Cameron Single Vineyard Subscriber Sale
Sale Ended 11/9/2019
What’s the most anticipated Willamette Valley release in our shop? Cameron Winery’s single vineyard bottlings. This is one of our favorite offers of the year, and for good reason—Cameron makes some of the most profound wines in the Willamette Valley and their single vineyard Pinot and Chardonnay are the pinnacle of their yearly releases. These 2017s are among the best we’ve tasted ever from Cameron and winemaker/owner John Paul is (somehow) more excited than we’ve seen him in years. The best part? We’re putting these on pre-arrival sale through the close of business on Saturday.
If you’re a longtime fan of Cameron, this is a vintage to stock up on. It’s classical in all the best ways—more elegant and detailed than the trio of hot vintages that preceded it, but with more depth and complexity than a year like ’13. 2010 is a comparison that’s been thrown around a lot, which speaks very highly of this new set of wines—the ’10’s are among the best wines Cameron’s ever made and these show in that vein, but with a bit more fruit and softer tannins.
The whites are crystalline and spicy, with beautiful aromatics and vibrant acidity. These are impressively incisive Chardonnays that have taken to their long elevage with aplomb. The reds have the tone of a cool vintage but with more fruit and texture—a great combo that’s already drinking well but will age beautifully. All the new single vineyards are on sale until the end of our business hours on Saturday (with the exception of the Abbey Ridge Chard, which is exceptionally scarce in ’17). If you love the Cameron wines, now’s the time to stock up.
Arriving Friday, November 15th
Cameron Winery Abbey Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay, Dundee Hills 2017 750ML ($79.95) $69 pre-arrival special, only 24 bottles available!
Cameron Winery Clos Electrique Blanc, Dundee Hills 2017 750ML ($79.95) $59 subscriber-only special
VinopolNote: The Clos Electrique is Cameron’s estate vineyard, named after the electric deer fence that surrounds it. This is planted to a mix of clones and is vinified traditionally—no racking and all in older barrels. This is crisp and coiled, with distinct minerality and a lot of power in a lithe frame. Like most vintages of the Electrique Blanc, this is quite good now but will be stellar in a few years.
The average price is $71
VinopolNote: Abbey Ridge is one of the most hallowed sites in the Willamette Valley. Planted in 1975, the Pinot Noir here is own rooted and at one of the highest elevations in the Dundee Hills. The elevation and classic Jory soils give the wine an intense personality—high toned, elegant and tensile, with good power and a strong voice. This bottling has been one of the defining Oregon Pinots since John Paul started making it.
The average price is $70
VinopolNote: Named after the electrified deer fence surrounding the vineyard, the Clos Electrique is the estate vineyard surrounding Cameron’s winery. Located just up the road from Maresh vineyard, on Worden Hill Road, it’s in the promised land of the Dundee Hills and the wines deliver. This is always the meatiest, most primal Pinot of the Cameron lineup. We love it for its intense savoriness and quiet power—every year this is an absolute treat to drink.
The average price is $72
Looking for other Cameron wines? These are in stock now from Cameron Winery:
Cameron Dundee Hills Chardonnay 2018 750ML ($21.95) $19.90 special, 36+ bottles in stock now
Cameron Winery Giuliano White, Willamette Valley 2018 750ML ($33.95) $27 special, 27 bottles in stock now
Cameron Winery Reserve Chardonnay, Dundee Hills 2017 750ML ($39.95) $33 special, 36+ bottles in stock now
VinopolNote: The ‘Reserve’ level of Cameron Chardonnay is an incredible deal. Made of declassified barrels of Clos Electrique and Abbey Ridge, so without the new oak that the lower level bottling sees, this wine shows facets of the grace and intensity of Abbey and the Clos without the pricetag of those higher end bottlings.
Josh Raynolds – Vinous 91 points “Limpid yellow. Anjou pear, Meyer lemon and chamomile scents, along with hints of fennel and sweet butter. Dry and sharply focused in the mouth, offering dried orchard fruit and citrus marmalade flavors; a late suggestion of melon adds succulence and depth. Finishes with very good cling, leaving bitter citrus pith and pear nectar notes behind.”
VinopolNote: Abbey Ridge sits high atop the Dundee Hills; a collection of vines planted on their own roots in the mid-70’s. It’s unquestionably one of the most special sites in the Willamette Valley and though it’s better known for Pinot Noir, the Abbey Chard is fantastic. This is the most limited of the Chardonnay bottlings from Cameron and isn’t produced every year (there was no 2014 version).Cameron Winery Abbey Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay, Dundee Hills 2016 750ML ($79.95) $69 special, 32 bottles in stock now
The next best price is $77.99
VinopolNote: The Clos Electrique is Cameron’s estate vineyard, named after the electric deer fence that surrounds it. This is planted to a mix of clones and is vinified traditionally—no racking and all in older barrels. This is crisp and coiled, with distinct minerality and a lot of power in a lithe frame. Like most vintages of the Electrique Blanc, this is quite good now but will be stellar in a few years.
The average price is $74
Grapelive 92 points “One of the New World’s best ‘Orange’ wines, the Friuli-inspired Cameron Winery Ramato is a skin contact coppery (hence the name) Pinot Gris. [It] is a dry, slightly savory and textured wine that thrills the senses. John Paul, the famed Pinot Noir winemaker at Cameron Winery and Oregon legend, is also a huge Italian wine fan, loving the wines of Piemonte. [He is] also influenced by the wines of Radikon and Gravner, among others in the north-eastern Italy, near the border with Slovenia where these traditional wines are made. Orange wines are in fashion, but are a tiny niche. While some dismiss them as a passing fade, it should be noted they have been around hundreds if not thousands of years and are not going away anytime soon. We are blessed by their presence, especially when there as good and pleasing as this. Made by allowing the wine to spend time on the skins and then being fermented with malo-lactic conversion the amber hued Cameron Ramato, sourced from their estate Abbey Ridge Vineyard in the Dundee Hills AVA, has an intriguing tension between a delicacy of fruit and the soft grip of tannins that provide a structural mouth feel in a dry and brisk wine. As alluded to, Ramato means copper colored in Italian, which Paul’s certainly shows in the glass. This 2018 version is absolutely brilliant. After many years of experience he nailed this vintage, which his calls one of his best yet. (He also makes a full on Rouge de Gris version, which is more of a red wine with full pigment extraction.) This one is pretty and almost luxurious on the palate, while offering a heightened degree of complexity. [It] hits its marks with layers of wild peach, strawberry, red citrus fresh/fruit and rind along with orange tea notes, crushed flowers, dusty cinnamony spices, persimmon and a melon sensation. This wine gains weight as it opens, but never takes on a heavy or flabby personality, staying fresh and lively even as it leaves a serious impression, providing lots of entertaining quality. Sometimes these Orange style wines can be earthy/funky and downright unappealing, but not this almost-opulent/creamy Cameron. It is clean and wonderfully lingering. If you are orange curious, this is one to look for! It goes without saying, you’ll want to grab Cameron’s awesome Pinot Noir(s) first and foremost, along with his old world Burgundy style Chardonnay, but be sure not to overlook their Italian inspired whites and especially their Nebbiolo.”
The next best price is $29.33
The average price is $35
Winery Note “This wine is dedicated to the late Stanko Radikon and his son, Saša of Radikon Oslavia, who made us realize the potential locked up in the Pinot gris grape. Its nose is respendent with juicy strawberries, bing cherries, violets and a touch of straw. The crisp palate with flavors of umami and ripe and supple fruit tannins make this a truly quaffable red wine. The label honors the Italian plums that were planted on the site by early Oregon settlers prior to its current status as a Pinot gris vineyard at Abbey Ridge. We wish that David Lett were here to see what is possible with Pinot gris!”
VinopolNote “The 2017 Reserve is mostly composed of Abbey Ridge fruit and the bottling reflects the cooler nature of the site and the year quite beautifully. There’s a brightness and energy to the wine that couples with Abbey’s floral and black-cherry nature in a beautiful way.”
The average price is $40
Winery note “Our Nebbiolo is denominated “Willamette Valley” because the wine is a blend of fruit from Clos Electrique (Dundee Hills AVA) and Foster Farms (Ribbon Ridge AVA). It is garnet red, with a complex bouquet of tart cherries, rosehips, tobacco and dried orange peel. The palate has bright acidity, a long finish and firm “sand on the teeth” tannins that typify the Nebbiolo grape. Just like the “real deal” from Northern Piedmont!”Cameron Winery Abbey Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills 2016 750ML ($79.95) $69 special, 36+ bottles in stock now
VinopolNote: Abbey Ridge is one of the most hallowed sites in the Willamette Valley. Planted in 1975, the Pinot Noir here is own rooted and at one of the highest elevations in the Dundee Hills. The elevation and classic Jory soils give the wine an intense personality—high toned, elegant and tensile, with good power and a strong voice. This bottling has been one of the defining Oregon Pinots since John Paul started making it.
The next best price is $71.99
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