WTN: 4 2002 Panther Creek Pinot Noirs

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-From Panther Creek Redux

Panther Creek winemaker Michael Stevenson liked our notes on some of his ’98 and ’99 Pinot Noirs, so he sent us four of his ’02 models and a couple from his side project, Stevenson-Barrie. For brevity’s sake, only the Panther Creeks are noted here. We tasted these with noted Psychopomp Bill Schwab and his squeeze Tami; the wines were enjoyed with some killer grilled pork loin skewers, grilled salmon, purple potato gratin, and cauliflower gratin.

2002 Panther Creek Willamette Pinot Noir Bednarik Vineyard, $41.99, 13% alc.: Dark garnet, fading to pink at the rim, this takes another fifteen minutes to open in the glass and really show what it has, even after decanting, offering very nice black cherry, blackberry, plum, smoke, cola and subtle underbrush characteristics; Bill added impressions of "peppered raspberry and a little bubble gum." This is very smooth on the palate, being medium full - bodied, with great balance and a nice density to it. There are fine, silky tannins and good acidity to take this some years down the road, and yet it drinks very well already.

2002 Panther Creek Willamette Pinot Noir Freedom Hill Vineyard, $41.99, 13% alc.: About this smoky tinged ruby dark garnet, the Psychopomp opined, "It's much sweeter to the nose (than the Bednarik), with sort of a jasmine thing." A bit less dense and heavy than the previous selection, this features very pretty black cherry and plum flavors and aromas, but like the first wine, it's silky smooth, with fine tannins and excellent balance; with extended air, a hint of maple syrup emerges. Bill remarked, "If I didn't know better, I'd say it saw whole berry fermentation, it has that carbonic maceration thing." Whether that's the case or not, this is one very fine Pinot Noir, and it will only get better over the next three to five years.

2002 Panther Creek Willamette Pinot Noir Shea Vineyard, $41.99, 13% alc.: A deep dark garnet in color; Bill found it "much darker than the Bednarik or Freedom Hill, with more black and blue fruit," and I agreed, adding an impression of licorice. The wine almost comes off being more Syrah - like than Pinot, with black plum, blackberry and black cherry character, shaded with a note of lavender and a little roofing tar. Kim found it to be "not as elegant as the last two," and while she has a point, this is still a silky smooth and well - balanced wine on a medium full - bodied frame.

2002 Panther Creek Willamette Pinot Noir Nysa Vineyard, $41.99, 13% alc.: A slightly smoky tinged ruby garnet in color, this shows considerable oak, with a lot of toast on the nose and the palate, seemingly at the expense of fruit. Bill says it "smells like rotting flowers," and Kim added, "It tastes like nutmeg and apple pie spices." As it opens, it shows a little root beer - sarsaparilla and burnt rubber to go with all the toast. Like the others, this is silky smooth, with good aging potential, but "the lack of fruit is what drops this out of the sexy category," according to Mr. Schwab, who, as a longtime fan of Panther Creek Nysa Pinot, finds this one disappointing. However, he added that he has tasted this on another occasion recently, and that bottle showed much more fruit, and "even some blossom."

Despite some concern about the fruit in the Nysa, we are generally quite impressed with these four. I especially like the silky elegance they all show, much more so that the '98s and '99 we tried a few months ago. As stated in the notes, these are already quite approachable with air, but we all feel that they'd be best left to age in the cellar for at least a few years. As Bill put it, "These are all about promise, and I don't like to drink promise, I like to drink wine."

Click here for our full report, including notes on the two Stevenson-Barrie Pinots and a beautiful '99 Panther Creek King's Gambit Vineyard Pinot, along with comments and background information from Michael Stevenson.

Reporting from Day-twah,

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