2023 Bledsoe McDaniels LFG Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, USA

The Moment

Some Pinot Noirs are built around softness.
Others are built around energy with a little edge.

The 2023 Bledsoe|McDaniels LFG Pinot Noir feels like the kind of bottle that lands beautifully in that second lane — vivid, polished, and clearly Oregon, but with enough structure underneath to keep it from feeling too easy. The wine opens with red fruits, raspberry, black tea, and citrus blossom, while the palate shows vibrant acidity, a culmination of red fruits and minerality, and long silky tannins. A stunning growing season and a wine that was built from estate fruit in Eola-Amity Hills, with 16 months in 20% new French oak barrels, puncheons, and 1,000-liter foudre.

Tense in structure yet polished, with blueberry and raspberry laced with mineral, licorice, and dusky spice notes, finishing with broad-shouldered tannins.

What It Feels Like

Think roast chicken turning into a better dinner than expected, mushrooms hitting the pan, and a bottle that starts charming but keeps getting more serious as it opens.

What makes this wine work is the balance between fruit, earth, and structure. Raspberry, black tea, citrus blossom, minerality, and silky tannins; the critics add blueberry, licorice, dusky spice, and a more tensile frame. 

In the Glass

Aromatics
Red fruits, raspberry, black tea, and citrus blossom.

Palate
Blueberry, raspberry, mineral, licorice, and dusky spice with vibrant acidity. 

Texture
Polished and silky, but with enough tension and tannin to feel serious. 

Finish
Long, mineral, and structured, with broad-shouldered tannins carrying through the close.

Why We Love This Bottle

Pinot Noir With Real Energy
Vibrant acidity and a mineral thread, which helps the 2023 feel alive rather than plush. That is a big part of the appeal here.

Estate Fruit Shows
LFG is directly related to the Coulee Estate vineyard program in Eola-Amity Hills, which gives the wine a stronger estate identity than a simple broad Willamette bottling.

A Beautiful Middle Ground Pinot
It has the charm and fruit to pull people in, but the licorice, tea, minerality, and spice keep it from ever feeling one-note. The strong reviews support that this is a serious Pinot Noir, not just an easy one.

Pair It With

• Roast chicken
• Mushroom dishes
• Duck
• Salmon
• Pork loin

Technical Notes

Producer: Bledsoe|McDaniels
Wine: LFG Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2023
Region: Willamette Valley / Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA
Grape: Pinot Noir
Alcohol: 14.1% ABV.

Winemaking / Élevage:
Aged 16 months in 20% new French oak barrels, puncheons, and 1,000-liter foudre.

Production: 973 cases made.

Body: Medium
Structure: Vibrant acidity · silky tannins · mineral lift · long finish

Flavor Profile
Raspberry · Blueberry · Black Tea · Citrus Blossom · Mineral · Licorice · Dusky Spice

Drink Window
Now–2035