Phew. Once again, we managed to please the highly discriminating palates and olfactory nerves of Southern Cali’s premier husband-and-wife wine reviewing duo: Nathan and Courtney Marton of Winery Reflections. The pair, who visited us back in 2019, are wine writers, reviewers, spouses and oeno-academics. They recently posted their review of our 2020 Rhapsody Pinot Blanc.
Winery Reflections’ Nathan and Courtney Marton.
Here’s what they had to say:
Lime peel, fresh cucumber, tart green apple. White peach, acacia flower, pineapple core. Charmingly tense and fiesty streaks of Anjou pear, white grapefruit, and quince highlight a delightfully lively and linear fruit core that comes across as simultaneously crisp yet still nicely expressive.
Notes of elderflower and white carnations gently emerge to impart a delicate floral overlay that is subtly enhanced by pleasant hints of lemon grass and green bean. Mild suggestions of raw almond, salted peanut shell, and root spices provide lightly leesy and phenolic complexity while impressions of loam, gravel, and stoney minerality expose intriguing underlying earthiness.
Perfectly fresh and crunchy on the palate while still remaining impressively characterful, textured, and layered; exhibiting terrific balance and drive within a presentation that is somehow classic yet wonderfully unique. Medium in body and bursting with elevated acidity. This 2020 “Rhapsody” Willamette Valley Pinot Blanc by Bells Up Winery is an exceptionally bright and beautiful white from Oregon.
Although it is nowhere near as widely planted as its siblings Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc is an intriguing white wine grape that can produce exceptional wine in the right hands. This bottling, crafted by Bells Up Winery using Pinot Blanc sourced solely from the Plum Hill Vineyard within the Willamette Valley, marvelously captures the complexity and character possible from this esoteric yet exciting variety.
This wine rings with a delicious range of tart citrus, orchard, and stone fruits that maintain excellent depth of flavor alongside intense energy, and it continues on with subtle floral notes, mild leesy character, delicate spice, and pristine minerality. It is perfectly ready to pop and enjoy today while it is at its freshest, but there is no rush as it should hold well for a number of years to come. Excellent.
