Oregon vs. California - Part 1
A Comparative Tasting
American wine lovers often think of the Pacific Northwest as a single viticultural region with a narrow spectrum of variation. Washington State is seen as further north and receiving the fuller impact of the north Pacific weather patterns; Oregon, a little milder.
While it is true that Washington State experiences a shorter growing season, its viticultural regions lie inland where there is plenty of sunshine during the Spring and Summer months. Bordeaux varietals reach a high level of expression there.
Oregon, in contrast, is home to a handful of similar regions: the Willamette Valley, Umpqua Valley, Rogue Valley, and a small portion of the Columbia Valley. These are cool regions and Pinot Noir is king.
Oregon has produced stellar Pinor Noir for more than a decade and is now beginning to spread its wings. Like California, almost every varietal has been tried. There have been many failures, along with some remarkable successes.
Unlike Oregon, California enjoys a full spectrum of viticultural areas, with vineyards extending from Eureka in the north down to the Mexican border. Vineyard elevations range from sea level to around 4,000 feet. They are found in cool coastal valleys, hot interior valleys, and on mountain slopes. It is no wonder that California has enjoyed such a high level of success with an amazing range of varietals.
We set out to determine whether we could discern regional distinctions between cool weather California varietals and their Oregonian counterparts. Of course, California would have a clear advantage with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, and Rhône varietals. We focussed instead on Oregon's most successful contenders: Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir. And we chose for our comparative tasting, wines from some of Oregon's most distinguished producers.
Did we find characteristics which distinguished all the Oregon examples from their California brethren? Most of our panel answered affirmatively. We found all the Oregon wines cleaner and more sharply focussed. Oak, if used at all, was handled deftly.
The California examples were easily identified in this blind tasting. They were explosive both in the nose and on the palate; they were rounder and more mouth filling. Delicious, to be sure; but in every case our panel preferred the Oregon style with food.
Our next article will feature reviews of all the wines, along with our recommendations.