Oregon could easily have been the poor relation to California, had it not developed to focus on Pinot Noir rather than the Cabernet favoured further south. Pinot Noir is a delicate grape variety that works well in Oregon’s cooler summers and, in the right hands, produces a wine with Burgundian elegance combined with a hint of New World ripeness. Although there has been some outside investment (even from Burgundy itself with the Drouhin family moving in), most of the wine industry in Oregon remains small-scale, and none the worse for that. There are some genuinely interesting, quality producers making excellent Pinot Noir here, as well as fine, sophisticated whites and reds from other cool-climate grape varieties.
