Wine Reviews > Pinot Noir

Wine Enthusiast

2002: Vintage a Grand Slam. "Adam G. Campbell has elevated Elk Cove to one of Oregon’s best…" (November 1, 2004)

Willamette Valley

2006: 90 "This opens right up into a lovely, expressive nose laden with cherry blossom, plum, vanilla, and butterscotch. The core of sweet raspberry and cherry holds steady into a moderately tannic finish, etched with some green tannins and dried herbs. Smooth, silky, and substantial..." (July 1, 2008)

2005: 90 "Good winemaking is evident here. This is clean and fresh, with light, appealing flavors of berry, cola and chocolate-covered espresso bean. The wine has a smooth, silky texture, and feels substantial without being fat or hot. It is certainly ageworthy and it wouldn’t surprise me if it lasted a decade or more. But tough to keep your hands off it right now." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2007)

2004: 89 "Fragrant, aromatic, open, and wonderfully accessible, this smells like fresh-cut roses and violets, and tastes of cherries and chocolate. It’s a broad, smooth effort that is open and drinking well right now." (August 31, 2006)

2003: 88 Buying Guide. (July 31, 2005)

2002: 86 Buying Guide. (October 31, 2004)

2001: 89 "Pure and inviting, with entirely typical and welcome aromas of cherry and smoky wood. The palate is mostly cherry fruit, with simple but appropriate pepper and oak shadings. The finish is just right in terms of flavor and feel, and while the wine is round enough, it retains an acid-based, streamlined character that makes it fine and dandy." – Michael Schachner (August 31, 2003)

2000: 89 "You don't find much $20 Oregon Pinots this good. Forward and bright, it still has a fresh, grapey quality to the fruit, which hits the palate crisp and spicy. Hints of juniper, earth and brown sugar add interest, and the wine retains its focus though a long, satisfying finish." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2003)

Mt. Richmond

2008: 90 "Forward and fruity, this is an easy-drinking bottle of pinot...gains both mass and complexity with some streaks of licorice and vanilla, laced with edgy herbs and tannins..."" – Paul Gregutt (April 1, 2010)

2005: 90 "...This is a tight, crisp, elegant wine. Aromas suggest coffee grounds, and the fruit is tart and compact — rhubarb and strawberry. But the wine has what the Brits call breed—a somewhat indefinable quality of finesse and elegance, and for a cooler site it has ripened sufficiently to warrant an excellent score." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2007)

2004: 88 "Scents of root, leaf and herb are typical of the terroir. The tart, tight fruit tastes of cranberries and red currants." – Paul Gregutt (August 31, 2006)

2003: 89 Buying Guide. (July 31, 2005)

Five Mountain

2005: 90 "This new vineyard site, on the east side of the Chehalem mountains, has delivered a precisely rendered, spicy wine, with a pleasing mix of leaf, herb, berry and earth flavors. It’s cut on the tart, acidic side, but it’s neither dull nor simple. Given its balance and texture, it may well age for another decade or more." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2008)

La Bohème

2006: 91 Cellar Selection. "La Bohème, now almost 25 years old, has been Elk Cove's tète de cuvée for most of its life... as with all of Adam Campbell's wines, it is finely sculpted, showcasing tart and tangy cranberry pomegranate, and rhubarb flavors with a finish that lands on a foundation of rock." (July 1, 2008)

2005: 89 "Elk Cove has kept a lid on the prices of its best Pinots, despite the inflation that has crept in elsewhere and without a surcharge for old vine fruit and superior winemaking. La Bohème wines always seem to be buttoned up upon release, but reward cellaring and demand attention. I find a little bit of leathery funk in this new release, but along with that is finely sculpted, tart and tangy red fruit, and a wine that is proportionate and detailed." – Paul Gregutt (November 15, 2007)

2002: 86 Buying Guide. (October 31, 2004)

2001: 90 "This is a high-elevation Pinot, from the northern Willamette, and shows a different flavor set than the superripe, tannic, Zinny wines made further south. But it is very well made, firm and varietal, with a complex mix of herb, leaf and tart fruits, and will prosper with 5-7 years of cellaring." – Paul Gregutt (October 31, 2003)

2000: 88 "A good La Bohème, which seems to have lost its footing in recent vintages. Juicy, young and quite tart, it shows plenty of bright berry fruit and a bit of concentrated cassis. There is a distinct scent of resin or diesel. Could improve with time." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2003)

Windhill

2006: 91 "This is a lovely bottle from a vineyard planted in 1974. It’s an almost-perfect mix of flower, fruit, and stone. It mixes the flavors elegantly into a wine that captures the elegance of the grape along with bright fruit, crisp acids, and just the right amount of herb." – Paul Gregutt (November 15, 2008)

2005: 89 "Pinot from this 30-year-old vineyard is spicy and fragrant, with overtones of pine needle and camphor. It’s very distinctive, elegant and stylish. It does not try to be either California Pinot or Burgundy; it is in some sense uniquely Oregonian. Aromas and fruit flavors are nicely threaded together, cherry and cranberry, pine and tomato leaf." – Paul Gregutt (November 15, 2007)

2004: 88 "Fragrant, aromatic and penetrating, it sends up lively aromas of spice, herb and pine needles. The scents are nicely threaded into the fruit, which mixes raspberry, cherry and crabapple with the spicy, leafy character of Oregon pinot." – Paul Gregutt (August 31, 2006)

2003: 90 Buying Guide. (July 31, 2005)

2001: 91 "Smoky aromas kick start things, and then comes a blast of tar, char and pure red fruit. The deep, structured, properly acidic palate is pure and healthy as can be, with cherry, raspberry and chocolate flavors coming together perfectly. And the rich, oaky finish is just as it should be. With zest, style and class, this is a fine domestic Pinot." – Michael Schachner (August 31, 2003)

2000: 89 "Here is a young, forward Pinot bursting with flavors of fruit preserves, chocolate and cola. Still a bit hard and tannic, with a rough, grainy, tannic finsih. But the power and muscle of this beast suggest it will improve with some time in the cellar, there is plenty of good raw material here." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2003)

Roosevelt

2006: 91 "The Roosevelt vineyard bottling goes from strength to strength as it shows nuances of root, sassafras, black cherry, and cassis. This vintage is bigger and heavier than previous bottlings adding sweet fruit but taking away some leafy, herby flavors…you can’t deny that it’s a delicious bottle with power and structure." – Paul Gregutt (November 15, 2008)

2005: 91 Cellar Selection. "Planted in 1993, this four-acre, cool-climate vineyard had a relatively late harvest in 2005, which can, in the PNW, result in more European, vertically structured wines. This is wrapped up tight, and is far away from the sweet, succulent fruit of California Pinot Noir, but its pleasures are many and varied. Clear and bright, its berry-cherry fruit is shaded with leaf and earth. The tannins are firm but quite polished, and the flavors meld together seamlessly." – Paul Gregutt (April 1, 2008)

2004: 90 (June 30, 2007)

2002: 88 Buying Guide. (October 31, 2004)

2001: 90 "Soft and seductive, the nose is redolent of primary fruits, with leafy, earthy undertones. Good balance and focus, with a sense of gathering strength as it rolls down the throat. Elk Cove is showing significant improvement from vintage to vintage, and is quickly moving into Oregon's top ranks." – Paul Gregutt (October 31, 2003)

2000: 90 "Consistently the winery's finest Pinot, the Roosevelt simply outperforms the rest of its siblings. There's plenty of meat on these bones, with more than a hint of iron and mineral flavors. It is compact, clean and persistent. Like the rest of this brand's lineup, it needs more time to really show well." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2003)

Reserve

2006: 93 "This wine explodes from the glass with aromatic scents of caramel, cherry, sweet grain and many more nuanced layers. This is the wine you pull out for a special occasion. The flavors are beautifully integrated, a rolling mix of berries, spicy herbs, wood, earth, and caramel." – Paul Gregutt (November 15, 2008)

2002: 90 Buying Guide. (October 31, 2004)

Shea

2005: 91 "This marvelous vineyard has not been featured by Elk Cove previously. The characteristic blackberry fruit shines through, but winemaker Adam Campbell has wrapped it in the sort of elegant, lightly herbal, spicy flavors that define Elk Cove style. Perfectly ripened at 14.5% alcohol, this wine manages to be both fruity and complex, open and layered." – Paul Gregutt (March 31, 2008)