Ayres, “Lewis Rogers Lane” Pinot Noir

Today, we’re getting down to the brass tacks: Willamette Valley Pinot Noir at its highest level is among the finest experiences you can have, so when $32 is all that’s required from a region-defining producer’s top single-vineyard bottling, it also becomes one of the best price-to-quality investments imaginable. Of course, when Ayres’ wines have been made available to us in the past, a throng of subscribers have gone all-in with complete confidence—and rightly so. This ‘mom and pop’ winery has vinous magic swirling about their sustainably farmed vineyards in the elite sub-appellation of Ribbon Ridge, and today we’re offering up Ayres’ 12-barrel production from their pride-and-joy estate vineyard.What’s more, winemaker and Drouhin understudy Brad McLeroy will tell you this special, small-production cuvée best represents Ayres’ estate by expertly blending together prized Dijon and Pommard clones. The results are sensational: One smell of this 2018 emits the most sublime and soul-stirring