Kathleen Willcox, a wine writer and reviewer who contributes to Wine Searcher, Wine Enthusiast, Wine Industry Network Advisor, and Liquor.com (as well as other publications), has written about us before (here and here), but had never sampled our wines. Which is why we asked if we could send her a couple of bottles for consideration this spring. She agreed to sample three, publishing reviews on 2019 Titan Willamette Valley Pinot Noir and 2020 Jupiter Estate Pinot Noir, as well as the 2021 Helios Estate Seyval Blanc (review here).
Here’s what she wrote:
There are boutique wineries and then there are MICRO boutique wineries, Bells Up is the latter, but it is still—and this is key—so much more than a hobby.
Bells Up produces about 600 cases of precise, thoughtful, handcrafted Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Rosé and Seyval Blanc made in Newberg, Oregon from sites in the Willamette Valley and Eastern Oregon by Dave and Sara Specter.
I was lucky enough to try these:
Bells Up Titan Pinot Noir 2019: Sourced from Yamhill-Carlton and Chehalem Mountain, this Pinot is balanced and bright, poised black fruits in a mineral frame, with notes of espresso and dark chocolate.
Bells Up Jupiter Pinot Noir 2020: Made from Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir, this wine will sleep well for another decade, but in its youth it’s brimming with red cherries, pomegranate, raspberry energy; rose hips and dried herbs.
I’ll be eager to see where these wines—and Bells Up—go in the coming years.
