“A little more grape, Captain Bragg,” Zachary Taylor, 1784-1850, Buena Vista, Mexico, February 23, 1847.
In 1999, David O’Reilly opened the Owen Roe Winery in Oregon, producing very small batches of wine boasting terrific quality. Growth was practically explosive, and the Owen Roe winery and its offshoots now ships wine to multiple states.
Named after Owen Roe O’Neill, David’s relative, the winery began and continues to source high quality fruit in small vineyard sites situated throughout Oregon and Washington. No herbicides or pesticides are employed in any of the vineyards, a great comfort to many of us who want to die healthy. His labels, Corvidae Winery (the name comes from the bird family that includes crows, magpies and ravens) and O’Reilly’s, are sold in a variety of quality stores in the Milwaukee area, including Consumer Beverage Outlet in Hales Corners, Downer Wines, Ray’s and Sendik’s. I was pleasantly surprised by the overall quality of all of David’s wines. Here are my tasting notes, with my usual “A”-“F” grading:
1. 2009 Corvidae Wise Guy Sauvignon Blanc, $11: Pale straw color with medium body and a lightly flowery nose with traces of clover. Light, pleasant fruit and a sparkling clean finish with slightly acidic balancing notes. Nice! B+
2. 2008 O’Reilly’s Pinot Gris, $13: Off-white color and medium body. The nose is pleasantly fruity, bordering on full. Medium-rich fruit with pleasantly acidic finish. A nice tongue dance! The elegant finish lingers and begs for patio time. A+
3. 2009 Corvidae “Mirth” Chardonnay, $11: Light straw hue with substantial body. The rich nose teases with notes of fruit and depth. In my mouth, the wine strutted its stuff with more rich fruit, then finished with a nice, pleasant ending replete with whispers of oak and caramel. This unoaked Chardonnay ferments slowly, stirring the lees and creating a rich texture. Good for a Chardonnay. B+
4. 2009 O’Reilly’s Pinot Noir, Oregon, $19: A tad Burgundian/high-end Oregon, this was purple-hued with a slightly light body. Its nose was medium-intense with notes of candied blueberry (if one can find it). It had medium depth with nice earthy notes and a slightly acidic, balanced finish. B+
5. 2008 Rook, Corvidae Wine Company Columbia Valley, $14: A blend of 15 percent Cabernet, 45 percent Merlot and 40 percent Syrah, this displayed a dark brick ruby color with fairly heavy body. It had a lovely nose of dark chocolate and cherry, accompanied by heavy fruit with practically astringent notes (dissipated with some air time). A-
6. 2007 Lenore Columbia Valley Syrah, $14: Dark purple showing with very heavy body. The closed-in nose promised currants and oodles of fun with air time. In the mouth, it strutted deep, dark chocolate that defied wimpiness. Long, rich finish. A
Today’s winner was the fun Pinot Gris.
The price/value winner, comparatively, was the Mirth Chardonnay, followed closely by the Wise Guy Sauvignon Blanc.
Cheers to you, David O’Reilly! You’ve got more than the luck of the Irish on your side.
