Product Description
Established in 1976, the Gerber family has been farming grapes for over forty years,
specializing in Alsace white varieties and Pinot Noir, which are especially well suited
to our microclimate. Foris wines are defined by the unique alpine location of our
estate vineyards at 1500 feet elevation. Located in the southwestern region of the
Rogue Valley AVA, our wines are a true expression of the unique soils and alpine
climate of the Illinois Valley in Rogue Valley, Oregon.
The 2018 vintage was a quality vintage that had delightful weather. Despite the
larger than average crop, berries were small, concentrated and there was ample time
for fruit to slowly ripen. We had mild summer weather due to filtered sunlight and
relatively low heat for the majority of the growing season. A warming trend in
September led into our typical harvest date in the end of September. An
exceptionally mild autumn extended harvest into the third week of October with no
rains to interrupt development. Our naturally high elevation and the mild summer
retained good acidity in the fruit.
Our 2018 Pinot Noir is 100% estate, from our Cedar Ranch and Maple Ranch
vineyards. The fruit was hand-harvested at night time temperatures, de-stemmed,
and fermented whole berry in small open-top fermentation bins. The three-quarter
ton bins are gently punched down for the duration of the 10 to 14 day
fermentation. Once primary fermentation is complete, the wine is racked to French
oak barrels (15% once filled) for 10 months of barrel aging.
Deep ruby red in the glass, our 2018 Estate Pinot Noir is fragrant with aromas of
plum, fresh herb and an enticing, signature floral note. Medium bodied on the
palate, it offers a mixture of raspberry, berry compote, mocha and white pepper
with good persistence and acidity.
Average brix at harvest: 24.0
Analysis at bottling: pH 3.45, TA 5.5 g/L, Alcohol 13.9%
8500 cases bottled
