(This wine was a sample provided by R.Stuart) 

When it comes to food and wine, most of us gain some type of excitment when we see things like: that special dish that only your grandmother makes at Thanksgiving, or when someone brings me guava jelly from Flordia or Hawaii, or a Pizza from a 50+ year old Italian restaurant that is 35 miles away. These types of special things that you only have once in a while, but when you even just see or hear the thought of having it simply gets you excited, and may even make your eyes widen a bit.

(Phote Above - Rob Stuart left, Lorie Perrone middle, Maria Stuart on right)

For me, R. Stuart wines have that type of impact. Rob and Maria Stuart are a husband and wife team producing beautiful wines in the McMinville (Willamette Valley) area of Oregon. In fact, reflecting on this wine is a bit bitter sweet. 

The nose hit me with instant salivation and highly untypical for me. Crushed cranberry, dark cherry, floral, and clove spice made me want a shrinking machine and a swimsuit to dive in the glass.

This Pinot Noir acid danced on my palate. The front palate was like a change up pitch, but caught up fast like a pin ball with great integration of tannin. Each time I took a sip, I wanted another. It was very difficult to set my glass down. 

Read the R.Stuart tasting notes here