2018 Hundred Suns "Old Eight Cut" Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

Medium ruby in color, the 2018 Pinot Noir Old Eight Cut offers bright raspberry fruit with notes of charcuterie, dried citrus peel, dusty earth and tea leaves. Medium-bodied, the palate opens up to lush, super spicy and very juicy fruits, anchored by finely textured tannins and finishing very long, lifted and detailed. 371 cases were made. (EB)

Several years ago, before I was the Domestic Wine Buyer for K&L, a colleague of mine wrote that Old Eight Cut Pinot from winery, Hundred Suns, was his number one wine of the year. It baffled me because I had never heard of the producer and was surprised that a sub-$30 Oregon Pinot was his favorite out of many thousands of wines tasted that year. Well if I knew then what I know now I would not have been surprised at all. As I sit here and write this review I am confident that Hundred Suns are THE producer to watch in the Willamette Valley and like my colleague before me, their wines have very quickly become personal favorites. Hundred Suns is a husband and wife project consisting of Grant Coulter and Renée Saint-Amour. Grant was the longtime winemaker at the iconic Beaux Freres winery and is a master of his craft. Hundred Suns source fruit from several A-List vineyards including Shea and Sequitur, they also have their own small 4.5 acre estate that they live on. Old Eight cut is a blend of these world class sites and their pedigree shines through very brightly. The nose is packed with ripe, glossy, forest berries, baking spice, agar wood and lifted sassafras and star anise aromas. The palate is juicy and lush with lots of accessible fruit balanced by some brambly hedgerow qualities. The tannis are very fine and polished. The acidity is beautifully judged giving freshness and length to the wine. It's a seriously great bottle of Pinot Noir with plenty of depth and texture. The perfect intro to the remarkable wines of Hundred Suns.