A comprehensive Argyle Winery Review

Enjoying the Oregon wine country is the perfect way to experience the beauty of the Northwest. Argyle Winery is one of my personal favorites and this Oregon winery review will walk you through what to expect when you get there.

Argyle Winery Review front sign

When I lived in Oregon, truly, the only thing I liked about it was wine country.  So I spent a whole lot of time exploring.  And I have discovered some of my absolute favorite Sparkling wines…ones that you will always find in my house. One of those is the Argyle Extended Tirage Brut.

In the heart of the Wilamette Valley lies Argyle Winery. 

I probably fell in love with this winery because their purpose was Sparkling first:  “growing and making World Class Sparkling Wine in the ‘true-cool’ climate of Oregon’s Willamette Valley.”

Which will be no surprise to anyone that I have never tried any other wine besides their Sparkling.  I mean when you have a flight called, “The POP Flight,” there’s no need to try anything else. 

THE TASTING ROOM

Their tasting room is so welcoming and their patio is so inviting. They offer amazing views both indoors and out for when the weather is nice. The Tasting Room itself was re-purposed from their original cellar building. Now, I have never made reservations and have always been seated right away, but I do think reservations are preferred. 

Tasting room at Argyle Winery

I love the feel inside their tasting room and their patio is awesome when it’s nice outside. The tasting room has a lofty, open feel and you just want to sit here all day and enjoy some good bubbly. Plus, look how cool their wire cage hanging light fixtures are, like the tops you take off of champagne bottles.  The indoor space was one of our favorite parts of the Argyle Winery Review, other than the actual bubbly of course.

The last time I was there, people were on their patio when it was 55 degrees.  So you can define “nice outside” and choose inside or out with a great experience no matter what.  

wired industrial lamps in the Argyle Winery

They also offer more private tasting experiences in The Library. A library full of wines instead of books they have one of the largest in the region and include all of their vintages from the very first in 1987 through their current vintages.

WINE TASTING

They offer various tasting flights ranging from $20 – $30. My favorite (and honestly, the only one I’ve tried) “The POP Flight” includes all of their sparkling wines. The POP Flight is $30, but if you buy two bottles, they waive the fee for you.  And let me tell you, it’s not hard to buy two bottles or if you’re like me, just join the wine club.  

They also offer flights that feature their Pinot Noirs and a mix of their sparkling, white, and Pinot Noirs.

Heart of wine glasses

What’s kind of cool about tasting here is that you are all seated at tables, unlike other tasting rooms where you belly on up to the bar. In many ways this adds an extra touch of intimacy to the experience if even you don’t want to book one of their smaller tastings.  You can choose inside or outside for your tasting, but it doesn’t really matter where, it’s all beautiful. It’s a nice “personalized” touch to be able to choose where you taste your wine.

The table seating also is an added benefit for those who come in groups. You aren’t all lined up against a bar shouting at the person on the other end of your group. Instead you can sit and relax comfortably around a table and enjoy casual conversation while you taste. Another big plus for our Argyle Winery Review.

The Argyle Winery also offers other tasting experiences for those that are looking for a more intimate setting and in depth learning experience.

The Legacy tasting is $50 and offers seasonal tastings of the winery’s legacy wines from it’s extensive wine library.

They also offer a very unique experience for those who love bubbly as much as I do. The Masters of Sparkling Class gives a behind the scenes look at the sparkling wine making process and finishes with a flight of their sparkling wine. This experience is $75 per person.

WINE CLUB

Now, I have told you before I am a sucker for a wine club, so of course our Argyle Winery review can’t be complete without talking about their wine club. It should be no surprise that I joined this one too.

They have 4 different types of packages and in 3 out of 4 you can choose to receive ALL sparkling wine!  You get free tastings while you’re a member and a free bottle of Vintage Brut on your birthday…how fun is that!  

There are lots of events and classes you can take part in.  My favorite part is preferred pricing so when you need more before your next shipment, you’re getting it discounted at 15% or 20% per case. A great value! Depending on the level you choose you also receive free shipping.

THE ART OF SPARKLING

When I learned of this program, the teacher in me was very happy!

Argyle has collaborated with the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). Each year, three PNCA student artists are selected to receive the Argyle scholarship. They come and tour the facility, learn about the history of the winery and wine making, and a tasting I’m sure (if they are old enough of course). After these students consumed all the information on the winery they each create a piece of art that represents the winery as they experienced it. That piece is then turned into labels for the Art of Sparkling 3-bottle set.

The art of sparkling special edition labels and box

The Sparkling wine in this set is the Vintage brut which is a very enjoyable bottle by itself.  It is crisp and  very fruit forward and as I learned is their bubbly that “pleases the most palates”.  Honestly it’s one of my go-to bottles for when I have friends over because of this reason…and you can’t go wrong with the price point. The set runs $100.

FAVORITES

Extended Tirage Brut which is aged on the yeast for ten years and ‘Disgorged on Demand’ to maintain freshness and complexity of the wine.

Argyle Winery 2009 Brut

Here’s what’s cool, the disgorging on demand means that they do not disgorge all their bottles at the same time.  So when they say aged for at least 10 years it means just that…it could be longer by the time they’re ready to disgorge it.  They will wait until the amount they disgorged initially runs low and then disgorge more.  This guarantees the freshest bubbly possible!  

Black Brut-I did discover though that I love different years of this better than others. And this, of course is due to the weather from the particular year the grapes are harvested.  Hotter or colder summers will affect the taste of the bubbly.

2015 Argyle Winery Black Brut

Let me take a moment to explain why this is significant. Most wineries use a mix of wines from several years to create consistent flavors from year to year. These wines do not have a vintage date (the year the grapes were harvested) because the wines used to ultimately create the sparkling wine are from multiple years.

However, Argyle does not do this. They only vintage date their wines, meaning every bottle they produce in a given time frame must be from that particular vintage. While this give Argyle less “control” over the consistency of taste from year to year, it also produces some years that are vastly superb to other years. Those years my friend are definitely worth it!

Now, I personally love the vintage dating best because typically it’s better overall quality.  Plus, I personally feel like you truly are tasting the affects of the environment that particular year which I find fascinating.  But with that said, this may cause for varying tastes so much so that you LOVE, LOVE, LOVE a bottle one year and the very next, not so much at all.  

There is just something I love about exclusive vintages only available for a limited amount of time…even though I did almost cry real tears when the 2014 Black Brut was gone.  

Argyle Knudsen Blanc de Blancs is like a good buttery, creamy chardonnay with bubbles! This particular sparkling wine is made from the grapes of just a single vineyard. Argyle pioneered this technique when it released the 1995 vintage of this bubbly.

Argyle Winery Knudsen Blanc de Blancs

Brut Rosé definitely one of my all time favorite sparkling rosés…if you’re typically a rosé in the summer type of person, I challenge you to try this one in the winter with a good hearty meal. You will be surprised how well the two can go together.

Argyle Winery Sparkling Rose

Report Card for the Argyle Winery Review

Bubbly Side of Life Report Card for the Argyle Winery Review

I should note that while I graded the value of their wine 3.5 it was just simply that several of their wines have a higher price point.  It’s what you’d expect from a winery that does not mass produce…and with most things, you get what you pay for.

If you’re curious how Bubbly Side of Life evaluated wineries to arrive at a score checkout this post.

THE AFTERTASTE

The Argyle Winery is a must visit on your trip to Wilamette Valley Wine Country. They produce small batches with so much love and passion.  The fact that the intention for this winery was always sparkling and their motto is “Brut makes you better” just makes me love it even more.  

Go for a tasting and  join the family…you won’t regret it!