AlexEli Vineyards & Winery Willamette Valley Sampler - 4 Pack
$57.99 + $5 shipping
CONDITION: Oregon Mixed
PRODUCTS:
2 2008 AlexEli Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
1 2008 AlexEli Willamette Valley Gewürztraminer
1 2009 AlexEli Willamette Valley Riesling
CT links above

Winery website

Facebook
Yelp

I was really hoping to hold out longer this year - I am dipping into negative space in my locker! So...oak regime. I think I heard in the voicemail it was 15% new oak, but didn't catch any other details. Phil, assuming you're stopping by, what are the details on the oak?

Otherwise looks like a really interesting Pinot, and potentially my style of Gewurtz and Rieslig - although I also do like t he bone dry versions of them as well.

http://www.alexeli.com/p/our-wines_11.html
A link to the winery website

"PINOT NOIR 2008 . 345 cases
Our 2008 Pinot Noir is 100% Pommard clone offering a fruit forward Pinot that seeks the more traditionally minded. A sensation of dark cherry, sour cranberry and vanilla precede rich characteristics of black pepper and maple aromas and flavors through the finish."

"RIESLING 2008 . 347 cases
Aromas and flavors of pear, honey dew melon, pineapple, lemon, lime, shortbread and herbaceous notes of tarragon.
"Light and soft, showing modest but pretty pear and resin flavors, finishing with delicacy." -Wine Spectator"

"GEWÜRZTRAMINER 2008 . 235 cases
"Solid grapefruit, peach, ginger, gardenia and mint aromas and flavors. Through the tasting experience, additional nutmeg and clove flavors develop."

Wow....making kosher wine?! Will it also be kosher for Passover? And is it going to be mevushal? It's never to early to stock up on good wine for a seder. Although I'm not sure if Pinot Noir goes with brisket...

Edit: And a wine called Bubele's Blend?! Win!

how sweet would the whites taste? i've just recently started to enjoy white wine (have long enjoyed red wine) and don't know yet how RS translates into sweetness on the taste buds. that said, dry reisling is one of my favorite white varietals. However, my wife and I are not fans of sweet white wines.

"License in Process" for OH, IN, IL, GA, MA & VT according to the winery website. Guess I will have to sit this one out and hope they come back with another deal after OH gets added. Too bad, these look interesting...

klezman wrote:Wow....making kosher wine?!

Crafting Kosher

"AlexEli makes sabbath-ready red in the Willamette’s East Valley"

klezman wrote:I was really hoping to hold out longer this year - I am dipping into negative space in my locker! So...oak regime. I think I heard in the voicemail it was 15% new oak, but didn't catch any other details. Phil, assuming you're stopping by, what are the details on the oak?

Otherwise looks like a really interesting Pinot, and potentially my style of Gewurtz and Rieslig - although I also do like t he bone dry versions of them as well.

The 08 Pinot went through a cold maceration for 8 days.. at about 41 degrees... I always get nervous during this time.. I've had wild ferments start up at 44 degrees.. and if the fermenter isnt well mixed temps are hard to control.. so much attention is paid during this time. after being pressed off at about 1 brix I rack to barrel to dryness and start an ML culture.. stirring every 2 days for about a month. We grow 100% Pommard clone. You wont find too many if any American Pinots that are 100% Pommard, which is easily over taken with oak. I personally prefer as little oak as necessary to balance the wine. The objective is to bring out the fruit and character of the vintage.. and 08 was spectacular!

burrnini wrote:how sweet would the whites taste? i've just recently started to enjoy white wine (have long enjoyed red wine) and don't know yet how RS translates into sweetness on the taste buds. that said, dry reisling is one of my favorite white varietals. However, my wife and I are not fans of sweet white wines.

I am also not a fan of sweet wines.. actually our dessert Riesling is just about as sweet as some table Riesling Ive tasted around the NW. The Gewurz is the driest I've had around Oregon. Gewurz is touch here in the Willamette for we have such high acids, combined with the phenolics of Gewurz it can be difficult to make a palatable wine that is on the dry side.. many would come out too bitter. If you consider that your ability to detect RS is .6% and this Gewurz is .65%, in my opinion we have complemented a bit of acid. We find this wine has an amazing ability to pair with a wide range of poultry and savory salads and heavier cheeses. The Riesling, with its much higher amount of acid has a higher RS, yet the acidity balances it well.. and I would certainly not call it sweet or semi sweet.. but a touch off dry.

chipgreen wrote:"License in Process" for OH, IN, IL, GA, MA & VT according to the winery website. Guess I will have to sit this one out and hope they come back with another deal after OH gets added. Too bad, these look interesting...

Actually, thats for some of our direct to consumer sales that come from our tasting room... but through the Woot deal we are using a partnership to fulfill our duties to cover sales and licensing of sales that are listed on Woots open for sale states.

chipgreen wrote:Crafting Kosher

"AlexEli makes sabbath-ready red in the Willamette’s East Valley"

Yes!.. 2010 vintage was our first.. I am Jewish but not observant.. sort of a test run.. we're doing it again this 2011 vintage. I work with 2 Kosher workers from the Orthodox Union from Portland and Salem and they are marvelous to work with. However, calling them in whenever something needs to be touched is quite the tedious and nerve racking time for me.. we'll see how it goes.. hopefully we can find customer who appreciate the extra attention to make quality wines that happen to be Kosher.

It's Willamette, Damn It.

alexelivineyard wrote:The 08 Pinot went through a cold maceration for 8 days.. at about 41 degrees... I always get nervous during this time.. I've had wild ferments start up at 44 degrees.. and if the fermenter isnt well mixed temps are hard to control.. so much attention is paid during this time. after being pressed off at about 1 brix I rack to barrel to dryness and start an ML culture.. stirring every 2 days for about a month. We grow 100% Pommard clone. You wont find too many if any American Pinots that are 100% Pommard, which is easily over taken with oak. I personally prefer as little oak as necessary to balance the wine. The objective is to bring out the fruit and character of the vintage.. and 08 was spectacular!

Interesting. IIRC Pommard is quite a beefy clone, and Buena Vista does use it in their Ramal vineyard blend, but not as a single clone-subvarietal (as they do with Dijon and Swan clones). Not one for the light, fruity, airy sorts, but should have heft. Great to see such clone experimentation!

Off-ddry Riesling, mmmm, how's the mineral come out in that?

Dry Gewurz? Does that mean the florals are more muted? How does it compare with a good Alsace Gewurz?

GReat to see some cooler-weather producers fro Oregon. I hear good things!

alexelivineyard wrote:Actually, thats for some of our direct to consumer sales that come from our tasting room... but through the Woot deal we are using a partnership to fulfill our duties to cover sales and licensing of sales that are listed on Woots open for sale states.

Regardless of how you are going about it...still no Ohio!

North316 wrote:Regardless of how you are going about it...still no Ohio!

Indeed, that is a MAJOR bummer. I loves me some Willamette Valley juice, and in particular, the '08 Pinot Noirs I've had have been very impressive.

Hmm, this is tempting. Must ponder for a while.

I have not been on in awhile. Reading some past discussions. Is it true the rats are gone?

pikapi88 wrote:I have not been on in awhile. Reading some past discussions. Is it true the rats are gone?

There were on hiatus. WD has stated they will be back sometime soon (1st Qrt 2012).

Hi Phil,
I know 2008 was an incredible vintage for Pinot in Willamette, how did the vintage compare for the white varietals?

Oh man, my 3 favorite types of wine from my favorite wine region. I'm so angry that I can't order this wine in Georgia.

I smell hypocritical politicians. Heaven forbid they actually let people choose for themselves or support Americans...

richardhod wrote:Interesting. IIRC Pommard is quite a beefy clone, and Buena Vista does use it in their Ramal vineyard blend, but not as a single clone-subvarietal (as they do with Dijon and Swan clones). Not one for the light, fruity, airy sorts, but should have heft. Great to see such clone experimentation!

Off-ddry Riesling, mmmm, how's the mineral come out in that?

Dry Gewurz? Does that mean the florals are more muted? How does it compare with a good Alsace Gewurz?

GReat to see some cooler-weather producers fro Oregon. I hear good things!

The minerality of the 09 Riesling is incredible.. Id rather not say that it over powers the fruit, but I would personally describe the dominant character as one of mineral.. having 30+ year old vines ought to have its advanatages!

In terms of the florals of the Gewurz, id say that just the opposite happens.. florals are more exposed.

jhkey wrote:Hi Phil,
I know 2008 was an incredible vintage for Pinot in Willamette, how did the vintage compare for the white varietals?

The whites did very well in 08.. we had dryer warmer and more sun and an average start ( bud break was april 14th in 08... in 09 we had a final bud break of may 11th. Our trellis system is a Geneva Double Curtain currently.. I in the midst of chopping trunks right now, but this system provides our fruit with every minute of light the day has to give. So with the warmer dryer air we had an easier time with mildew and rot, a really even vigor in the vine in 08 as well, and I think the over all ripeness in terms of flavor, acid was a touch less(higher pHs and lower TAs)

according to freethegrape.org, Idaho allows direct ship. Is there anyway to update woot and or woot to confirm?

Schristiansen73 wrote:according to freethegrape.org, Idaho allows direct ship. Is there anyway to update woot and or woot to confirm?

Each winery needs a separate licence for each state.

foobarski wrote:Indeed, that is a MAJOR bummer. I loves me some Willamette Valley juice, and in particular, the '08 Pinot Noirs I've had have been very impressive.

Yeah, I was pretty stoked when I saw 2008 Willamette Valley PN plus my 2 favorite white varietals in one offer. The fact that it's 2 of the PNs and 1 each of the Riesling and Gewurz seems like the perfect mix. My only decision would have been whether to get 2 sets or 3.

Interesting that there are more states available for direct ship from the winery (even if you exclude the 7 states with restrictions) than there are from woot. It's usually the other way around.

kylemittskus wrote:Each winery needs a separate licence for each state.

The winery ships to Idaho so it must be Wine Country Connect that doesn't? Although if it's going through WCC then OH should be a "ship to" state so I don't know what the heck is up with this offer's availability.

EDIT to note that the winery normally uses a third party shipper, northwestwinestoyou.com to ship directly to consumers.

chipgreen wrote:The winery ships to Idaho so it must be Wine Country Connect that doesn't? Although if it's going through WCC then OH should be a "ship to" state so I don't know what the heck is up with this offer's availability.

I'm going to guess based on the Winery comments and the fact that this is from Oregon, that it is shipping through a different third party distributor, not WCC.

jumping on the bandwagon.

In for 2 or 3, but no Georgia.

Almost worth the 3 hour round trip to friends in SC to pick up... which would justify stopping at Clemson for golf, hmmm

North316 wrote:I'm going to guess based on the Winery comments and the fact that this is from Oregon, that it is shipping through a different third party distributor, not WCC.

That might explain it although IL gets in on this deal despite falling into the "license in process" category for northwestwinestoyou while states like ID, KS, LA, ND and WY are dropped from the list.

It's a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma!

chipgreen wrote:That might explain it although IL gets in on this deal despite falling into the "license in process" category for northwestwinestoyou while states like ID, KS, LA, ND and WY are dropped from the list.

It's a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma!

Served with a side of frustration.

foobarski wrote:Served with a side of frustration.

Sorry for all the confusion.. let me tell you.. its the most frustrating part of the wine business. Just to operate a winery with a vineyard I pay and am regulated by over 15 government agencies including Dept of Homeland Security, Dept. of Agri, Dept of Fish and Wildlife, Fire Marshall, TTB, OLCC, the list goes on.. Im amazed that we get it all done and have time to grow grapes and make wine. The Woot list is what it is in order to make the "deal" a deal... sorry to those of you who can't order.. however, you can always get the wines through northwestwines to you if the wines become available. With the Woot deal we are sending a valuable gift card towards a future purchase (30% off a purchase if before June 15th I think). We'll hopefully also be back on Woot in some months if today goes well!

alexelivineyard wrote:Sorry for all the confusion.. let me tell you.. its the most frustrating part of the wine business. Just to operate a winery with a vineyard I pay and am regulated by over 15 government agencies including Dept of Homeland Security, Dept. of Agri, Dept of Fish and Wildlife, Fire Marshall, TTB, OLCC, the list goes on.. Im amazed that we get it all done and have time to grow grapes and make wine. The Woot list is what it is in order to make the "deal" a deal... sorry to those of you who can't order.. however, you can always get the wines through northwestwines to you if the wines become available. With the Woot deal we are sending a valuable gift card towards a future purchase (30% off a purchase if before June 15th I think). We'll hopefully also be back on Woot in some months if today goes well!

Trust me, we understand your frustration and appreciate your effort. It is just pretty rare for us Ohioans to not be included in the shipping list (except for the occasional international offerings). Any chance the 30% offer will be extended to people who can't purchase the wines today, but where licensing is in process and may be available prior to June?

Regardless, we all thank you for your participation and look forward to more offerings from you in the future (hopefully with some rave wooter reviews on this selection).

Dang it! These just sound too good to pass up. I've been trying to restrain myself, but I just had to click that button. I love it when woot offers the sampler packs.

North316 wrote:Trust me, we understand your frustration and appreciate your effort. It is just pretty rare for us Ohioans to not be included in the shipping list (except for the occasional international offerings). Any chance the 30% offer will be extended to people who can't purchase the wines today, but where licensing is in process and may be available prior to June?

Regardless, we all thank you for your participation and look forward to more offerings from you in the future (hopefully with some rave wooter reviews on this selection).

Yes, what he said!

Hopefully Phil doesn't think we are trying to give him a hard time. The winemaker participation is always appreciated and I know he would much rather discuss the qualities and characteristics of his wines than shipping regulations.

chipgreen wrote:Yes, what he said!

Hopefully Phil doesn't think we are trying to give him a hard time. The winemaker participation is always appreciated and I know he would much rather discuss the qualities and characteristics of his wines than shipping regulations.

Likewise and ditto.

I have already signed up for the NW Wines to You newsletter, so hopefully I'll get the heads-up when shipping to the Buckeye State is good to go.

Looks like the PN retails for $24 and the whites for $14, making it $76 + tax/shipping. Turns out the shipping is considerable - $25 from OR to CA! That makes this a $107 for $63 offer - a touch over 40% off.

I think I want this to come back in a woot-off in a couple months once I've opened up some space to put these. Until then, SIWBM must stand...

Sure would love to see some reviews on the Pinot Noir, I can't seem to find anything on them.

So our whites from 08 and 09 were all screw top.. then in 2010 I used corks on our Riesling and Muller. We actually had customers question this for they liked the screw tops and our distributor wasn't excited about the corks either, but for me I think this... anyone can ferment juice .. or mush grapes in a bin.. or stick alcohol in a bottle and put a cap on it... but to spend the time to craft a wine that can lay and age on a shelf for 12 to 20 to 40 years (lets not get too ridiculous) thats free of contaminants of spoilage and properly corks the bottle free of air and bacteria.. this all takes a lot of energy and care... and while the screw caps are easier, slightly cheaper, and more eco friendly ( is this verified?) I am so very torn... it is a discussion that never ends.