Toil Oregon Vertical Tasing
It was a tasting to remember as I sat across from superstar winemaker Chris Figgins last fall. Chris introduced me to his new line of single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon wines, as we traded stores about our recent travels and his exciting vineyard project in Oregon. Toil Oregon was a brilliant idea by Chris to challenge himself and craft singular Oregon Chardonnay, Rose and Pinot Noir. I mention his Rose not as an afterthought but what has consistently been one of the top Rose wines in the Pacific Northwest and after many years of careful planning Toil Oregon Chris planted his estate vineyard in 2016 — a 42-acre parcel in the Chehalem Mountains AVA of Willamette Valley. The vineyard is set at 550–700 feet on a convex hilltop draped with rocky Jory and Saum soils.
Due to Covid-19 Chris and I weren’t able to taste his Toil wines together. As I sat at my usual tasting location, I took my time with each wine. The first thing I thought to myself was ‘why didn’t Chris make Chardonnay sooner?’ 2016 was the first vintage that he made Toil Chardonnay. Toil Chardonnay is a classic Oregon style, with very little new oak (usually around 20-35%) and generally a short amount of time in barrel (11 months). Despite the limited oak contact, these wines have great mouthfeel and show vibrant acidity and finesse. Each of the three vintages (2016-18) showed marvelously (all WWB, 93).
The Pinot Noirs by Toil have been getting better and better. I was absolutely blown away with my tasting of the 2017 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir (WWB, 95). This wine is very pretty and has marvelous texture, length and bright red fruits. It is downright sensational now and will provide drinking enjoyment for the next fifteen plus years. The 2016 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir (WWB, 94) is magical right now in its youth, showing a bit more depth and concentration than the 2017 bottling, as this is geared slightly more towards weight but still has a great veil of acidity. Learn more about these fabulous wines at toiloregon.com. Here are my tasting notes from a sensational vertical tasting of Toil Oregon.
Toil Oregon Chardonnay
2016 Toil Oregon Chardonnay- The 2016 Toil Chardonnay is a spectacular effort at now four years of age. Light flinty and nutty tones combine with shades of nutmeg infused Challah bread and Pink Lady apple on the nose. The palate is beautifully viscous with gobs of mouth-watering acidity. Bright melon fruit combine with starfruit, Pazzaz apple and sourdough bread with lemon rind tones all meld together on the palate. This finishes long with minerals and vanilla cream. A long-ager, this has more than a decade to go. Drink 2020-2033- 93
2017 Toil Oregon Chardonnay- The 2017 Toil Chardonnay is gorgeous now a year after release. Shades of toasted hazelnuts mingle with honeydew melon, wet stone and green apples tones on the nose. The palate has great weight and freshness with layers of vanilla cream and lemon infused sourdough bread with minerals and a light dusting of salinity. Showing really good weight and freshness, this beautiful wine has more than a decade to go. This may show a touch more tension than the ’16 and certainly the ’18 bottling — but is every bit as good as both. Drink 2020-2033- 93
2018 Toil Oregon Chardonnay- This is now the second time in several months I have tried the 2018 Toil Chardonnay. Aged for eleven months in 27% new French oak, right away you are drawn to the layers of lemon zest and sourdough bread that mingle with Japanese pear and nutty aromatic tones that all take shape in the glass. On the attack there is a great sense of minerality and weight, with ripe melon tones that mingle with ripe pear, minerals and shades of toasted hazelnuts. This shows slightly more weight than 2016 and 2017 bottlings. Ripe and generous with wonderful weight and tension, the gorgeous 2018 Toil Chardonnay will cellar well for at least another decade. Drink 2020-2032- 93
Toil Oregon Pinot Noir
2012 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- The 2012 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir is beautifully showcasing this classic vintage in Oregon. Right now the earthy tones on the nose are really nice, as shades of pomegranate seed and ripe red raspberry collide with orange rind undertones. The palate shows good freshness and a wonderful sense of acidity. Layers of guava, blood orange zest, forest floor and minerals connect momentum on the palate. While this may not possess the weight of other vintages, this exudes elegance. The long finish lingers as this beautiful wine still has at least a decade of life ahead of it. Drink 2020-2030- 93
2014 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- The 2014 Toil Pinot Noir takes on an earthier tone than many of the others, perhaps a hybrid between 2012 and 2016? Either way the wine is sinful good at the six year mark. Once on the nose there are generous dark and red fruits that collide with suggestions of cinnamon sticks, forest floor and wild mushroom tones that all sing in harmony. The palate has a good degree of freshness and weight, with a great acid backbone and light tannins that line the wild blackberry, peat moss, blood orange and red cherry candy flavors. The length and wonderful sense of texture rings true as the 2014 Toil Pinot Noir has plenty of life left. Be sure to give this an hour decant if enjoying in this midway phase. Drink 2020-2035- 94
2015 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- The 2015 Toil Pinot Noir is a gorgeous showing now at the five year mark. Aged for 12 months (72% Neutral French Oak) and needing an hour in the decanter to fully evolve, the wine slowly unveils layers of tart red fruits with shades of blood orange and peat moss that all take shape in the glass. The palate is silky smooth with a soft, downright voluptuous mouthfeel. Ripe layers of red currants meld with boysenberry cobbler, forest floor and shades of black truffle crudo with a hint of cola that comes on after more than an hour in the decanter. A complete wine, this is singing now and will continue to gracefully evolve for the next fifteen plus years. Drink 2020-2035- 94
2016 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- The 2016 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir is showing a slightly darker fruit profile than the 2015 edition. Needing a one hour decant, the 2016 Toil Pinot Noir reveals bright citrus rind tones and earthy accents that combine with the core of dark fruits, especially blackberry compote that all meld in the glass. The palate shows a great degree of freshness under a light veil of salinity. Layers of bright red and dark fruits meld with blood orange zest, peat moss and damp earth on the palate. The combination of acidity and richness here is seriously good as this beautiful wine has a long life ahead of it. Drink 2020-2036- 94
2017 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- The 2017 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir is absolutely singing even in its youth. Shades of blood orange zest and peat moss combine with the core of red fruits on the nose. The palate is vibrant showing a great combination of tension and weight. This has a prettier fruit profile certainly than the 2015 edition, with pomegranate seed and Tangerine zest that mingle with minerals and the earthy undertones of the wine. This is highly elegant Pinot Noir. Bright and very pretty now at the three year mark, the 2017 Toil Pinot Noir will show beautifully for two decades. Drink 2020-2038- 95
2018 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir- This is the second time I have tasted the 2018 Toil Oregon Pinot Noir. This warm vintage wine is simply stunning to savor in its you as this was aged for eleven months in 32% new French oak prior to bottling. Ripe red fruits dance with peat moss tones and citrus rind on the nose. The palate is fresh and vibrant with a great sense of acidity and weight. The weight really shows up here as this warm vintage wine is sensational to enjoy right now but will cellar well for a decade or more. Drink 2020-2035- 94