It is my pleasure to write about the wines of L’Angolo Estate which is a stalwart producer located in the Dundee Hills. L’Angolo Estate was founded by proprietors Holdings and Lou Renton, who purchased a 20 acre property in the Dundee Hills several years back. The estate vineyard is planted to 6 acres of Pinot Noir and 4 acres of Chardonnay, which were planted in two successive years. Vines are set in a combination of Jory and Nekia soils, as the site has four clones of Pinot Noir and two clones of Chardonnay across 13 clone-specific vineyard blocks. The last two releases of wines from this site have appeared as nicely concentrated and loaded with red and black fruit flavors, with great flinty and stony undertones.
Winemaker Chase Renton has a background in wine sales and also studied at Apicius Wine Studies in 2011. He has led L’Angelo since 2012 and has formerly worked harvests in California and Burgundy before settling down in Oregon. The wines that he makes have a beginning, middle and end. I have really enjoyed the wines that he has made over the years. The new wines come with a lot of meaning as he has produced his new ‘Resilience’ Pinot Noir bottling which is inspired by his own mental health journey and donates proceeds to the Kevin Love Mental Health Fund.
I love the new releases coming from the warm 2023 and 2024 vintages. I am totally enamored by the 2023 L’Angolo ‘Il Terzo’ Pinot Noir (OB, 94) which is a head-turning bottling that shows off its silky texture and wonderful concentration. Learn more about this fantastic Dundee Hills outpost at https://www.langoloestate.com and here are my reviews of the new L’Angolo Estate wines.
2023 L’Angolo ‘Estate’ Chardonnay- The excellent 2023 ‘Estate’ Chardonnay shows off terrific freshness and texture on the mouth, with racy acidity. Juicy pear and banana tones parade with hints of mango on the palate alongside its flinty, reductive notes. Beautifully-structured, with excellent length, enjoy now and over the next eight to ten years. A beauty! Drink 2026-2034- 92
2023 L’Angolo ‘Reserve’ Chardonnay- Even better than the ’23 ‘Estate’ the ’23 ‘Reserve’ Chardonnay is a barrel selection wine coming from their Dundee Hills vineyard. It comes off big, rich and bold with terrific texture, weight and length. Brioche and starfruit flavors collide with Meyer lemon cream and copious minerals on the palate. A joy to consume now, watch this evolve over the next ten years. Drink 2026-2036- 94
2024 L’Angolo ‘Resilience’ Pinot Noir- The 2024 ‘Resilience’ is an inspired story sharing winemaker Chase Renton’s mental health journey now into the glass, with proceeds for this bottling benefiting the Kevin Love Mental Health Fund. It is rich and viscous from this vintage, delivering fantastic flinty and rocky tones that combine with heady red fruits and citrus rind accents. Delicious now, watch this evolve over the next decade. Drink 2026-2036- 93
2024 L’Angelo ‘Estate’ Pinot Noir- The 2024 ‘Estate’ Pinot Noir by L’Angelo offers red rose blossom and potpourri on the nose alongside orange peel and bergamot notes. It is medium-bodied and showing good viscosity, clarity and tension, with loads of stony and salty minerals. Drink 2026-2032- 92
2023 L’Angolo ‘Reserve’ Pinot Noir- The 2023 ‘Reserve’ Pinot Noir is a stellar wine made from this slightly richer vintage. A sterling tension greets you on the palate alongside a heady melange of red and dark fruits. With more air Asian spice aromatics play on with hints of white pepper dusted charcuterie. Very fresh and inviting, with lively acidity, enjoy now and over the next fifteen plus years. Drink 2026-2041- 93
2023 L’Angolo ‘Il Terzo’ Pinot Noir- For my palate, the finest wine of this L’Angolo collection of wines the 2023 ‘Il Terzo’ opens with a bright bouquet of black rose, black tea and exotic spices on the nose. The palate is seamless and dense with a silky mouthfeel, as this glides throughout the drinking experience. Full-bodied, dense and decadent, with a great mineral edge, enjoy now and over the next fifteen plus years to come. Drink 2026-2040- 94