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NEWS

THE INTERNATIONAL PINOT NOIR CELEBRATION: LRV’s ’03 Famille Neuville Reserve Is Chosen
In July of 2006, Lazy River Vineyard’s 2003 Famille Neuville Reserve joined the distinguished wines being poured at the International Pinot Noir Celebration in McMinnville, Oregon. The event, called “the finest in the world” by Pierre Rovani of the Wine Advocate, brings nearly 800 Pinot Noir aficionados to the campus of Linfield College. These visitors from around the world arrive to sample Oregon’s best Pinots. They visit vineyards and listen to winemakers. Pacific Northwest chefs cook regional specialties. And throughout the three days, Pinot Noir is poured.
This is an honor, especially for a second vintage of a brand new vineyard. Our 2003 Famille Neuville Reserve was chosen in a blind tasting.
How did this wine become a reserve? During aging winemaker Eric Hamacher and Lazy River Vineyard owner Ned Lumpkin periodically tasted all 46 barrels from the 2003 harvest. Each barrel received a grade range from A to C. Throughout the 18 months of aging seven barrels stood out, the A “students”. From these a blend was made. This became the reserve.

LRV FRUIT IN DEMAND
Lazy River Vineyard fruit is sold to some of Oregon’s best wineries—Andrew Rich, Hamacher, Panther Creek, Ponzi and Tony Rynders. In fact, more wineries want LRV fruit than there is fruit available.

LA TOUR GIVES LRV DESIGNATE
Hotelier and Napa vineyard owner Tom LaTour gave a vineyard designate to Lazy River on his 2002 and 2003 LaTour Pinot Noir. The wine is made for LaTour by Lazy River Vineyard.

CERTIFIED LIVE and SALMON SAFE
Lazy River Vineyard is Certified LIVE and Salmon Safe*, proof that our farming practices are good for the environment. It is our goal to use minimal amounts of agricultural chemicals and fertilizers and to farm in a way that encourages biological diversity. Just as food with a long shelf live tastes of its preservatives, we think that grapes reflect the condition of the soils in which they are grown. This includes flavors.

*LIVE, Inc. is an Oregon organization. Ninety-one wineries have achieved certification.
For more information about their program look at www.liveinc.org

LRV and IPNC
It was a nervous bunch of Lumpkins, aka the Garage Gang, on a July Day in 2003. The International Pinot Noir Celebration had chosen our nearly three year old vineyard for a visit. Fifty delegates arrived in five vans at the top of our hill for a look. At lunch they would taste three Pinot Noirs from three wineries—Hamacher, Panther Creek and Ponzi. The fruit came from LRV’s first harvest in 2002.
Preparations were vast. A handout included the history of the vineyard, a map of the blocks complete with their clones and rootstocks and an article by Roger Downey of the Seattle Weekly which featured Lazy River. Each delegate received a baseball hat with the LRV logo.We upended our woodpile providing big rounds of Doug fir on which to sit. Bottles of cold water and fresh local cherries eased our guests into the short welcome and talk by Buddy Beck, Lazy River Vineyard manager.
At lunch, winemakers Eric Hamacher, Luisa Ponzi and Michael Stevenson discussed their handling of our fruit. The guests drank the wines, still just nine months in barrel. The consensus—it was developing well. We were optimistic. Thanksgiving Weekend of 2004 LRV’s first Pinot Noir, the 2002, all 175 barrels, was released. It sold out within three weeks.

LAZY RIVER VINEYARD - A FAVORITE PRODUCER OF AUTHOR JOHN HAEGER
In June of 2008 John Haeger sat at the dining room table in the Granary at Lazy River Vineyard. His purpose was to taste all our vintages. There was a decision to be made. Would LRV wine merit inclusion in his new book, Pacific Pinot Noir, A Comprehensive Winery Guide for Consumers and Connoisseurs? John knew our wine had been poured at the International Pinot Noir Festival. He had read its review by Allen Meadows, the burghhound.com, who gave the 2004 Famille Neuville a 91.   He learned the results of the double blind tastings conducted by our mutual friend Roman Weil for alumni of the University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business. Roman had presented a similarly priced French Burgundy to taste side by side with Lazy River’s Pinot Noir. Our Oregon version always finished ahead. With that in mind, John had come to see the vineyard, sample and wine and decide. John sat in front of six glasses, one for each vintage plus the Famille Neuville. We all tasted. Two months later we received a copy of his draft entry. He wrote,
     “These wines are exceptionally elegant editions of pinot noir with smooth, satiny textures, attractive overlays of red berry fruit, floral aromas and peppery spice, and intensity without weight.”
     John can be easily called an expert on North American Pinot Noir, which coincidently is the title of his first book. We were thrilled.

ONCE AGAIN LAZY RIVER VINEYARD IS FEATURED AT IPNC
In 2008 the International Pinot Noir Celebration came again to Lazy River Vineyard. The third week of July draws Pinot Noir aficionados from around the world, eight hundred strong, to the campus of Linfield University in McMinnville. There the celebrants enjoy Pinot’s pairings with remarkable food at breakfasts, luncheons and dinners. Throughout the day are lectures and vineyard tours. Our visitors were to learn about three styles of farming—biodynamic, organic and sustainable. Lazy River’s LIVE and Salmon Safe certifications provided the context for the sustainable discussion. Panelists Benoit de Chorey, Beaune, France; Eric Hamacher, Lazy River’s winemaker, and lead by Luisa Ponzi, winemaker at Ponzi, discussed many aspects from the theoretical to the practical. Tours of the vineyard added another layer of information. Buddy Beck, vineyard manager; Ned Lumpkin, vineyard owner; Chris Serra, program manager for LIVE; Eric Hamacher, winemaker; and Jeff Lumpkin, General Manager of The Carlton Winemakers Studio took separate groups through the vineyard to see the outcome of our practices.
Our visitors gathered on the lawn in front of the Granary. The building formerly held turkey feed and had been remodeled to be our Oregon headquarters and home. Guests enthused over Union Restaurant’s Chef Tyler Moritz lunch menu, which was paired with Lazy River wines. There was a small surprise. Ned disappeared from time to time and returned with library wines going back to our first vintage 2002. This is the kind of spontaneity that keeps folks coming to Oregon for IPNC. At Kirsten’s table was Elin McCoy of Bloomberg News, on-line wine columnist, who included the LRV in her column. What great satisfaction we felt at the end of that day.

MENU DESIGN

Tyler Moritz, Union Restaurant
Seattle
Menu

Reception
Hamachi crudo
With cucumber, watermelon, radishes and mint
Lazy River Vineyard Private Lumpkin Dry Riesling 2006
Yamhill-Carlton District

Lunch
Ocean trout with cherry tomatoes,
Fennel, black olives and tomato brother
Lazy River Vineyard Pinot Gris 2007
Yamhill-Carlton District

Lamb loin with chanterelle mushrooms, carrot puree
And trailing blackberries
Lazy River Vineyard Pint Noir 2006
Yamhill-Carlton District

Crater Lake blue cheese with Bing cherry preserves
And walnut toast