St. Innocent Pinot Noir Freedom Hill Vineyard Willamette Valley 2017 750 ML

Bottle age has begun to soften the herbal edge to this wine, smoothing out the midpalate and showing more of its raspberry-pure flavors. Slightly more than one-quarter of the barrels were new, so lighter touches of caramel latt highlights come through. It’s a good time to check in on this wine, which may not improve further long term. Producer Information St. Innocent Winery was founded in May 1988 by Mark Vlossak, the current winemaker and president, and eight investors. Ten tons of grapes were crushed the first fall, producing 396 cases of still and 176 cases of sparkling wine. Production increased to our full capacity of 6800 cases in 2004. The winery is located in Salem, Oregon, at the southeast corner of the Eola Hills, in the mid-Willamette valley. St. Innocent produces small lot, handmade wines: seven single vineyard Pinot noirs and a blended Pinot noir called the Villages Cuve, two Chardonnay from Dijon clone plantings, two Pinot gris, and a Pinot blanc. The philosophy behind the winemaking at St Innocent is that the function of wine is to complement and extend the pleasure of a meal. The characteristics of a wine should enhance different food and flavor combinations – this interaction amplifies the pleasure of a meal. To this end, St. Innocent wines tend toward higher acid levels, and more diverse and balanced flavors.