Named in homage to Jay's favorite gypsy jazz song, Nuage Pinot Noir is a special cuvée from the Chehalam Mountains AVA.
Nuage (French for "cloud") also pays homage to the moderating influence of Oregon's cloudy autumns, which slow the ripening of the grapes and allow for a long hang time that fully develops their flavors.
For 2015 we selected and blended some particularly outstanding barrel-aged wines from three outstanding plots of our own vineyards, as well as two plots from our organically farmed Medi Vineyard.
The 2015 growing season was also hot, with early bud break and flowering.
The hot, dry weather eased slightly in August, limiting the increase in sugar levels at the final stage of ripening.
The grapes are well ripened, healthy and the harvest is bountiful.
Despite the hot year, the wines clearly express the unique characteristics of each AVA's terroir and are very appealing, with gorgeous purity and elegance.
J. Christopher is run by internationally acclaimed winemaker Ernst "Arni" Rosen of Dr. Rosen, Germany.
Arni has had a passion for Pinot Noir all his life and in the early 1990s he realized there was something special here in Oregon's Willamette Valley.
He became an avid collector of Oregon Pinot Noir, visited the state frequently, and founded his own US importing company in 2003.
Arni was particularly drawn to J. Christopher's wines.
He saw this wine as a New World wine made in the Old World style, with finesse, a clear expression of terroir and excellent aging potential.
A collaboration soon began, and Arni named a carefully selected blend of premium Pinot Noir Appassionata, after Beethoven's piano sonata.
A few years later, Erni purchased 16 hectares of land in Chehalam Mountain in Newberg, Oregon, and built Appassionata Vineyards and the winery where he still produces Appassionata and J. Christopher Wines today.