Maloof Nemarniki Vineyard "Fancy Free" 2023
Unsure why it took us this long to try blending Chardonnay and Aligoté
Why This Wine?
We are all bearing witness to the meteoric rise of Oregon Chardonnay in the Willamette Valley, and we have long been known for Pinot Noir. So in Burgundy terms, two of the three most commonly grown grapes are already strong parts of the Oregon repertoire. But what about Aligoté? Burgundy’s third, least-loved child is still rare to find here, but we think that this example from Maloof Wines demonstrates soundly that we should be taking a longer look in Oregon at the potential for integrating Aligoté into the history of the Willamette that’s currently being written.
About the Winery & Vineyard
Maloof Wines is unabashedly dedicated to white wine, making some of the most delicious, interesting, and ageable Pinot Gris wines in the state, among other varieties. They have honed their skills at gently coaxing minerality, texture, and pure terroir expression out of white grapes with very simple winemaking: for most of their cuvees, the grapes are simply pressed from the whole clusters after hand-harvesting, and then spontaneously fermented and aged in old Burgundy barrels. This simple, yet precise winemaking method is the one applied to their newest wine and first foray into both Chardonnay and Aligoté, and yields a balanced, fresh, and decidedly old world style wine that we think could spell a very bright future for this unconventional blend here in Oregon.
Like most talented winemakers, the Maloof team would be quick to tell you that good wine is made with good farming, so let’s talk about Nemarniki Vineyard. This high-elevation site in the Chehalem Mountains AVA of the Willamette Valley sits at 800 feet of elevation on Laurelwood (loess) soils. It is farmed by Diane Nemarnik, who comes from a family with a rich farming history in the area and a dream to own a vineyard that started as early as her highschool years. Diane tends this vineyard carefully by hand and is one of Maloof Wines’ longest partnerships; they have sourced fruit from this vineyard since long before they had their own estate. Its elevation and location are perfect for producing wines with high acidity, freshness, and a mineral backbone, all elements that make for a perfect source for grapes like Aligoté and Chardonnay, whose purest expressions require good balance in order to ensure finesse and ageability. For these reasons, the Maloof team requested that Diane plant these varieties back in 2019, and this is the first vintage from that request. Suffice it to say that those young vines are overdelivering in quality and we can’t wait to taste the future vintages as they age and evolve.
Don’t Fear the Blend
Picking wines for the wine club can be a difficult task; we always seek to provide delicious wine, but we also try our very best to expand our members’ interest in varieties or styles that they may not be too familiar with. In this case, we want to take a moment to focus on blended wines versus single variety wines. Here in the New World, it is a long-held belief that single-variety wines reign supreme in terms of quality and ageability. But this narrative was not born of any substantial evidence, it’s simply the way the market developed. But blends are the oldest way human beings have made wine, long before AOC and AVA systems, when families simply harvested the grapes they had as one. We all know Aristotle’s lasting words that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” and this is an important phrase when considering blended wines: Aligoté and Chardonnay are both beautiful and delicious on their own, but co-fermented and aged together, they create something different and no less worthy. Just something to keep in mind as you sip this wine.
Wine Details
The Vineyard
Sourced entirely from Nemarniki Vineyard, Chehalem Mountains AVA in the Willamette Valley. Vines grown with organic principles and dry-farmed at 800 feet of elevation on Laurelwood soils. Hand-harvested.
The Wine
Fancy Free is pressed on arrival to the winery from whole clusters. It is a 50/50 blend of Aligoté and Chardonnay, co-fermented together in neutral Burgundy barrels. The wine is aged in these same vessels for 10 months. Bottled without any additions or manipulations other than sulfur dioxide.
The Food
This is a highly pairable wine that could stand up to many different cuisines, but it’s always nice to pair local wines with local, seasonal food, so we’d recommend this wine with some local seafood such as Oregon steelhead or Dungeness Crab, perhaps alongside some chanterelle mushroom risotto or wild rice. Oysters would not go astray, either. For those who prefer to stay on dry land, this wine has the delicacy to pair well with vegetarian dishes rich in earthy greens, but it also has the body to stand up to a braised Pork or herbed chicken tray bake.