“Given Cahill’s long and consistent winemaking history, I have no doubt that the quality of the wines here, which has always been high, will be maintained. I’m sure the wines will be age-worthy as well, based on his track record of making such a style at Soter.” – Vinous

One of Oregon’s finest today! Only FOUR barrels. 94 POINTS!! More than HALF OFF. And maybe best of all, we have this Wine Spies Exclusive single vineyard for under $30. All the way from $65. Man, this hits ALLLL the high points.

Jump on it, and then read on…

Here’s why Cahill is the name in Oregon Pinot right now. Before North Valley, James landed at Beaux Frères. A cult Willamette estate co-founded by Robert Parker himself. The one Wine Spectator once ranked No. 3 in their Top 100. He made a name for himself there first.

Then, during his time at Elk Cove, an invitation that’s hard to turn down came from the highly respected Tony Soter of Soter Vineyards. He founded Etude in 1982 before decades of consulting for Araujo, Dalla Valle, Shafer, and Spottswoode. He also helped lay the foundation for modern Napa Cabernet before walking away to come home to Oregon and make Pinot Noir. North Valley started as a Soter project, but Cahill is now in charge and steering it.

The Aegrina Vineyard hits you like an electrifying bolt of energy, with dark and generous fruit on the nose highlighting fresh marionberry, dried flowers, pencil shavings, baking spices, and black tea all marrying together in your glass. All in complete harmony with the palate, which also delivers structure and grip, with snappy acidity and a chalky mineral grip cutting through layers of dark fruit, tangerine with a hint of white pepper that keeps driving everything forward on the finish.

Aegrina is Cahill’s own ground. One of two North Valley estate vineyards. He doesn’t buy this fruit. He owns it. Twenty-two acres of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on a southwestern-facing slope at 300 feet in the McMinnville AVA, planted in 2007 on ancient, uplifted basalt soils. Rocky. Cold. The kind of dirt the McMinnville Foothills are notorious for. LIVE Certified and Salmon Safe (as in the farming protects the watershed that keeps wild salmon running).

Worth noting that when this vineyard was first being developed, Lynn and Ron Penner-Ash personally mapped the slope and helped select the clones. One of Oregon’s most celebrated boutique producers had their hands in this dirt before the first vine went in.

2021 was a welcome reprieve after the challenges of 2020. Dry summer. Lower yields. Long measured harvest into October. Per Decanter, “concentrated with fine tannins, 2021 may be the template for a new classic vintage… The resulting wines are brilliant. They offer great concentration, wonderful lift and freshness, and such fine tannins… the top producers have made wonderfully collectable wines that will age 15 to 20 years. A five-star vintage for the Willamette Valley”

Needless to say, this won’t last the day.

94 Points – Decanter “Fleshy Oregon blackberries and muddled mint leaves dominate the effusive aromatics from this single-vineyard bottling from rocky soils in the northern McMinnville AVA. The palate offers wild country berries, fruits, spiced strawberries, and smoky cloves. This wine is pure hedonism, with tart blackberries and mint savoury wild herbs, and a whack of white pepper lifts its brilliance at the finish. It is a dynamic wine with vibrance in its simple, straightforward deliciousness. Drink 2024-2034.”

92 Points – Vinous “The 2021 Pinot Noir Aegrina Vineyard is a veritable spice box on the nose, lifting up with cedary shavings, dusty dried flowers and crushed blackberries. Soft and round on the palate, this excels with its pure blend of red fruits and inner florals contrasted by a sour citrus tinge. The 2021 tapers off with tension, gently tannic and savory to the core. Drink 2025-2033.”

92 Points – Jeb Dunnuck “Pouring a saturated magenta color, the 2021 Pinot Noir Aegrina Vineyard offers a more complex and layered aromatic profile, with botanical herbs, black raspberries, licorice, and turned earth. The palate brings forward a zest and tangy angular acidity, with a chalky texture and a more sanguine and iron mineral tone that drives the wine. It will likely improve with another year in bottle. Drink 2025-2032.”