Purple Hands Wine Archive
2010 Purple Hands Pinot Noir
Tasting Notes:
Cola, chocolate, cherry, strawberry, red raspberry, red current, earth, rich minerality. A luscious, sexy mouthfeel, with beautiful structure and elegant balance.
Vineyard:
Stoller Vineyard is located in the south western slopes of the Dundee Hills. The Stoller property was a turkey farm from the 1940s through the 1980s. In 1995, the Stoller family planted their first 20 acres to excellent clones of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The Vineyard ranges from 300 to 600 feet on volcanic Jory soil. Stoller is L.I.V.E. certified and Salmon safe certified.
Vintage:
The first Pinot fruit arrived on the crush pad 10/7/11, strangely enough one day difference from the previous vintage. There was heavy rain pressure heading in by the middle of October. The La Nina summer was one of the coolest I have ever farmed. The heat units were extremely low and inconsistent, meaning the grapes where not ripening fast, if at all. The vines were about three weeks behind in ripeness for most producers.
After all the fruit had come in to the winery I was excited and pleased that my Pinot had arrived in early October at 23 brix. They showed great flavor and complexity in the berry. Healthy ferments and gentle aging led to this wonderful 2010 Pinot.
Technical Data:
Harvest: Hand picked and sorted Pinot Noir - 10/8/2011
Fermentation: 95% destemmed into 1 1/4 top fermenters, 6 day cold soak @ 50° F, Punch downs 2 times a day, Peak ferment 95° F.
Aging: Nine months neutral French oak. 10% new oak aged.
Brix: 23.3
pH: 3.69
Alcohol: 13.5
2009 Purple Hands Oregon Red Blend
The warm summer gave the Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Merlot a foundation for soaking the grape on its skins for longer, bigger extraction. With the strong push of early heat it positioned us for the ability to let the fruit hang, not worrying about the quick cooling temperatures as October neared, leaving us the ability to pick all the varieties with perfect physiological ripeness. Rain did show its face in bits and pieces but nothing in measures that threatened a great vintage. With the moderate maritime temperatures late in the summer it left the grape with a great deal of elegance to work with, making for a wonderful 09 Purple Hands Oregon Red Blend.
Tasting Notes
Texturally silky and creamy, the raspberry red fruit medley dance across a chocolate backbone finishing in dark fruit, red licorice and anise lingering on a caramel periphery.
Blend: 15% Pinot Noir Holstein Vineyard, Dundee Hills AVA 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Syrah, 40% Merlot: Del Rio Vineyard, Rogue Valley AVA
Harvest: Hand picked Pinot Noir: 9/29/09, Cab Sauv, Syrah, and Merlot: 10/08/09
Fermentation: 90% destemmed into small open-top 1 1/4 ton fermentors 6 day cold soak at 56°F, 15 day fermentation, with punchdowns 2 times a day, peak temp 90°F, no post maceration
Aging: 10 months in 100% neutral French oak.
PH: 3.6
TA: 6.4 gr/L
Alcohol: 13.5%
Cases Produced: 1,500
2008 Purple Hands Pinot Noir
Wine Reviews & Scores
Wine Spectator - 92 Points
"Firm, with grippy tannins around a generous core of red berry and blackberry lavors, with licorice and pepper notes, picking up a floral character as the finish lingers. Best from 2012 through 2020." - Harvey Steiman
2008 Purple Hands Oregon Red Blend
This blend has the character and the elegance of Bordeaux varieties of the Languedoc region in southern France. The structure integrates, not letting the fruit over power its terrior. The fruit power lingers as this wine evolves in the mouth, with the fruit soon showing its power and melding elegantly with its structured back bone. This blend is focused and soft with Dundee Hills Pinot lingering on just as you think the palette is finished. Their is the Pinot introduction and finish, the Syrah mid fruit palette and the Merlot body.
Blend composition: 15% Pinot Noir: Holstein Vineyard, Dundee Hills Ava, 35% Syrah, 50% Merlot: Del Rio Vineyard, Rogue Valley AVA.
Harvest: Hand Picked and sorted Pinot Noir: 9/28/09, Syrah and Merlot 10/07/09
Wine Reviews & Scores
Wine Spectator - 88 Points
Featured in Wine Spectator Article "10 Exciting Oregon Reds"
"Bright and jazzy, delivering a lively mouthful of blackberry, sage and orange blossom aromas and flavors, lingering easily on the deft, slightly tart finish. Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Noir. Drink now through 2013. 1,000 cases made." - Harvey Steiman
>> Wine Spectator 10 Exciting Oregon Reds
Oregon Wine Press says "... it may be Oregon's answer to Rhone, Bordeaux and Burgundy all in one bottle. Loads of pretty, feminine fruit exude cherry, cola, stone fruit and spice."
2007 Purple Hands Blend
The key to any great blend is harmony. We strive for flavors that unravel in layers rather than a jumble of flavors that compete for your attention. The three grape varieties in this blend mesh seamlessly to create a wine of unique personality and depth. We have a hard time describing this wine as either light, medium, or full bodied, because it has a tendency to be all three at once. There is focus and elegance on the front palate, a weighty earth-driven middle, and then firm tannins help to propel a long and lengthy finish. Notes of black cherry, plums, chocolate and earth are all complimented with food-friendly acidity.
2007 Purple Hands Tech Sheet 2007 Purple Hands Shelf Talker (Trade)
2007 Purple Hands Pinot Noir
These grapes were hand-harvested, then put through a rigorous sorting line. Only the most promising fruit was kept, and those bunches unable to hack it were cruelly reject- ed. After Crush, we employed a number of different styles and soaks with the juice to make sure that we could achieve a decent depth of flavor in the face of what promised to be a light vintage. By using very cold temperatures and carefully monitoring the must, we extending soaks on the skins. After fermenting with one of our favorite yeast strains we conducted a post-maceration cold soak to maximize extraction and get that depth that we were looking for.
2007 Purple Hands Pinot Noir Tech Sheet
2006 Purple Hands
The Merlot for this blend comes from Del Rio Vineyard in the Rogue Valley, while the Pinot Noir is from Carter Vineyard, in the Willamette Valley, Eola Hills AVA. Both vineyards are some of the top sites in their respective AVAs. A 7 day maceration at very cool temperatures ensured great extraction and plenty of fruit on the front palate. It was aged in neutral French oak barrels to keep the oak influence to a minimum.
This year's Purple Hands offering has a powerful fruit and earth structure. Marionberry, cherry and raspberry all layer the smooth front palate, while the gentle tannin and dark earth mid-palate finish with lengthy chocolate cream. The nose blossoms of roses and thyme, finishing with dark soil. The silky and powerful frame of this wine will pair well with everything from home-made pastas and roasted red meats to more exotic dishes like steamed mussels and pan roasted duck.
Drink now or cellar though 2018. 500 cases made.
2005 Purple Hands
The intensity of aromas in this wine is truly exciting - deep marionberry and gentle vanilla creme along side an earthy, mineral framework. The flavors are a smooth and refreshing blend of juicy blueberry preserves, a touch of cedar and a mellow center complimented by just the right amount of tannin. This Purple Hands wine has a nice silky texture. Feel free to pair it with everything from chocolate to chateaubriand with garlic mashed potatoes.
Wine Blend: 95% Oregon Merlot, 5% Oregon Pinot Noir
Price $17.99 each
10% off 6-11 bottles, 15% off 12+ bottles