckle notes. Unlike many of today’s all too prevalent wimpy Chardonnays, this wine has a long, fruity, finish. One characteristic that is emphasized in this wine is the creamy feeling that it has in the mouth, which is truly the sign of a better Chardonnay. Try this wine with shellfish and other seafood as well as almost any chicken based meals. We thoroughly enjoyed this wine and believe that you will too.

Left Coast Cellars 2014 The Orchards Pinot Gris ($18). Pinot Gris, also known as Pinot Grigio, is a white wine that is currently experiencing a rapidly expanding popularity in the United States and the Left Coast Cellars Pinot Gris is a very good example of why the varieties popularity is growing. The wine displays a pale golden color and a rich aroma of citrus and honeysuckle. The flavor is laced with the sensation of pear and melon, which carry over to the finish. This delightful wine can accompany any food it is served with as well as an aperitif. This wine, as well as all of the Left Coast Cellars wines, is well worth considerable more than their affordable price.