The twelfth annual edition of Salud! was held November 8th and 9th. Salud! provides medical care to Oregon’s migrant farm workers, in the form of wellness clinics, occupational health programs, dental check-ups, and assistance with major medical problems. This auction is the major fund-raiser for this program. The auction is the first chance for the public to taste, in a large, organized fashion, the wines from the vintage that will be released, this fall.
On Saturday, 38 of 39 wines from the 2002 vintage were available for tasting at Domaine Drouhin (Anne Amie was tasting their 2000), along with the opportunity to bid on four cases of the wine from each winery. The wines are special cuvees that represent the best wine that the winemaker can make. Most are blends of several barrels, and many include wine from several vineyards. On Sunday evening, more wine from the Salud! wineries was poured during a silent auction, followed by dinner and an oral auction of three case lots (one case each from three different producers) along with a number of other events, trips, and assorted wine lots.
Saturday
The wines were supposed to be auctioned via an electronic system that would keep track of all the bids and display them on screens placed throughout the venue. I system failed before the auction’s conclusion. At that point, part of the wine was auctioned orally and part was auctioned via silent auction.
Conditions at the tasting were less than optimal. The venue was very crowded and cold. Unlike past years, all the wines were good, with no noticeable flaws or problems. I also tasted more wines that I would classify as excellent then normal. I think this bodes well for the vintage. Because of the conditions and the wine’s youth (most were taken straight from barrels that morning), I’ve only broken the wines into categories of excellent, very good, and good. I didn’t try to get too exact with scores, but I expect that the wines would correlate as follows: Excellent – 92+ points, Very Good – 89 to 91 points, and Good – 85 to 88 points. Here are the wines, a few comments, and their auction prices :
Adelsheim - Spicy with noticeable oak, VG, $650
Anne Amie - They brought 2000 so I didn’t bother tasting,, $550
Antica Terra - Some oak, good structure, VG, $700
Archery Summit - VG, $600
Argyle - VG, $525
Bethel Heights - Flabby, G, $825
Brick House - More stuffing, great length, E, $725
Broadley - Rich, lively, great length (I bought this), E, $600
Chehalem - Richer, less lively, but complex and long, E, $800
Cooper Mountain - Very nice, Broadley Jr. (I bought this), VG/E, $525
Cristom - Still going through ML, but very nice, E, $1,025
Domaine Drouhin - Flabby, a hint of burnt oranges, G, $900
Domaine Serene - Flabby, G, $1,200
Elk Cove - VG, $700
Erath - VG, $550
Hamacher - VG, $550
Ken Wright - They were out of wine by the time I got here, $1,500
King Estate - VG, $600
Lange - VG, $500
Lemelson - A little lighter, but great length, VG, $800
McKinlay - Darker fruit, more structure (I bought this), E, $600
Oak Knoll - G, $300
Panther Creek - Very nice, well put together, VG/E, $750
Patton Valley - Very flabby, G, $625
Patricia Green - Lighter, but great length, VG, $700
Ponzi - VG, $775
R Stuart - Creamy, nice structure, VG, $550
Raptor Ridge - Nice nose, no mid-palate, G, $650
Rex Hill - Still going through ML, VG, $575
Shea - Nice fruit, good structure, built for the long haul, E, $650
Silvan Ridge - Nice wine, VG, $550
Sokol Blosser - Fruity, oaky, VG, $475
Soter - Not much nose, good length, VG, $1,100
St Innocent - Earthy, lively, good length, E, $575
Torii Mor - Strawberry soda pop, G, $675
Westrey - Deep, rich, elegant, nice structure, E, $525
Willakenzie Estate - Strawberry, flabby, G, $750
Willamette Valley - VG, $375
Witness Tree - Earthy, fruity, good structure, E, $700
As is usually the case, long-term track record means more than taste at this event. With these being unfinished wines, a less skilled winemaker can still have problems, and a wine that isn’t as impressive can still be saved. I really like the three wines I bought, and, given the price, wish that I had bought the Westrey and possibly the Shea as well.
After the tasting/auction, we attended the Sponsors Dinner at Archery Summit. This was a very nice affair exclusively for the sponsors and the Salud! Board. Luckily, the venue was significantly warmer than DDO, so we all had a chance to unthaw. The dinner, served by Art of Catering, was excellent, and the wines were well matched to the food. In particular, the spicy and fruity flavors in the 2000 Bethel Heights and 2002 Ken Wright Pinots went well with the entrée of roasted venison chop. My wine highlights were the 2000 Chehalem Chardonnay (90), 2000 Bethel Heights Southeast Block Pinot (92), 2002 Ken Wright Savoya Pinot (93), and the 2001 Elk Cove Roosevelt Pinot (91).
Sunday, coming soon.