Dom. Drouhin 2023 Pinot Noir Dundee Hills

The Wine

DDO (Domain Drouhin Oregon) has a recognizable style in their wines that reflects their Burgundian family roots - wines that are elegant, lifted, and quietly powerful, with an unmistakable nuance from their red volcanic soil.

The nose opens with rhubarb, dried violets, black tea, and plum, accented by a subtle touch of oak. There’s a beautiful interplay between bright red fruit and savory depth — a hallmark of the Drouhin style. As it opens, notes of sour cherry, raspberry, cranberry, and earthy undertones emerge, echoing the estate’s own description of youthful vibrancy and finesse.

On the palate, the wine is silky, medium‑bodied, and finely structured, showing a balance of tart red fruits, white pepper, stone‑fruit nuance, and a clean mineral line. Tannins are chalky and refined, acidity is bright, and the finish is long, spicy, and quietly persistent.

This is a wine built for both immediate charm and graceful evolution — approachable now, but with the bones to age 5–15 years.

Pairings: Roast lamb or duck, cedar‑plank salmon, mushroom ragout, herb‑rubbed pork, or anything that plays well with red fruit and earth

The Winery

"DDO", or Domaine Drouhin Oregon, is the Willamette Valley outpost of the historic Maison Joseph Drouhin of Burgundy. In the 1980s, this foray into the New World by an iconic old world family created quite the buzz - loud enough to be remembered all these years later were you agey enough to have been following the wine press that long ago.

Their first vintage in 1988 set the tone for everything to come - a Pinot Noir that combined their Burgundian finesse with the unmistakable Oregon terroir. 

The fruit is 100% estate-grown from their Dundee Hills vineyards, farmed according to L.I.V.E. sustainability standards. Grapes are hand‑picked, hand‑sorted, and fully de‑stemmed before undergoing long, gentle fermentations in the estate’s beautiful and gob smacking, gravity‑flow winery. The wines are raised in custom French oak barrels made in Burgundy specifically for DDO.

This thoughtful, restrained approach yields a style defined by elegance over extraction and purity over power through a transparent expression of vineyard and vintage.