Willamette Valley | Dundee Hills
2018 Knudsen Vineyards Snapshot Pinot noir
Time and place in a bottle.
To mark this moment in the Knudsen Vineyards story, we look through the eyes of Blocks 12 and 13, among the largest and youngest on our estate. In 2018, a mild spring and hot, dry summer eased into cooler August and September days. The rich, red clay volcanic Jory soil held moisture and slowed ripening to produce consistently high quality fruit. And our tradition of low-impact viticulture let the terroir shine, revealing a spicy and edgy Pinot noir that beautifully expresses its distinctive influences—a snapshot worth remembering.
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TALKING BLOCKS SERIES
Only available from Knudsen Vineyards
Estate Grown
LIVE Certified
Salmon Safe
Intensely flavorful, this wine provides a melange of power and elegance matched by flavors that are pure and persistent. The wine’s structure enables berry fruit characteristics and spice to hang like ornaments in the mouth. Flashy aromatics fill the glass with essence of chocolate-covered cherries and youthful red berry notes. When decanted for several hours and swirled in the glass, flavors of anise spice and blueberry are evenly balanced with gripping acidity, firm tannins and a robust mid-palate. The finish is long with subtle oak notes. A true contender for many years in the cellar! Enjoy now after double decanting and keep a stash of bottles in the cellar to enjoy over time.
“This dynamic blend of two French Dijon clones shines” – Page Knudsen Cowles
Appellation Willamette Valley | Dundee Hills
Alcohol 13.9%
Soil Jory
Brix 23.8°
Oak French, 30% new, 17 mos.
pH 3.59
Ta 5.5 g/L
Cases 100
Winemaker Nate Klostermann
Bottled 07/2019
Released 09/2020*
Knudsen Vineyards Block 12
Knudsen Vineyards Block 13
Block 12 | 50%
Rootstock | Riparia
Clone | 4407
Planted | Spring 2012
Elevation | 740-825 ft
Exposure | E
Spacing | 5×5 ft
Block 13 | 50%
Rootstock | 3309
Clone | 667
Plated | Spring 2012
Elevation | 700-775 ft
Exposure | E
Spacing | 5×5 ft
The 2018 growing season was nearly ideal. The spring was relatively mild, the summer was hot and dry and then it cooled a bit the second half of August and into September. Harvest commenced in early September and lasted through the end of the month, a relatively long harvest season. The yield was lower than last year while quality was consistently high. Also, because of the cooler late growing season, the grapes had considerable hangtime to achieve optimal physiological ripeness before picking.