Our take
Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Pinot Noir Oregon Red Wine
- Style
- Red wine
- Size
- 750 ml
- Grape
- Pinot Noir
- Region
- Willamette Valley
- Shelf barcode
- 0717071911707
Our take
What we make of this bottle
This is a Pinot Noir from Oregon's Willamette Valley, sold under the Willamette Valley Vineyards name; the producer's own product page for the current 2023 vintage confirms the wine and names its vineyard sources (below). Just 1 shopper has rated it so far. That one score gives it 5 on the store listing's five-point scale, which is one person's take rather than a settled view.
The Willamette Valley is a cool-climate Oregon wine region, recognized since 1983 and set between the Coast Range and the Cascades. Regional guides put Pinot Noir at the lighter, less tannic end of the reds, with red cherry, berry and plum flavors, so if you want something gentler than a Cabernet at the shelf, that is the style this grape points to. Across six stores in our September 2026 checks, prices ranged from $36.99 to $43.99.
Willamette Valley Vineyards' own product page for the current 2023 vintage lists the wine at 13.9 percent alcohol, sourced from three estate vineyards: the winery's original Salem Hills planting by founder Jim Bernau, the Tualatin Estate in the Coast Range foothills, and the Elton Vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills. The producer describes "savory and fruit-forward aromas of potpourri, sage, red currant and raspberry" opening onto a medium-bodied palate of "forest floor, licorice, orange peel and red cherry." The bottle has also drawn outside notice: 90 points from Wine Spectator, 94 points and a Gold medal from USA Wine Ratings, and 92 points from critic Paul Gregutt, who wrote that "this estate vineyard deftly expresses the specific characteristics of the AVA."
Our call: worth reaching for if a producer's detailed account is enough to go on; Willamette Valley Vineyards names three estate vineyards behind the wine, Salem Hills, Tualatin Estate and Elton, and the bottle carries critic scores from Wine Spectator, USA Wine Ratings and Paul Gregutt. Pass if the shopper rating is your guide: just 1 rating has reached our record, one shopper's take rather than a settled view.
The Grocery Store Wine Desk · written Sep 16, 2026 from our research file for this wine. Numbers reflect our latest checks.
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Read our take →The prices we checked
Dated store checks, not a promise about your store.
- Kroger, Atlanta suburbs, GA$43.99
- Kroger, Cincinnati, OH$37.99
- Fred Meyer, Portland, OR$41.99
- King Soopers, Colorado Springs, CO$36.99
- Kroger, Knoxville, TN$36.99
- QFC, Tacoma, WA$38.99
The regular price can vary by store and date.
Research status
What we are still checking
Our overview above draws on the dated store feed, shopper ratings, our region and grape research, and any sourced producer facts. We are still working to confirm the current release, the full producer record, and the bottle itself, and we update this page as we learn more.
Getting to know Willamette Valley.
The Willamette Valley runs for more than 100 miles and contains many hillside settings. The AVA establishes origin, but a nested AVA or vineyard gives a closer reading of soil, elevation and wind.
What the name means
Willamette Valley has been a federally recognized American Viticultural Area since 1983. Eleven smaller AVAs now sit within the larger valley boundary.
How grapes grow here
The Coast Range limits direct Pacific influence and the Cascades separate the valley from drier central Oregon. The region has a cool growing climate, but hills, gaps and distance north or south create local differences.
What lies under the vines
Marine sedimentary, volcanic basalt and windblown loess are the three major hillside soil groups identified by the regional association. Valley-floor alluvium adds another setting within the broad AVA.
How large the region is
- Total AVA area
- The Willamette Valley AVA covers about 3,438,000 acres.
- Planted vineyard area
- The regional association reports 33,634 planted vineyard acres in its current facts and figures.
Places within the region
- Northern nested AVAs
- Dundee Hills, Eola-Amity Hills, Ribbon Ridge, Yamhill-Carlton and several newer AVAs identify smaller parts of the valley.
- Regional range
- The main AVA runs from the Portland area south to Eugene, so the valley name does not describe one hillside or mesoclimate.
Getting to know Pinot Noir.
Pinot Noir is a red grape with relatively thin skins. It is used for still red wine and as one of the main grapes in many traditional-method sparkling wines.
Category guide
What to expect in the glass
Regional category guides commonly describe red cherry, berry and plum, with lighter color and less tannin than Cabernet Sauvignon. Site and ripeness can shift it from bright and delicate to darker and fuller.
Sources: New Zealand Winegrowers; Napa Valley Vintners. Checked Aug 10, 2026. See all 105 Pinot Noir wines we cover →
Where this information comes from
- Store listing
- Price, package, product identifier, and shopper rating. Checked Aug 10, 2026.
- Barcode
- The shelf barcode shown here is computed from the store product identifier. It has not been checked against a bottle.
- Method
- Every price, rating and fact here is a dated observation. How we check.