2005 St. Innocent Pinot Noir Shea Vineyard

The 2005 Pinot Noir “Shea Vineyard” exhibits spice box, cedar, roses, violets, and wild raspberry. This splendid perfume leads to a wine with very good flavors as well as a compact, firm, tannic finish. If this wine rounds out after the requisite time needed in the cellar, my rating will appear conservative. However, it is a gamble. Owner/winemaker Mark Vlossak operates his winery out of an industrial park in Salem. He sources from some of the finest sites in the Willamette Valley, turning out flavorful Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir, selling them at remarkably fair prices. Check out St.-Innocent’s website for Vlossak’s harvest reports to get the lowdown on recent vintages and to see how a skilled winemaker adapts to the varied conditions presented by the region’s fickle weather. Tel. (503) 378-1526; www.stinnocentwine.com. Also tasted: 2005 Pinot Gris “Vitae Springs Vineyard (91), 2005 Pinot Gris “Shea Vineyard” (92), 2005 Pinot Blanc “Freedom Hill Vineyard (90), 2005 Chardonnay “Freedom Hill Vineyard (92), 2005 Chardonnay “Anden Vineyard” (91)