Bryn Mawr Vineyards Review
Address: 5955 Bethel Heights Rd NW Salem,Oregon 97304.
Phone Number: 503-581-4286
Tasting Hours: Tues-Sun 11:00-5:00
Region: Willamette Valley AVA, Eola-Amity Hills AVA, Oregon
Reviewer: Rob Boss
Review Date: 1/11/2014
Reviewer: Rob Boss
Rating: 5
The Review
(Photos by Jai Soots)
Sometimes, when exiting the car and getting a first look at a vineyard, theres a premonition that youre in for something special. The day we visited Bryn Mawr Vineyards in the Eola Hills and saw the precipitously steep slope next to the winery, I knew that whatever wine came from it would be my favorite. Bryn Mawr is a tiny but beautiful fifteen acre operation about five miles north of Salem. Looking over their vineyards is looking right down the barrel of the Van Duzer Corridor another clue of what the wine might be like. With that in mind, I pointedly did not ask or make any comments about the property until the end, and simply let proprietor Jon Lauer unfold it for me. The payoff was one of those small, pocketfuls of joy that real wine connoisseurs live for and love.
In the true spirit of the garagiste, Bryn Mawrs tasting room and production facility is in the converted garage of the property. Pictures of the family are on the wall, and the place has a comfortable, neighborly feel. Each wine tasting comes with a selection of nuts and cheese, which is a nice touch.
Bryn Mawrs 2010 Estate Pinot Noir comes from a two acre by two acre plot. The nose was full of briars and nuts. The palate showed very young fruit flavors; raspberries and cherries. Theres a green note thats not troublesome but indicative of young vines. Jon told us their production has gone up 300% as their vines have come of age.
From this point, things got more interesting. Single vineyard releases are nothing new but often the difference is little more than a fence and a name on the same hill. Bryn Mawr has vineyard sites that, while linked by soil similarity, are drastically different in elevation, slope and direction. Jeffreys Block is the oldest vineyard, named for their oldest son. All the vineyards face right down the Van Duzer Corridor (you can look through it from the parking lot) but Jeffreys Block is sheltered somewhat. Theres a nice, stony, earthiness in the nose and an earthy core on the palate. Plenty of acid for a food friendly wine, full of tart, young raspberry and cherry flavors.
The sister vineyard followed. The 2010 Kristas Block Pinot Noir had a briary, crushed fruit nose thats always winsome, with nice, round, cherry flavors. Although more focused and integrated than Jeffreys, I was left wondering how much that would change with cellar time. Kristas Block turned out to be the steep, rocky, almost forbidding piece of ground that I was sure would prove the best of the bunch. For me, it was.
The eye opener, though, was the 2008 Estate Pinot Noir. This is the wine we inherited, Jon explained, adding that after tasting it, they knew their winery had the ingredients for success. With its woody, cedary, leathery nose and mature, red fruit flavors, there was little doubt of the potential of this property.
Great success awaits this winery. Our tasting was something like a movie trailer, years ahead of release. Bryn Mawrs older vines are pretty showy, while the young ones are equally, proportionately immature. All that will balance out over time, and judging from the quality control from ground to bottle, this is going to be a winery to watch over the coming years. It really is only going to get better from here.