Benton Lane Pinot Noir 2019

This dark crimson hued wine has aromas of black cherry, cassis and red licorice. The texture is quite plush and velvety with integrated tannin, so it will pair with a variety of cuisines. The flavors are classic Oregon Pinot Noir cherry and berry nuances, with notes of cured meats and baking spices layered in. With a little less acidity and structure than a typical Benton-Lane Pinot Noir, it’s precocious enough to enjoy now, but will improve with 1-2 years aging.

Fermentation took place in both small 1.25-ton open fermenters and large stainless steel tanks. Fermentations in the open fermenters were “punched-down” by hand in the traditional manner to extract color and flavor from the skins, while a technique called “pneumatage” was utilized to extract color and flavor in the larger stainless steel tanks. This technique involves injecting large bubbles of air into the tank, which rise through the fermenting wine and gently break up the thick cap of skins that forms at the top of the fermenter. This technique allows excellent extraction of color and flavor from the skins while minimizing extraction of bitter seed tannins. The wine underwent the secondary malolactic fermentation while it was aging in French oak barrels, 17% of which were new, for 8 months. The wine was bottled in August of 2013.