Colene Clemens Pinot Noir Chehalem Mountains Dopp Creek 2015

Joe Stark didn’t know much about the wine business when he started Colene Clemens in 2005, but he loved Pinot Noir. He found a distinctive location on which to plant a vineyard on a rocky hillside in the Chehalem Mountains. It was overgrown with blackberries and brush, but with vineyard manager and winemaker Stephen Goff, formerly of Beaux Frères, he planted 50 acres of vines. A blend gleaned from the entire estate, Dopp Creek is the winery’s most approachable Pinot. The 2015 vintage was the hottest on record in Oregon, but Goff channeled all that sun into an elegantly complex wine, fermenting the juice in small stainless-steel tanks before aging it 11 months in French oak, about 28 percent of which was new.

Tasting Note

Impressive for the polished texture and elegant complexity, offering vibrant raspberry, orange peel and spice flavors that gain momentum toward refined tannins. Drink now through 2023.—Tim Fish