This wine has a rich, sweet nose with a mix of rose blossom, cherry and blackberry, framed by light old world complexity and hints of earth and oak.
The flavor is sweet and rich, with ripe black cherry and blackberry fruitiness, complexity and light toasty oak.
The texture is rich and thick, elegant with great concentration and power, medium acidity and sweet, rich, spicy tannins.
The finish is long, with rich, sweet tannins and complex fruit, spice and earthy notes that linger for a long time.
This wine is suitable for long aging but can be enjoyed today, with or without decanting! The 2021 growing season was hot, dry and variable.
Unusually cold temperatures at the end of May and relatively cool rainy periods around the time of flowering led to reduced yields.
The hot summer saw five consecutive days with an average temperature of 39°C, and only 0.5mm of rainfall in 92 days.
Despite the dry vintage, there was little concern about disease, resulting in fully ripe fruit with deep concentration and just the right amount of acidity.
The combination of these factors results in a very well-balanced wine with rich dark fruit, earthy and mineral flavours, coupled with floral and red fruit aromas.
Harvesting began on September 13th and ended on September 29th.
The grapes were harvested between September 16th and 22nd and fermented in small fermenters for 17-20 days using RB2, BRG and RC212 yeasts.
Punch down three times daily.
It was very gently pressed and racked in a variety of French oak barrels: 15% new, 25% 2 year old and the rest neutral.
The barrels are racked in August and then blended, aged in barrels for a total of 17 months before being bottled.
The grapes were selected at Brix 23.2-25.8 (mostly mid-24), fermented whole-cluster for 12-26 days, punched down three times per day, and aged for 10 months in mostly French oak with some Hungarian oak.
The barrels were racked, underwent malolactic fermentation in August, were blended and then stored in tanks until bottling.
The name Torii Mor is a combination of Torii, the Japanese word for the gate at the entrance to a shrine, and Mor, the ancient Norse word for "earth."
Combining these two distinct words, Torii Moa alludes to the wonderful things the vine offers us through its sacred portal to the earth.
Perhaps no other variety expresses the subtleties of the land in which it is grown as elegantly as Pinot Noir, and Torii Moir's Pinot Noir is meticulously crafted with minimal human intervention and fermented with natural yeasts to allow for a pure expression of what the land has to offer.
Torii Moir believes that wine, and especially Pinot Noir, is a priceless, indelible work of art created through the mutual cooperation of man and nature.
We think you'll agree that wine is like art and storytelling, something you can enjoy with family and friends.
Since its first release in 1993, Torii Moir has continued to make wine with the vision of "pursuing elegant Pinot Noir in the 'Old World' style."
The owner, Dr. Donald Olson, is a neurosurgeon currently specializing in pain medicine.
Dr. Olson, a longtime fan of Burgundy wine, believed that Oregon's Dundee Hills was the mecca for the next generation of Pinot Noir, and in 1985 he acquired the winery facilities, including the historic vineyards planted in 1972 and the beautiful Japanese garden, from Jim McDaniel, one of the early founders of Oregon wine.
The winery's name, Torii More, was coined by the doctor and represents the terroir and connection to the earth expressed by Pinot Noir.
Jacques Tardy, who comes from an eighth generation Burgundy winegrowing family, has been in charge of winemaking since 2004, and John Tamaselli, who worked under Jacques, took over as the new winemaker in 2021.
It is no exaggeration to say that this is the most elegant wine in the Willamette Valley.