2018 Solena Estate Pinot Gris Willamette Valley 750 ml

When we pulled up at Laurent and Danielle Montalieu’s gorgeous estate on a sunny day in July, the cool glasses they handed us at the front door reminded us of how, when it’s done just right, there’s nothing quite like Pinot Gris. Dense like Chardonnay, filled with sweet Anjou pear and spice and balanced with electrifying acidity, a finely crafted Pinot Gris can deliver more fireworks for under $20 than almost any other variety.

Wine Access members have made Soléna far and away our top Oregon winery of the year—taking home 500 cases and counting—precisely because of the kind of unbeatable value that their 2018 Pinot Gris delivers. It’s a 91-point Editors’ Choice that Wine Enthusiast called “a real success” and “one of the state’s best examples of Pinot Gris.” We’ve secured the best price in the country—25% off SRP, just $14.99 on cases.

The Montalieus’ 2018 Pinot Gris is a lively straw hue with green and platinum tones, boasting nectarine blossoms alongside its generous apple and pear, lime zest, fresh apricots, and hint of white pepper. It’s lush, crisp, and positively dances on the palate, finishing with plenty of citrus that rounds up with a touch of green almond. It’s a perfect refresher and an ideal food wine—simply a year-round white whose mouthwatering deliciousness will have you reaching for sip after sip, then bottle after bottle. And the best-in-the-nation bargain price of $14.99 on cases certainly won’t hold you back.

Overdelivering Pinots are what Soléna’s best known for—at the Willamette Valley Auction, they slipped their $20 Pinot Noir in among the triple-digit stars of Willamette Valley and we were none the wiser—so this spectacular white wine value is no surprise. But a wine like this for under $20 takes the cooperation of Mother Nature, and as we looked over the vines at Soléna’s Yamhill estate while sipping the 2018, Laurent reiterated what it took to make perfect Pinot Gris to challenge the best of Alsace: You need heat—but not too much heat—and a very dry growing season.

As it happens, 2018 fit the bill perfectly, as it was warm up to harvest, and featured one of the driest summers in a decade. Sourced from three estate vineyards—including original plantings from the Montalieus’ marquee Hyland vineyard—the fruit they harvested was perfect for producing the kind of lush and generous Pinot Gris that leaves critics raving about its “marvelous texture” and Wine Access members clamoring for more. For a focused white wine from the West Coast, you’d be hard-pressed to do any better—let alone at a bargain price like this one.