Evan Martin's 98-Point Pinot Noir Masterpiece!
Today, from the cellar of Evan Martin, we bring you pure Pinot Noir magnificence!
"This is possibly the best wine I have tasted from Evan Martin Woods to date."
- Jeb Dunnuck, August 2025
Crafted from the glorious 2023 vintage, this ethereal wine has earned an incredible 98 Points. Outside of Burgundy, you just don't see Pinot Noir getting ratings like that!
A Burgundy with such a loft score would likely cost over $1,000. Evan's wine? Just $58.99.
Read on for the full story, including our tasting notes and the 98- and 97-Point reviews from the press, and for details on Evan's incredible Temperance Hill Vineyard Chardonnay, then smash the Order Button below to bring his wines into your home!
2023 Martin Woods "Jessie James" Pinot Noir
Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon
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So seductive and elegant. We tasted it over the course of two days and were captivated by its fresh cherry, dried cranberry, and black raspberry flavors, sprinkled with a dusting of baking spice. Underlying earthy tones of forest floor, damp soil and river rocks further add to the experience. Playful, yet structured, its soft tannins and bright acidity are in perfect balance, leading to a delicious cascade of flavor on the mile long finish. We can only imagine what this beauty will drink like in another three to five years!
While Jessica and James Lee are now deceased, their spirit lives on in the extraordinary wines made from the volcanic-soiled, wind-pummeled vineyard that bears their names. Leased exclusively by Evan, and farmed organically by the capable hands of Oney and Chuey Mora, the fruit from this site is impeccable.
Including 10% whole cluster in the fermentation, and using only three new barrels among the 28 total, Evan gently raised the 2023 Jessie James over an 18 month elevage. Given the purity of the fruit, there is very little else he needed to do! This is pinnacle Pinot Noir that would dominate in a Burgundy tasting with wines twice its price. These 98- and 97-Point reviews nail the story...
"The 2023 Pinot Noir Jessie James Vineyard is exceptional and offers both finesse and power, reminiscent of Vosne-Romanée in style. Layered and complete with leather, ripe framboise, pressed herbs, mossy earth, and a mineral frame, it’s full-bodied, with refined tannins and stunning length. This is possibly the best wine I have tasted from Evan Martin Woods to date. Drink 2027-2050."
- 98 Points, Jeb Dunnuck (8/26/2025)
"The 1996 planting of this Eola Amity site and its power and refinement married together is how winemaker Evan Martin thinks about it. In the 2023 vintage, he unites the three blocks, one Pommard, one Dijon and one Wadesnwil. All three charge this wine with complexity. An interplanting of Dijon brings a framing of skin tannin, taking the wine up a notch and giving seriousness to the mouthfeel. "Classic, savoury, noble reduction" Red fruited and lively with lush strawberries on the palate, fleshy red fruits, mint, and a tingly bit of saline minerality at the soaring finish. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2038."
- 97 Points, Decanter (5/13/2025)
An hour or three in a decanter will make the 2023 Martin Woods "Jessie James Vineyard" Pinot Noir quite irresistible. Three to five years in your cellar will make it even better.
The performance-to-price ratio of this classic Pinot Noir is obscene. Stock up with enough to enjoy over the coming decades. Opportunities like this are extremely rare in Oregon, and they simply do not exist in Burgundy!
Vin Chicago Price: 58.99
The 97-Point Inaugural Vintage of Evan's
Temperance Hill Chardonnay!
2023 Martin Woods "Temperance Hill" Chardonnay
Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon
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Chardonnay, as a grape, is a blank canvas. In the right hands and from the right vineyard, the resulting wine can be dramatically expressive. This is what Evan Martin gives us with his first ever release from Temperance Hill Vineyard.
"A masterclass in Eola-Amity Chardonnay terroir, undeniably one of the country's top appellations for this noble variety."
- Jeb Dunnuck, May 2025
We had the pleasure of hosting Evan for a dinner last month in Chicago and this stunning Chardonnay blew the roof off with its soaring acidity, clean and transparent flavors, deep mineral nuances and long mouthwatering finish. Awarding monster scores, Decanter and Jeb Dunnuck hit the bullseye with these passionate reviews...
"Coming from this high-elevation, cool-climate site where tension meets golden richness, the 2023 Chardonnay Temperance Hill Vineyard is a bright straw-silver color and is savory and complex with white pepper, beeswax, almond, filbert, rocky earth, yellow flowers, and melon rind. Aged a year in barrel, it’s medium to full-bodied, with a chalky, dewy freshness, pear-like fruit, and an energetic texture. Drink over the next 12 years."
- 97 Points, Decanter (8/26/2025)
"Planted initially for a sparkling wine project, vineyard manager Dai Crisp offered this Chardonnay, planted in 2016, to Evan Martin. Taut, mineral and fragrant with a note of wild white florals, this wine brilliantly balances acid and tension with depth of concentrated Meyer lemon pulp. There's a soaring salinity and acidity; it's intense, fresh and dynamic. This is his first vineyard-designated Temperance Hill Chardonnay, but will certainly not be the last. A masterclass in Eola-Amity Chardonnay terroir, undeniably one of the country's top appellations for this noble variety. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2039."
- 95+ Points, Jeb Dunnuck (5/13/2025)
Only 168 cases were produced of this pinnacle white. We’re blessed to have been able to grab a few of them.
Vin Chicago Price: 58.99
