Coming from the talented team at K Vintners, the 2019 Pinot Noir comes from a mix of clones, spent a full 40 days on stems, and was aged 12 months in 15% new French oak. It reveals a medium ruby hue as well as perfumed cherry and raspberry fruits interwoven with notes of flowery incense, baking spices, and dried forest floor. Medium-bodied, nicely textured, and balanced, it has some firmer tannins (there's 30% stems), a layered, building mouthfeel, and terrific length. A terrific Pinot Noir, it will keep for 4-6 years, and I suspect it will be even better this time next year.

Medium red with modest saturation. Piquant aromas and flavors of raspberry, strawberry and cherry tart plus hints of spearmint and minerals. Silky and smooth, offering an enticing touch of sweetness but very good freshness of fruit and overall balance. Finishes with broad, dusty, slightly dry tannins and decent smoky persistence. It's rare to find Pinot like this for eighteen bucks. Winemaker Brennon Leighton notes that this vineyard, planted to four Burgundy clones, is on the 47th parallel (like Beaune) and benefits from cooling breezes. He added that afternoon temperatures here are typically 10 to 15 degrees cooler than in Yakima Valley during the peak of summer. This will be a project to follow as the vines gain in age. (from limestone and broken volcanic pebble soil in Golden West Vineyard on the western edge of Frenchmen Hills at 1,600 feet; the first vines were planted in 2015)