April 28, 2023

BIG TABLE FARM Pinot Noir 2021

(Willamette Valley, OR) $50

One of the best things about a top Oregon Pinot Noir is how it feels—silk on satin. Plus a rich core of lively fruit that’s just ripe but never overripe. Big Table Farm makes a slew of these. Their Pinot from the Willamette Valley is their basic appellation wine (they also make more expensive single vineyard wines), but it’s always one of my favorites. Can a wine taste like an explosion of cool crunchy cherries? Or an eruption of raspberry coulis? The purity, freshness, and aliveness of this wine is addictive. As the saying goes: run don’t walk. Big Table Farm’s Pinot Noirs—with their charming letterpress labels hand-drawn by the co-owner—sell out fast.

94 points KM

Available at Wine.com

What is the primary grape variety used in making the Greek wine retsina? (Note: Retsina was a recent Wine Word—do you remember?)

A. Malagousia

B. Savatiano

C. Xinomavro

D. Moschofilero

Savatiano is the most cultivated wine-producing variety in Greece and the primary grape used for retsina. The grapes roditis and assyrtiko are also sometimes used. Savatiano is mostly grown in Central Greece in the wine region Attiki (Attica). As for malagousia and moschofilero, both are aromatic grapes said to make the best aperitifs in all of Greece. Xinomavro, a high acid and tannic red grape is known for making dark, brooding wines which are a specialty of northern Greece.

“A raisin tastes like a raisin. It’s bad for the wine industry when [grapes get so ripe that] wine from all places tastes the same.”

—Randy Dunn
Owner/winemaker of Dunn Vineyards in the Napa Valley
Dunn kicked up a controversy a few years ago by vowing to never make a wine over 14% alcohol.

BIG TABLE FARM Pinot Noir 2021

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