McKinlay, Pinot Noir

Today is a crazy deal. This is one of the best $20ish bottles I’ve ever had, made by a producer you’ve almost certainly never heard of, simply because they’re farmers and winemakers, not marketers. This is Old Oregon in a bottle, and it’s worth saying clearly: this is not Pinot Noir for people looking for sweet, jammy wine that tastes like strawberry jelly. This is real wine, made with restraint, structure, and soul. McKinlay doesn’t have a website, doesn’t chase trends, and doesn’t try to be anything other than what it is: a tiny, family-run farm making honest Oregon Pinot Noir the way it’s been done since the early days of the Willamette Valley.

The winery itself is literally beneath the family home, no tasting room, no staff, no façade, just a kitchen upstairs and a cellar below, where the wines are made quietly each harvest. Much of the fruit comes from their own vineyards, including parcels that are own-rooted and planted decades ago, a near impossibility in modern Oregon and a detail that matters far more than most people realize. The wines feel settled and grounded rather than styled or polished, with delicate, Old-World-leaning structure, savory depth, and that lifted Oregon perfume that keeps pulling you back to the glass. I say this often, and I’ll say it again, Oregon is making the best Pinot Noir on earth when it comes to price-to-quality, and this bottle is a perfect example. This is the kind of farm-to-table wine you usually only discover on a great local wine list or at a chef’s house after service. At this price, it’s a buy-by-the-case wine, a true all-seasons bottle, drinking beautifully now, yet built to age gracefully for years to come. Don’t miss one of the best wine buys of the year.

Oregon’s greatness with Pinot Noir isn’t an accident. The Willamette Valley sits at nearly the same latitude as France’s Burgundy, home to the world’s most iconic expressions of the grape, sharing long daylight hours during the growing season and a cool, temperate climate that naturally preserves acidity and aromatic lift. Ancient volcanic basalt soils dominate many of the region’s hillsides, often layered with marine sedimentary deposits, creating low-vigor sites with excellent drainage, deal conditions for Pinot Noir. Cool nights, moderate summer temperatures, and a long, even ripening window allow fruit to develop depth and nuance without excess sugar or weight. When done right, the result is Pinot Noir that prioritizes freshness, transparency, and a clear sense of place over sheer power, wines that feel composed, food-driven, and deeply expressive rather than forced.

McKinlay is one of the quiet originals of this tradition. Founded in 1987 by Matt and Holly Kinne, the winery farms roughly 32 acres in the southern Chehalem Mountains, with vineyards planted primarily in the early 1990s using clonal material sourced from early Willamette Valley pioneers. Many of these vines are still own-rooted, ungrafted, growing on their original vinifera roots, a rarity in Oregon made possible by the family’s relative isolation from neighboring vineyards. Farming is hands-on and sustainable, yields are low, and every decision in the vineyard is made with long-term health in mind.

Winemaking here is simple, focused, and deeply intentional. Grapes are fully de-stemmed but left uncrushed, fermenting as whole berries with native yeasts. If the fruit comes in cool, it’s allowed a short, natural cold soak, never forced or chilled. Fermentations are gently managed with modest punch-downs before being largely left alone. Afterward, the wines rest quietly in neutral barrels for 10 to 12 months, with minimal sulfur added only when necessary. Nothing is added for effect. Nothing is stripped away. This is wine made in the vineyard first, then carefully guided, rather than manipulated, into bottle.

In the glass, the 2023 McKinlay Pinot Noir is highly aromatic, savory, and delicately complex, showing a light ruby core that fades to a pale pink rim. Aromas of just-ripened strawberry, pomegranate, and hibiscus lead, followed by dried herbs, forest floor, and a subtle earthy savoriness. On the palate, it’s medium-bodied and energetic, framed by fresh acidity and fine, resolved tannins, finishing clean and persistent without weight or excess. This is Pinot made for the table: roast chicken, pork loin grilled over live fire, grilled salmon with buttered wild mushrooms, or a simple weeknight pasta all feel exactly right. Serve with a light chill, around cellar temperature, 55–60°F in large Burgundy stems, and let it warm in the glass, don’t overthink it, and enjoy one of the rare bottles that still massively overdelivers at this price point.