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Recent Reviews



2005 Estate Pinot Noir

88 Ruby-red. Ripe, gamey dark berry scents, with hints of aged beef, licorice and lavender. Rich cassis and cherry flavors show very good sweetness and are deepened by candied licorice and sweet mocha. Impressively lush and creamy on the finish, which features a bright raspberry note.
Josh Raynolds
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
May/June 2007
I first tased this wine at Beano's Cabin in Beaver Creek last year and I really enjoyed it. Though it was a romantic evening to begin with, the dark red garnet wine only heightened the night's charm. Thre are subtle aromas of blackberry and black cherry in this wine. In the mouth, bright fruit flavors stand out. The wine is anything but aggressive - all smooth tannins, soft textures and a creamy finish. In all, this is a very easy-drinking, pleasurable Pinot.

"It's true to big Oregon Pinot, it really shows the best of what Oregon has to offer," said Brian Kruse, co-owner of Avon Liquor.

When it comes to pairing the wine, Kruse said it would be great, "with anyting." "It's Pinot, so it's soft enough to go with big fish, but stands up to anything red meat wise."
Caramie Schnell
Vail Daily
Colorado
April 01, 2008

2006 Estate Pinot Gris

3 Stars - Excellent - Top-rated Oregon Pinot Gris Van Duzer's estate vineyard has the same average high daily temperatures as all of northern Willamette Valley, but its average lows are 13 degrees lower. Grapes there ripen later, developing more flavor while maintaining their natural acidity. That plays out in this wine, which features bright pineapple and green apple fruit and keeps evolving in the glass.
W. Blake Gris
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco, California
May 18, 2007
Top 100 Wines - The Best in the West Quite simply, our favorite American Pinot Gris this year, from two blocks in a cool-climate estate vineyard west of Salem, Ore. It takes a moment to open up, but then there's layers of bright lime and green apple offering a sharp-edged profile atop a dense texture on the palate. The finish is snappy and perfectly tuned.
Jon Bonné with Lynne Char Bennett
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco, California
November 28, 2007

2007 Estate Pinot Gris

88 "Light yellow. Fresh peach and melon aromas are underscored by white flowers and chalky minerality. Juicy, finely etched orchard fruit and melon flavors offer refreshing energy and finish with good lift and cut."
Josh Raynolds
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
June2008

Great Oyster Wine - 2008 Pacific Coast Oyster Wine Competition


Taylor Shellfish Farms
April 28, 2008

2006 Pinot Noir Rosé

A dusky salmon pink rosé from Willamette Valley keeps all those strawberry/cranberry/limestone notes in check with finely structured balance. Pour this one after an afternoon spent on the sidelines of a hot and windy soccer game.
Lauren Chapin
Kansas City Star
Kansas City, Missouri
May 10, 2007
THREE STARS Rather than making the pink wine with a random selection of grapes, winemaker Jim Kakacek chose a particular block of Pommard clone Pinot Noir for its fruit intensity and floral character. The flowers are subtle; what we liked was the wild strawberry and watermelon fruit, along with the soft mouthfeel and citrusy finish.
W. Blake Gray
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco, California
May 25, 2007
Top 100 Wines - The Best of the West Rare is the vintner who devotes vineyard blocks to rosé, but Jim Kakacek set aside a specific portion of Pommard clone grapes and gave them just five hours of skin contact. The result is gorgeous: subtle white flowers, sachet and wild strawberries on the nose, followed by a radiant sweet fruit overtone in this fully dry wine, and an enveloping texture that balances the high-toned acidity.




Jon Bonné with Lynne Char Bennett
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco, California
November 28, 2007

2007 Pinot Noir Rosé

Try On Something Pink for Summer " . . . after years of staying away from anything pink, both of us are among the many drinkers who have recently come around to favor bone-dry rosés, sending these well-made, complex wines to their own height of popularity."

'Right in the middle, the 2007 Van Duzer Pinot Noir Rosé from Oregon's Willamette Valley is medium-bodied and well balanced, pairing beautifully with grilled chicken, salmon or tuna."
Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
The Washington Post
Washington, DC
June 25, 2008
88 “Pale pink. Intense strawberry and raspberry aromas are brightened by piquant minerals and orange zest. The palate displays red berries and guava, with firm acidity providing lift and cut to the finish. An elegant, brisk style, and ideal for aperitif duty.”
Josh Raynolds
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
June2008

2004 Flagpole Block Pinot Noir

All of the three Van Duzer Pinot Noirs tasted were darker-colored and richer in style than any of the other Pinot Noirs in the lineup. I liked this one for its floral notes in the nose and on the palate. Nicely balanced, with a tangy finish featuring a citrus edge. Also worth a look: 2004 Van Duzer Homestead Block Pinot Noir and 2004 Van Duzer Blagpole Block Pinot Noir.

- -PinotFile
Dr. Rusty Gaffney
PinotFile
February 12, 2007
90 Dark red. Deep blackberry and cassis aromas are distinctly ripe, with exotic Asian spice notes adding complexity. Darker, liqueur-like kirsch and bitter chocolate flavors on the palate, with supple tannins and an earthy tobacco quality carrying through the finish. More weighty and serious than the Dijon Blocks; this will pair nicely with grilled lamb or aged beef.
Josh Raynolds
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
May/June 2007

2004 Homestead Block Pinot Noir

Recommended. Always a big wine, made from juicy, silky lush old vine (24 year) Pommard vines, less than 300 cases of this big wine were made. The original farm house was built on this plot, ths the "Homested" designation.

Note that 12.6% alcohol, quite low for an Oregon Pinot noir, and makes this wine about flavor, not "kick."

Big, weighty, this wine takes its time opening up but rewards with big flavors. Scents of rose, hibiscus, and violet mingle wiht hints of black cherry, cedar, barrel toast and mint. Flavors restate the sentents, and add off-the-charts intense juicy dark cherry, with cedar, sweet oak and creamy pie spices adding to a classic Pinot "meaty" quality. The meaty, savory, massive quality steps into the background with age and aeration, opening up to those rich red and black cherry flavors we love in a Pommard.

This is a big, weighty wine. It's tight and young, needs cellaring or, if you must, lengthy decanting to show itself at its best right now. There are very finegrained, silky tannins in the creamy finish.

The balance and layered flavors make this wine our favorite of the last three vintages, especially for cellaring. Drink from 2008 - 2014 - comparable to much more expensive Pinots with aging.
AvalonWine.com
October 01, 2006

2004 Dijon Blocks Pinot Noir

Perfumed with floral and cherry notes, this wine draws you in from the start. . . . An elegant Pinot lover's Pinot.- -PinotFile
Dr. Rusty Gaffney
PinotFile
http://www.princeofpinot.com
August 14, 2006
90 Bright red. Expressive, perfumed bouquet of blackberry, blueberry and cherry preserves, with an exotic suggestion of Asian spices. Lush and silky, with sweet red and dark berry flavors, a deeper note of cured tobacco, and gentle tannins. The sweet finish features a light hint of cured meat and excellent length. This is really vibrant and delicious.
Josh Raynolds
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
May/June 2007

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