This was a treat. BHVineyard came into town for the weekend and emailed me asking if I was free for lunch. He offered to bring this wine which has not been labelled or released yet. You bet I'm available!! I have been looking forward to trying his wine for some time. I set up lunch at a new restaurant in Westmont, IL. called Amber and my wife and Otis joined us.

This is the 2nd vintage for BHV. 2001 was substantially smaller. The grapes for this wine come from young 4 year old vines that BHV planted after painstakingly clearing the land (he did have professional help). Unlike many Oregon vineyards, the Black Hole Vineyard is extremely rocky and BHV had the pictures to prove it. The winemaker in 2002 was Isabelle DePonte (is that her last name or just the winery she runs?). BHV has lined up 3 new winemakers for the 2003 (Tannahill, Nedry and Bergstrom). If I recall correctly only 450 cases of the 2002 were made.

This wine did not disappoint. It is Burgundian in style and not at all like the fruity ripe California style that I do not prefer. This has more happenning on the finish than upfront. Nice floral nose. Elegant with juicy tannins and firm acidity. Although this is my 1st wine from the Black Hole Vineyard, I can confidently say that this had a unique style that set it apart from other Oregon Pinot. The stones in the vineyard came through in the wine and provided an interesting sense of terrior. Notes of cherry, earthy red fruit, Indian spice and a hint of cocoa. We drank this side by side with the 2002 Archery Summit Premier Cuvee and we all liked the le Cadeau better. 92 points.

Do yourself a favor and get on BHV's good side so he will sell you some of this wine.

VM

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Vino Me,

Congrats on the nice showing BHV...especially with four year old vines. Sounds like a winner. And nice set of winemakers for the 2003. Hopefully I'll be able to find some of your wine.

Nice Notes Vino Me,

I have tasted the 02' Le Cadeau with BHV myself and plan to pickup a six pack when it hits the market. This a must for any Pinot nut.

Vino Me - Nice TN.

BHVineyard - time to come back through Houston.

What a treat this was!

It was truly a pleasure to meet BHVineyard and engage in some fascinating discourse about starting a vineyard from scratch. The story of a man passionate about wine, a prime piece of (rocky) property, great determination, friends in the right places, and knowing just how far you can push the envelope before your spouse flips her lid.

The '02 Le Cadeau is a beauty. A midsummer floral bouquet, with slight traces of wild berries and lavender. The fruit is bathed in sweet but sturdy tannins, and the wine caresses your tongue with a silky texture. The minerally finish is long and linear, not abrupt like many young Oregon pinots can be. Highly recommended. 93P.

Thanks for sharing BHV. Hope to meet you again soon!

Cheers,

Otis

Tasted again last night at the Minneapolis WS American Pinot Offline. It was definitely singing last night and in my top 4 out of 14 great Pinots tasted. Two things struck me last night...its beautiful aroma and its balance. Very classy wine.

Thanks VM for the nice review. Likewise, I truly enjoyed our lunch, and it was great to meet Mrs. VM and Otis. And Otis, thanks for the Weinbach, and VM too for the Archery Summit.

We truly appreciate the nice reviews of the '02 Le Cadeau; glad you like it. (And Montrachet-- thanks especially for hosting the Minneapolis off-line; great event!).

My two cents on the Le Cadeau would be to simply say that you have described the wine well. Personally, I like its structure, balance, earthiness, glycerin, and clarity. It is not a wine that beats you over the head; rather, it just has "character"... I think. The winemaker-- Isabelle Dutarte (at DePonte Cellars) is a great winemaker. In the true French tradition, her focus is BALANCE, and I think she achieved this goal.

The '02 Le Cadeau is still quite young, and based on how the 2001 DePonte developed, I think it has a bit of upside that should begin to appear in the next 6-12 months. We expect to release it in the early Spring, we hope it will be into its prime at that time.

Planting a vineyard in "new territory" is always a bit of a risk: While we knew the slope was in the right direction, and at the right elevation (maybe a bit high), and the temperatures of the site were consistent with other performing Oregon pinot sites, there were "no guarantees"-- and there are no other vineyards in close proximity with the same soils which we could use as benchmarks. When I asked the various consultants about the raw never-cultivated land, they said, "Well... it should be good... but the only way to know is to plant it and wait 10-years. Then you'll know." (Not very reassuring considering the investment and the work...). Fortunately, it seems to have worked out fairly well, and we are also pleased with the 2003 wine, and have favorable reports of the '04's progress.

Thanks for your support; and Tex, I'll let you know when I'm heading your way!

VM

Very nice notes and descriptions! I also agree with otis's comments . Personally, I think the 2002 edition of Le Cadeau was excellent when I got to taste it from the barrel, in fact, it was outstanding! Now that it is in the bottle, I would suggest that it will continue to develop over the next two or three years----94/95 points!

As for the Vineyard: I have visited "Chateau Black Hole", the home of Le Cadeau, for the last two years and can attest to all of the hard work that BHV & Mrs BHV have put into their venture. It is a beautiful and impressive property, and a good example of what a passionate effort can produce!

Montrachet61, I agree, the '02 Le Cadeau, was one of the highlights of the night for both me and Holly as well. We're looking forward to purchasing some for our cellar when it becomes available.

BHVineyard, it was a pleaseure meeting both you and your wife. We enjoyed hearing about the adventures of starting and running a vineyard. Hope to meet and enjoy some great wines with you again soon.

BHV,

If you ever make it to the South Florida area, please let me know. Probably not a chance in the world your wines would make it this far south, maybe it's time for us to take a trip to Oregon. How far from PDX are you?

Emilio, I'll be happy to bring some of his wines with me. I don't have the 2002 yet.

Board-O,

That would be great, bring one down. I probably still need to make a trip to Oregon anyway considering the success of the '02 vintage but I would love to try one.

Yet another very impressed diner from the Minneapolis-St. Paul tasting last Sun. night at Mission. Mrs. BHVineyard and I had a similar take on the Le Cadeau's aromas. She picked up vanilla, while I picked up cola. So...we settled on "vanilla coke"!! It was a beautiful wine and I agree...more Burgundian than Californian. I would also like to purchase some at its release.

MBD

And P.S.--I'm jealous that BHV got to meet my hero...Vino Me!!

Latour,

Thanks so much for the kind comments, and generous (possibly overly generous?) review! At 94 / 95 points, perhaps you'd accept a swap of a couple of Le Cadeau bottles for that '88 DRC in your cellar? By the way, still thinking about that awesome dinner Mrs. Latour served a few weeks ago! That was an RP99+! Yum.

As always, we enjoyed having you and Mrs. Latour visit at the Black Hole this summer. Hope you can make it three in a row! Bring the Board-Os along this year!

Chilly,

We likewise enjoyed meeting you and Holly last week. Great event; sure do appreciate Craig putting these together! And glad you liked the vino; thanks!

Board-O,

Just reassuring you once again, you've not been forgotten. You will be among the first to know when it is released. Hi to Mrs. Board-O!

Emilio,

We're 45 mins from the PDX airport; 30 mins from downtown PDX. If we can help with your visit to OR, let us know. Sounds like you know Board-O: he can tell you how to find us. Or, no website functioning yet, but you can reach me at LeCadeauVineyard.com.

Cheers all,

I'll tell Emilio all about it next month. I'd love to get back out there next Summer, but it's not too likely. My wife thinks we spend too much time visiting the wine country. I'll work on her.

How can I get on the mailing list? This sounds like the style of Pinot that I would enjoy.

max I'm sure that'll be a major topic of conversation at our "Wine Geek Dinner" on December 3rd. I'm really looking forward to that night, seeing you & mrs. max there!

Latour67, same to you and yours. I've been meaning to ask you about the BHV wines before and decided to wait until our dinner. Again I'm really looking forward to it.

max,

Email me at Tom@LeCadeauVineyard.com and I will add you to the list. The 2002 will be released in the Spring.

Thanks for your interest. For your upcoming WGD, suggest you wrap your wine in foil and hide the cork. I got LaTour hooked on trying to guess them blind... and by the way, he is pretty good at it!

Cheers,

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BHVineyard,

Oops,

Emilio and Max, I goofed above: email is Tom@LeCadeauVineyard.com

Sorry for the confusion to you, and any others.

A little advice, BHV. It looks like I'll be taking my final bottle of the 2001 DePonte to Florida for our dinner there 5 weeks from now. How much time in a decanter would you recommend?

BHVineyard, thank you and I'll send you an e-mail.

Latour67 has played the blind guessing game with myself and other fellow members of the group before. I also agree, Latour is one of the more knowledgeable wine geeks that I know.

Board-O,

It shouldn't need much time at this point. I'd guess maybe an half-hour to an hour.

Believe it or not, it has been awhile since I've had one... I think I've only got one left here, and a couple of mags at the vineyard. But plenty of other good stuff in the pipeline!

P.S.-- Perhaps you could include a trip to the OR coast, or Bend, or hangout in downtown PDX... and maybe abstain from a wine event for say... One day?... to convince Mrs. Board-O that your upcoming Oregon trip really isn't all about wine!

Cheers,

Even though she married me, she's not that stupid.

Will decant it right before leaving for dinner. Thanks