Willamette Valley | Dundee Hills
2021 Knudsen Vineyards Family Series Dundee Hills Pinot Noir
Club Members save 15%
This wine captures Knudsen Vineyards in a glass, by including all clones of Pinot noir that we grow, and from elevations ranging from 350 to 1,000 feet.
This youthful Pinot noir is an estate blend showcasing the overall style of the 2021 vintage. A warm growing season provided lovely robust fruit and spice as well as savory notes to aid in long-term aging. Aromas of red cherry, chocolate, cherry cola and clove open up in the glass and grace the palate with structured flavors of blackberry, tobacco, black pepper and blackcurrant. The supple tannins and gripping acidity offer a complex and long finish with subtle hints of violet and toast. Drink now after 1-2 hours of decanting, or age for 7-10 years.
FAMILY SERIES
ACCOLADES
94, Vinous
94, Wine Spectator
“Editor’s Choice, Wine Enthusiast
93, Wine Enthusiast
Estate Grown
LIVE Certified
Salmon Safe
Appellation Oregon | Willamette Valley | Dundee Hills
Soil Red Jory Clay
Alcohol 13.8%
Oak French, 20% new, 16 months
Cases 650
Harvest Brix 23.21
pH 3.66
TA 5.5
Bottled 02/2023
Released 06/2023 (Club), 10/2023 (Public)
Winemaker Nate Klostermann
94, Vinous
The 2021 Pinot Noir Family Series opens with a vibrant burst of crushed blackberries, blood orange, mentholated herbs and sweet spice. This is elegance personified, with velvety textures lifted by cooling acidity as ripe wild berry fruits slowly coast across a core of spiked citrus. A cascade of violet inner florals emerges toward the close. It tapers off with dramatic length yet remains remarkably fresh, leaving a coating of crystalline tannins and a resonance of tart raspberry.”
94, Wine Spectator
“Handsome and polished, with multilayered raspberry and tart blueberry flavors that take on orange peel and dusky spice accents, which build tension toward medium-grained tannins. Drink now through 2032.” -Tim Fish
93, “Editor’s Choice” – Wine Enthusiast
“The wine’s dark cherry and raspberry aromas are surrounded by a bundle of sweet-scented phlox and lavender. Bright red cherry fruit is nice, especially when paired with silky tannins and a laser beam of acidity. But the figs and peppery edible nasturtiums are the stuff of flavor memories.” — Michael Alberty
The 2021 growing season was remarkable in several respects including the very high quality of fruit produced. Coolness and some precipitation in early June during flowering resulted in below average fruit set and, ultimately, lower yields. Then, at the end of June, Oregon experienced a heat dome for several days with record-breaking high temperatures. The balance of the summer was warm and dry until early September, when a cooling allowed for a relatively long and nearly ideal harvest season. At Knudsen Vineyards, we started harvesting grapes in late August and concluded harvest in late September. The cool weather in September gave us time to pick our Pinot noir and Chardonnay grapes for still wine at nearly perfect physiological ripeness. The modestly lower yields and great weather conditions during harvest has enabled wines with excellent acidity, depth of color, big aromatics and great flavors. We are really excited about the quality, drinkability and age worthiness of the wines from the 2021 growing season.