2012 Lenné Estate cinq élus Yamhill-Carlton Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

14.0% alc., pH 3.72, 126 cases, $72. This wine is offered only in great vintages. The name, cinq élos means “five chosen.” A blend of the best barrels in the cellar from 5 separate clones planted in the vineyard (Pommard, 114, 115, 777 and 667). 100% de-stemmed, 5-day cold soak, inoculated yeast. Aged 11 months in 100% French oak barrels, 25% new. · Moderately dark reddish purple color in the glass. Very sexy aromas of purple and black berries, exotic spices and vanilla bean. Mid weight plus in style and texturally superb with a satiny presence that only Pinot Noir can deliver. Delicious flavors of black plum, kirsch and blackberry that seem to come in waves over the palate. When tasted the following day from a previously opened and re-corked bottle, the wine had really come alive with a striking nose offering penetrating scents of very ripe purple berries and spice, layers of dense fruit that saturate the palate, and an incredibly long finish. Steve Lutz is very proud of this wine and rightly so. Don’t hurry to drink this beauty (a Lolita). Score: 93-95. Reviewed July 13, 2015

Winery: Lenné Estate
From article: Several Very Good to Extraordinary Oregon Pinot Noirs Tasted Recently