Published: May 27, 2009 10:14 pm         

WINE: To progress in wine drinking, try an Oregon pinot noir

DUNDEE HILLS, Ore. — During a recent business trip to Oregon, I had the opportunity to travel the Willamette Valley. The valley is home to some of the world’s best pinot noir.

I usually keep the columns and blogging to the under-$25 price point, but I had a really special visit to the Lange Winery and thought I’d use that experience to explain price points and also share a winemaker’s insights into great pinot.

Many of the great pinot gris and pinot blanc white wines made in Oregon are under the $20 price point. Most of the pinot noir is priced over $30, but many wineries have at least one bottling that will be $30 or under.

In virtually every public talk or conversation I’ve done on wine, I get asked about the difference between a $10 bottle and a $40 bottle of wine. It’s about the quality and craftsmanship that goes into the winemaking and it shows in the taste.

Industry publications Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast have praised Lange Winery as one of the best. I spent time with Jesse Lange, whose parents Don and Wendy started the winery in 1987. Jesse farms the vineyards and makes the wine with his father. He also serves as the winery’s general manager.

“It’s really critical in making Pinot Noir to make it in very small increments,” Lange said. “We do the farming in very small increments. You’re able to pay attention to things at a level I don’t think a lot of winemakers get to do. Pinot noir is so expressive, there’s a range of flavors and elements of complexity. It’s the ultimate winemakers’ challenge to both grow and make.”

While large production wineries will blend wines in vats the size of a farm silo, Lange blends their Pinot Noir no more than three barrels at a time.

“I describe what we do as sustainable farming, small artisanal winemaking, focusing on quality, not quantity,” Lange said. “We’re looking to make classical wines that have a lot of the fruit elements of pinot noir and the spicy elements of pinot noir. There is a hedonistic side to wine drinking that I think every wine drinker can appreciate, from the total beginner to the expert.

“I want to make sure when people have a glass of our wine, they say, ‘Wow, I want another glass.’ I think our style really plays well, because our wines are well-balanced with a lot of fruit, great palate texture and richness without being over the top.”

Lange produced 14,000 cases of wine last year. In comparison, many of the big California winemakers, names you’d recognize, make more wine in one facility than all of Oregon’s wineries combined.

The secret of Oregon wines, and especially Lange’s Dundee Hills’ wine, is the environment. To wine geeks, that’s terrior. “That means ‘place,’” Lange said of the French term. “It’s a very broad, all-encompassing term that includes soil, climate, heat units, elevation, but also encompasses the wine grower’s philosophy about farming. Certain wines from a certain place and a certain varietal really showcase that.

“The secret is the place, without question. You can only grow world-class pinot noir in about five places. You just can’t grow world-class pinot anywhere.”

Fortunately for Hoosiers, you can buy Lange wines in our state. They have a beautiful pinot gris around $16 and an award-winning pinot gris reserve at $22. The reserve was the best gris I tasted during my two-day visit.

They also have a reasonably priced pinot noir. The 2007 Lange Willamette Valley pinot can be found in Indiana for about $24. They have other bottlings of reserve and estate wines that range from $30-$60, which is consistent with most Oregon premium wine producers.

To progress in your wine drinking and to understand boutique wineries and real handcrafted wines, try a Lange pinot noir. Or try an Oregon pinot noir recommended at your wine shop.

For Jesse Lange, the most important thing is creating wines that are correct to that terrior. “I don’t want anybody to taste our wines to say ‘I really like it because it tastes like cabernet’ or ‘it’s like Syrah.’ I want it to be its own and be an Oregon pinot noir.”

His explanation of the attention to detail was probably best in an offhanded remark he’s obviously used before, as we walked the grounds near the beautiful overlook of the valley. “We want to be more like Audrey Hepburn than Marilyn Monroe.”