Domaine Serene vs. Burgundy

[Nevan]

Not too long ago there was some discussion here about Domaine Serene's (Oregon) wines. Here a link to an interesting release they just put out regarding a blind tasting where their wines showed exceptionally well:

Domaine Serene Tasting

[Elissa]

do i get a prize for picking it before they did?

Edited July 7, 2003 by lissome (log)

[Craig Camp]

Nevan - I always look forward to your posts on northwest wines. You expertise and passion in this area clearly oudistances my own I welcome the education you can give us.

Perhaps you could comment on why Domaine Serene (on of my favorites) can attain such high quality standards?

[Nevan]

In regard to Domaine Serene, from my perspective there are two reasons why their wines are consistently strong: money and commitment.

Not to be too crass about it, but owners Ken and Grace Evenstad can afford to spare no expense in the production of their wines. Of course, that starts with owning some outstanding (and no doubt outstandingly expensive) vineyard land in both the Dundee Hills and the Eola Hills . . . so their sites are really good. They can then afford to manage the vineyards with close care, hand farming, and lots of green harvesting to keep yields low. And the winery, well, what can I say? From a special "bug sucker" vaccuum on the sorting line to spectacular cellar rooms with all kinds of technology bells and whistles, everything is geared to keep the wine as perfectly as possible . . . . stuff that very few wineries can afford to equal. (The beautiful and still-new winery is not generally open, but I think they recently began offering tours by appointment . . . but I'm not certain about that).

I also have a lot of respect for the folks working there. Winemaker Tony Rynders (who was once with Hogue, among others) is very focused on quality, and not just as a PR tool but, I'm convinced, as a kind of personal mission. I've been up there during harvest and watched Tony, Ken, Grace, and the whole staff from sales to receptionist standing all day long on the sorting line picking out bad stuff before the good stuff goes into the destemmer. Strictly speaking, they don't HAVE to personally do that, but they do.

Having the resources to do everything right doesn't guarantee great wines (there are lots of great wines produced on a relative shoestring--and lots of family-fortune wineries that turn out mediocre wine), but in my experience Domaine Serene has definietly put their money to good use and become one of the most consistent northwest producers of high quality wines.