Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/61075
A Visitor from Oregon I n February, we welcomed Alison Sokol Blosser at THE TASTING PANEL offi ces. Alison is a second- generation winegrower and Co-President (with her brother, Alex) of her family's Sokol Blosser winery, established in Oregon's Willamette Valley in 1971 by her parents, pioneers Bill Blosser and Susan Sokol Blosser. Still family-owned, the winery boasts 85 estate acres, which were entirely replanted—mainly to Pinot Noir, with some Pinot Gris—starting in 1998, after phylloxera destroyed the original vines. Making Tracks on the Silverado Trail A t the Hunnicut custom crush facility on Napa's Silverado Trail, we met up with Mike Doilney, partner in the up-and-coming Parallel wine label. Winemaker Philippe Melka signed on to create some unique Napa character, and the 2009 Russian River Chardonnay got us hooked. With a year of age in the bottle, a candied yam and bright orange juiciness wowed us with a paradigm twist of a creamy, rich and buttery outer core. The combination of 14 to 17 days of fermentation in 400-liter puncheons, giving full contact on the lees, and 14 months of 60% new French oak explains some of the liquid design. —Meridith May Alison Sokol Blosser. "One of the good things about Oregon is the acidity," Alison commented as we tasted the Sokol Blosser 2010 Pinot Gris ($20), the 2009 Dundee Hills Pinot Noir ($38) and the 2009 Estate Cuvée Pinot Noir ($55). The Pinot Noirs are given 16 months in French oak, and the Estate Cuvée gets nine months of bottle age before release. The winery has also just released the fi rst red in its non-vintage Evolution tier, a fruity, velvety Syrah-based blend (SRP $17). Sourced from Oregon, Washington and California, the Evolution wines carry an American appellation. —David Gadd Sokol Blosser is available through Terlato Wines International. Mike Doilney, partner, Parallel Wines, Napa Valley. april 2012 / the tasting panel / 17 PHOTO: JOHN CURLEY PHOTO: MERIDITH MAY