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synchronicity
n.
1 the simultaneous occurrence
of events that appear significantly
related but have no discernible
causal connection.
(The New Oxford American
Dictionary, 2001)
The 2001 vintage in a single
word. At a time of breathless
uncertainty, Nature offered
rock solid quality...in
unparalleled abundance.
In October 2001 the vineyard
yielded more Pinot Noir
and Gamay Noir than at any
time in its 12 year history
(even after a strict green
pruning to one cluster per
shoot.)
So, in a climate of contraction,
a measured increase in our
production allows us to
offer some wonderful wines
at peerless pricing.
The older vine Pommard clone
performed beautifully, producing
a lovely 2001 "Cuvee
du Tonnelier." Much
of the fruit from our younger
Dijon clone block found
its way into a new offering;
the 2001 Brick House Willamette
Valley Pinot Noir. The "Les
Dijonnais" bottling
will return with vintage
2002.
After three wonderful vintages,
laden with structure and
depth and demanding of some
cellar time, 2001 offers
suppleness and ready charm.
These are wines to enjoy
while you wait for your
99's and 2000's to attain
full maturity.
...Synchronicity...
:Brick
House "Cuvee du Tonnelier"
2001 --
"An early glimpse at
what appears to be Oregon's
fourth consecutive successful
vintage, owner- winemaker
Doug Tunnell's reserve cuvee
is ripe and round, elegant
in the way it wraps everything
in a delicate blanket of fine
tannins and tingly acidity.
The cherry strawberry and
cinnamon-pepper flavors shine
through the fine texture as
they extend the long, impressive
finish. Drink now through
2008. ( 92 points)
--- Harvey Steiman, The Wine
Spectator
Brick
House Willamette Valley
Pinot Noir 2001 --
"Another
winner from Doug Tunnell.
The wine is firm textured,
with a plump beam of cinnamon-scented
raspberry and plum fruit
shining through the impressively
lengthy finish. Not especially
complex, but well-built
and appealing. Drink now
through 2005. ( 90 points)
---
Harvey Steiman, The Wine
Spectator
Robert
Parker's Wine Advocate on
the 2000 "Les Dijonnais"
Pinot Noir --
"I adored the ruby colored
2000 Les Dijonnais. Cinnamon,
cherries ( both red and black)
dark berries and spices can
be discerned in its elegant
yet concentrated character.
This wine has outstanding
depth, complexity, structure
and length. Drink over the
next 7 to 8 years. ( 91+ pts.)
---
Pierre Antoine Rovani
The
Wine Spectator on the 2000
"Cuvee du Tonnelier"
Pinot Noir --
"Lithe and polished.
The raspberry and red currant
flavors harmonize with the
background notes of spicy
oak and cinnamon...all of
which float effortlessly
through the fine finish.
(91pts.)
--- Harvey Steiman
"Best
Wines 2002," Wine Country
Living Magazine (Dec.
2002)
2000 Brick House
"Les Dijonnais"Pinot
Noir " While Chehalem
Mountain waits for its own
regional designation, its
wines are already some of
the best in Oregon."
---
Thom Elkjer
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2000
"Cuvee du Tonnelier"
Pinot Noir --
"Black cherries,
leather, brown sugar
and mushroom aromas
are coaxed from the
wine, with aromas
of French vanilla.
Tight and built for
aging, the wine unveils
dusty tannins, elegant
balance, a fruit bowl
of flavors and very
nice acidity. 92/90"
---
Randy Buckner, WineLoversPage.com
2000
"Cuvee du Tonnelier"
Pinot Noir --
."Lithe
and polished. The
raspberry and red
currant flavors harmonize
with the background
notes of spicy oak
and cinnamon...all
of which float effortlessly
through the fine finish.
(91pts.)
---
Harvey Steiman, The
Wine Spectator
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In
the Spring of 1990,
we set about clearing the
old orchard and laying out
our first planting of Pommard
clone Pinot Noir. It had been
clean cultivated with a chilling
array of herbicides over the
years, leaving the appearance,
once the trees were gone,
of a sloping baseball diamond,
melting slowly in the Spring
rains. The entire field needed
drainage ; then a healthy
crop of rye grass to hold
what topsoil there was in
place.
In such a
depleted environment, it
was slow going for the vines
at first. They showed signs
of early drought stress
in the warm, dry summers
of 1990 and 1991. Then in
1992, a tiny first crop
was ready for harvest...
on August 21 ! the vines
have slowly gained strength
and maturity every since.
In the evolution
of vineyard layouts, the
tightly spaced Pommard block
at Brick House was fairly
unusual for Oregon in 1990.
1600 vines per acre. Following
the Burgundian model, we
left only one meter between
plants. But the only vineyard
sized tractor John Deere
produced at the time required
a full eight feet between
trellis rows. On deeper,
more vigorous soils leaving
only one meter between plants
could overcrowd the trellis
wires with leaves, restricting
circulation in the canopy
and creating a wonderful
environment for mildew and
other fungi to develop.
But here, on the thin Willakenzie
clay one meter has proved
about right for the vines
fruiting canes. The Pommard
trellis fills each Spring
with just enough leaves
... dark, richly concentrated
fruit.
Pommard
has been our mainstay from
first release in 1993 until
1998, when the Dijon block
added a new dimension to
Brick House Pinot Noir.
2000
"Les Dijonnais"
Pinot Noir --
"complex aromas
of blackberries, red
cherries and French
vanilla are enhanced
by earthy/ mushroom
notes. This release
is more lean in style
and tannic than its
sister. You'll find
lots of mixed red
and black fruits,
integrated sweet brisk
acidity. 90+/88+
---
Randy Buckner, WineLoversPage.com
2000
"Les Dijonnais"
Pinot Noir --
"I adored the
ruby colored 2000
Les Dijonnais. Cinnamon,
cherries ( both
red and black) dark
berries and spices
can be discerned
in its elegant yet
concentrated character.
This wine has outstanding
depth, complexity,
structure and length.
Drink over the next
7 to 8 years. (
91+pts.)
--- Pierre
Antoine Rovani
Robert Parker's
Wine Advocate
"As
succulent and juicy
as pinots come
yet this one sports
hints of earthy
complexity, too."
Four Star Rating
--- WineToday.com
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The
Dijon block overlooks the
Chehalem valley
from
440 feet on the east side
of Ribbon Ridge. Like all
the vineyards at Brick House,
the soil maps show it as Willakenzie
type. But that is not to say
it is uniform in appearance.
At its highest points, the
soils are underlaid with bright
red clay. At the lower end,
a brown sedimentary soil resembles
beach sand in the heat of
August, long after the rains.
Planted
in 1995, the block's three
Pinot Noir clones originated
in the vineyards of the
Domaine Ponsot in the
village of Morey St. Denis,
Burgundy. The original
plant material was collected
by the well known French
viticulturalist Professor
Raymond Bernard of the
University of Dijon. The
good professor must be
especially disposed to
collective endeavors because
the clones he isolated,
processed and eventually
shipped to the New World
are renowned today not
as the Bernard Clones,
but as the "Dijon
Clones" of both Pinot
Noir and Chardonnay.
At
any rate, we are indebted
to Professor Bernard for
supplying us with some
of France's finest families
of vines.
"Les
Dijonnais " at Brick
House is comprised of
clones 113, 114 and 115
, the bulk of which is
the especially high quality,
but low yielding clone
# 114. They are all so
humble in their yields
that we had to wait until
1998 for the first opportunity
to vinify the Dijon clones
in fermenters of their
own. That year, the vines
had given us 0.45 tons
per acre. And what vinification
it was !
 Click
Here: watch the ripening
process!
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