Willamette Revelation: 2018 Walter Scott Pinot Noir Cuvée Ruth Willame

Walter Scott's wines came as a revelation.

The Cuvée Ruth delivers exactly what I want from Pinot Noir. There's elegance, complex aromatics, and serious underlying structure.

It's very rare that an Oregon Pinot checks all of the boxes like this. The Cuvée Ruth was a part of a case of samples that I was tasting through and it immediately jumped out at me. It's an utterly captivating wine.

I've come to learn that Walter Scott's Ken Pahlow considers 2018 to be the vintage where everything clicked. For me, the 2018 Cuvée Ruth is marked by a truly extraordinary sense of balance and completeness.

In Oregon, the 2018 vintage is on the riper side. It's truly shocking how much freshness and finesse the 2018 Ruth has. Were it not for the wines grandeur and sneakily imposing structure, you'd never imagine that it came from a ripe vintage.

Ruth is sourced from some of Walter Scott's best vineyards: Freedom Hill, Clos de Oiseaux, Bieze, and Eola Springs Vineyards. The 2018 boasts great purity, spice inflected red fruits, a gorgeous texture, and a tense mineral undercurrent.

Walter Scott's husband/wife team, Ken Pahlow and Erica Landon, founded the winery by emptying out their retirement funds. Erica had worked as a sommelier and Ken worked in wineries and as a fine wine salesperson. Ken has worked at St. Innocent, one of my favorite Oregon wineries, and alongside Dominique Lafon at Evening Land.

The 2018 Cuvée Ruth is one of the most eye-opening bottles that I've tasted this year. It served as a profound reminder of Oregon's potential for delivering class, depth, and subtly complex Pinot Noir. It's an amazing success.

To order, email offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits

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Josh Raynolds, Vinous Media: "Dark, bright-hued red. Intensely perfumed, mineral-accented red berry and cherry scents are complemented by suggestions of star anise and candied flowers. Silky and appealingly sweet, offering sappy raspberry, cherry and rose pastille flavors energized by a smoky mineral quality. Shows excellent clarity and spicy cut on the persistent finish, which is framed by subtle, even tannins. 40% new oak."