Ken Wright Cellars 2023 Pinot Noir Savoya Vineyard Willamette Valley 750 ml

Savoya holds genuine personal significance within the Ken Wright Cellars story — it was the very first vineyard Ken and Karen Wright ever owned outright, purchased in 1998, just four years after founding the winery. Located in the Yamhill-Carlton District, home to some of the true pioneers of the Oregon wine industry, the vineyard sits on a southeast-facing slope at 350 to 400 feet elevation, planted in 1999 on 4.5 acres to Dijon clones 777 and 115, grown on phylloxera-resistant rootstock, in marine sedimentary soils that give the wine, per critic Owen Bargreen's tasting of an adjacent vintage, "a wonderfully salty essence."

The 2023 growing season was, in Ken Wright Cellars' own words, "a banner year" — very good crop levels, plenty of heat to ripen properly, a long season with extended hang time, and remarkably mild weather that avoided any real extremes, with just two days over 100 degrees the entire season. The estate calls the resulting aromatics, texture, and acidity "seriously compelling." Every block is hand-sorted, fermented in small open-vat fermenters until dryness, then pressed and aged separately, with the finished wine spending roughly a year in 100% French oak.

Wine Enthusiast's Michael Alberty reviewed the 2023 vintage directly, and offered a genuinely evocative take: "my favorite babysitter would make these amazing sugar cookies with bits of maraschino cherries. Savoya's sugar cookie, cherry, raspberry and eucalyptus mint aromas brought that childhood memory back to life. The wine's flavors are almost as compelling, with raspberry, orange peel and iced black tea holding court on the palate. Powerful, nearly grippy tannins support all of that fruit, with a bit of help from mildly elevated acidity." For genuine house-style context across vintages, Ken Wright Cellars' own official notes describe Savoya as "floral and spice focused," with "fresh and bright red fruit — red plum and cranberry — mingling with notes of cinnamon, tobacco and turned earth," while an independent tasting of the 2005 vintage found it "herbal, spicy, slightly animal and scented with rosemary," concluding it was "beautifully balanced and elegant" enough to "pass for premier cru Burgundy." This is genuinely serious, powerfully structured single-vineyard Pinot Noir — from the very site where Ken Wright Cellars' own ownership story began.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Ken Wright Cellars was founded in 1994 in Carlton, Oregon, by Ken Wright, following his earlier work establishing Panther Creek Cellars in 1986. Savoya Vineyard, purchased by Ken and Karen Wright in 1998, was the first vineyard the couple ever owned outright. Located in the Yamhill-Carlton District AVA, the vineyard sits on a southeast-facing slope at 350 to 400 feet elevation, planted in 1999 on 4.5 acres to Dijon clones 777 and 115, on phylloxera-resistant rootstock, in marine sedimentary soils.

The vineyard is certified organic, using nutrition-based farming practices. Each block is hand-sorted, fermented in small 1¼-ton open vat fermenters until dryness, then pressed and aged separately in 100% French oak barrels for approximately one year. Savoya also includes a small block of Dijon 548 Chardonnay clone, part of Ken Wright Cellars' limited white wine production.

Critics Reviews

Michael Alberty, Wine Enthusiast (2023 vintage):
"My favorite babysitter would make these amazing sugar cookies with bits of maraschino cherries. Savoya's sugar cookie, cherry, raspberry and eucalyptus mint aromas brought that childhood memory back to life. The wine's flavors are almost as compelling, with raspberry, orange peel and iced black tea holding court on the palate. Powerful, nearly grippy tannins support all of that fruit, with a bit of help from mildly elevated acidity."

Owen Bargreen (2022 vintage, house-style context):
"The Savoya Vineyard is located 3.5 miles north of the town of Carlton, Oregon. The vineyard is set on marine sedimentary soils, as there is a wonderfully salty essence to this wine. Tart pomegranate seed and red currant flavors mingle well with diatomaceous earth and its refined texture, with umami accents. Full-bodied and rich, enjoy now and over the next ten to fifteen years."

Independent tasting (2005 vintage, house-style context):
"From a Ken Wright-owned vineyard, the Savoya is a lighter style, sprinkled with fresh whiffs of basil, thyme and rosemary, and hints of pine needle. An elegant, almost delicate, wine." A separate note on the same vintage adds: "It's herbal, spicy, slightly animal and scented with rosemary. As with so many of these '05 Ken Wright Pinots, it is beautifully balanced and elegant, and this, more than any other, could pass for premier cru Burgundy."

Ken Wright Cellars (official tasting note):
"Floral and spice focused. Fresh and bright red fruit — red plum and cranberry — mingle with notes and cinnamon, tobacco and turned earth."

Ken Wright Cellars (official vintage notes, 2023):
"2023 was a banner year for us. We had very good crop levels, plenty of heat to ripen properly and had a long season with extended hang time. The weather was very mild avoiding extremes of cold or heat. There were no frost scares at the start of the season and only two days at 100 degrees in the entire growing season. This year the beautiful array of aromatics, plush texture and the frame of acidity are seriously compelling."

Tasting Profile

Nose
Sugar cookie and maraschino cherry lead, joined by raspberry and eucalyptus mint, alongside cinnamon, tobacco, and turned earth.

Palate
Raspberry, orange peel, and iced black tea hold court, supported by powerful, nearly grippy tannins and mildly elevated acidity, with red plum and cranberry adding brightness.

Finish
Full-bodied and rich, closing with lingering fruit and structured tannin — genuinely built for medium-term cellaring, with real potential over the next decade.

Quick Overview

Food Pairings

• Roast duck or squab
• Grilled or braised red meat
• Mushroom-forward dishes
• Earthy, savory braises