In a ranking of more than 3,000 American wines, James Suckling recognized one Oregon chardonnay on its annual list of Top 100 USA Wines of 2019 – the 2017 Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Freya Hermann Cuvée from luxury producer, Double Zero Wines “00.” Earning rank on the lauded Top 100 list at number 35, the Willamette Valley chardonnay received an impressive score of 98. While Oregon pinot noir producers are represented in the rankings, 00 Wines places brighter light on the area’s chardonnay production capabilities. Proprietor Christopher Hermann says this further personifies the winery’s mission to establish luxury quality wines in Oregon and push the limits of chardonnay in the region. “What began as a passion project has become a pursuit of excellence,” said Hermann. “We are a family business seeking to innovate and create an entirely new luxury category here in Oregon. It is an honor to be recognized on the James Suckling 2019 Top 100 USA Wines, and we are thrilled to continue to release game-changing wines with characteristics of the best grand cru burgundies.” Regarding the wine’s qualities, the James Suckling rankings reference its “wild, reductive, flinty aromas, and notes that the wine hits the sweet spot of great, modern chardonnay winemaking. There’s toasty oak here, too, supported by assertively fresh, lively lemons and green peaches. The palate rolls out a layered and gently meaty assembly of succulently fresh lemons and peaches. The savory funk will polarize here. Drink or hold, but definitely decant.” Produced from a single high elevation vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills, this micro-lot was an experiment. The hypothesis was that an extra six months in barrel for this 2017 Chardonnay (24 months total elevage) would produce a remarkable wine. While tasting the progression of the wine in 2019, 00 Wines founder Chris Hermann was inspired to name this special selection after a very precious person, his mother Freya Hermann. 00 Wines creates world-class grand cru wines and produces using a Black Chardonnay method, which results in a savory, complex chardonnay. A pre-press crush and extreme pressing program extracts maximum tannins from the chardonnay grape skins. After the pressing, rather than adding sulfites to the pan, the dark, full-bodied juice is not disturbed, and goes directly into the barrel. Fifty-three cases of the 2017 Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Freya Hermann Cuvée were produced. The wine is priced at $175 per bottle. For more information, to review, or schedule a tasting, contact Haley Messner at [email protected]
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