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Day Wines 2016 "Vin de Days" Rouge
Wearing her heart on her sleeve
Hollywood is full of stories of stars getting discovered by producers and directors while waiting tables. But a winemaker? The story of Brianne Day is almost too good to be true.
She was waiting tables part-time at Portland's Little Bird restaurant, when a customer asked about the wine-grapes tattoo on her forearm. She struck up a conversation about her love of wine - and her dream of building a world-class winery.
You see, Brianne Day fell in love with Oregon's wine country when she was 16. With a new driver's license, she drove the hills and valleys and knew she wanted to be part of it. Later, she explored Europe, trading vineyard work for lodging. Finally back home, she worked every angle of the business - in a wine shop, in a restaurant, selling barrels, at a distributor, and at a winery. And in 2012, she started Day Wines, with just 125 cases produced.
But those customers at Little Bird saw her potential along with that tattoo, and offered - on the spot - to invest. Now, she's up to 2500 cases a year of fantastic wines and she's opened Day Camp, a collaborative facility for small, natural winemakers in the heart of the Willamette Valley.
It's a true story. And Brianne Day is just getting started.
Cellar 503 Tasting Notes
Day Wines, Dundee, Oregon
2016 "Vin de Days" Rouge
Check it out! This is our first 2016 vintage featured at Cellar 503. It's so exciting to get such an early look at last year's harvest. As Wine Spectator reported, the 2016 harvest season featured a long growing season, warm weather, a lack of harvest rain, and "no weather pressure". Winemakers were reported to be "relaxed and happy." All around, winemakers are excited about the possibility of the 2016 vintages.
The grapes for this wine both came from a pair of high altitude sites in the Chehalem Mountains. Both of these tiny vineyards are committed to sustainably growing their grapes. Brianne Day is committed to making sure the fruit she works with is of the best quality and has the least external input possible.
This light and yet flavorful Pinot Noir portends an extraordinary 2016 vintage to come. The gorgeous fruit flavors are well balanced with mild acids. Cheers!
A Cellar 503 selection in April 2017, Natural Wines Chehalem Mountains | Pinot Noir
