Uncorked: Iris Vineyards produces remarkable pinot noir

Iris Vineyards has a label named Areté.

The loose translation of Areté in Greek philosophy, according to winemaker Aaron Lieberman, is: “Strive to be the best one can be every day.”

It’s a maxim Lieberman lived to the fullest after college. It was 1993, and he was about to graduate at Oregon State. There was the lure of a full-time job and life in the real world.

Yet, a few graduate students, a professor and his uncle were the inspiration he’d need to put that anticipated life on hold and join the Peace Corps. His uncle was one of the first Peace Corps volunteers. Lieberman was going to do a water conservation project in Africa, but it didn’t start until fall 1994, nine months after he was set to graduate. Instead, he visited Russia with his brother, and when he returned, an assignment in Guatemala was offered.

“It was great,” Lieberman said. “I was in the agricultural extension, and worked with corn and bean seed improvement and post harvest.”

For three years, Lieberman lived out the Areté philosophy in a foreign country. He’s now part of a talented collection of Oregon winemakers who navigate through more treacherous weather than colleagues to the north in Washington and the south in California, yet turn out truly remarkable pinot noir. Some of Oregon’s best pinots are featured this week.

When Lieberman returned from Guatemala in June 1996, his newly developed Spanish fluency helped him fit in with the native language of many workers on vineyard crews. He worked at Amity and Dundee Hills, and was involved in vineyard management and development. He’d explore soil types in the vineyard, and examine a site’s layout to determine which rootstocks to use, and which plots would be best suited to plant, based on water availability.

It was a skill that came in handy when he was named Iris’ first winemaker in 2008. His experience helped contribute to the planting of Iris Vineyards. He has a special bond with the site.

“As the first and only winemaker here, all my wines are my babies, I suppose,” Lieberman said. “When I am asked, ‘Well, which child is your favorite?’ – I don’t pick favorites, something like that depends on your mood.”

While Lieberman won’t pick favorites, it’s easy to do so with the Iris Block C Pinot Noir 2019 ($40), with its pronounced bouquet of dried roses, violets and cracked black pepper, which turned into a mix of showy dark fruit and earth with hints of tobacco, leather and Chinese Five Spice.

“We get our greatest sun exposure on that block, and there are some of the shallowest soils on the property,” Lieberman said. “So, the vines are at a cool site, and are a week or two behind the rest of the valley. Allows us to get the fruit a little more ripe and in line with the trend with pinot drinkers wanting a little more colorful fruit-forward wine. That’s the goal.”

Because it has the steepest slopes on the property, Block C is a showcase for a flashier-styled pinot. The Iris Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019 ($25) gave Lieberman the chance to highlight a more traditional Oregon pinot, with flavors of pomegranate, wild mushrooms and red raspberry tea on a sleeker frame.

“It’s more like the wines you would have been used to in the early 2000s in Oregon,” Lieberman said. “It’s more elegant, food friendly and acid driven.”

Oregon pinot noir has trended riper in recent vintages, but that’s what a warmer year has to offer. It’s a state where it seems impossible to create the same wine every year.

And that’s exciting for wine lovers.

• James Nokes has been tasting, touring and collecting in the wine world for several years. Email him at jamesnokes25@yahoo.com.

OREGON PINOT TASTING NOTES

Amity Vineyards Eola-Amity Hills Pinot Noir 2019 ($28): A pronounced floral nose of violets and lilac offers up a seductive perfume. There’s raspberry, thyme, bay leaf and other herbal flavors that sweep in on the finish.

Marshall Davis Willamette Valley “Black Label” Pinot Noir 2019 ($60): Sweet cherry, bay leaf and tobacco on the nose. There are flavors of candied cherry and hints of wet leaves. It’s a silky and elegant wine that evolved into something even more lovely the longer it was open.

Montinore Estate Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019 ($21): Raspberry, dusty dark chocolate and a loamy, wet earth note. A light- to medium-bodied pinot that was playful with a salmon and salad dinner.

Penner-Ash Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019 ($45): Consistently one of the most intriguing and best producers in Oregon. Penner-Ash has always embraced the ethos that no two vintages are the same. This is a restrained, ethereal pinot with flavors of strawberry and fall leaves. Just beneath the surface, it’s hiding a spice, fruit or forest floor note that subtly wants to be revealed.

R. Stuart Yamhill-Carlton “Hirschy” Pinot Noir 2019 ($55): Sweet pipe tobacco, plum, violets and dried roses on the nose, maraschino cherry and strawberry flavors.

WillaKenzie Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2019 ($45): Raspberry on the nose, more fruit-forward with bright red fruits; a cigar wrapper note rises up on the finish.