NV Domaine Serene Evenstad Reserve Dundee Hills Brut 750 ml

Domaine Serene's story begins in 1989, when Ken and Grace Evenstad fell in love with Oregon's Dundee Hills and transformed a former plum orchard into one of the Willamette Valley's most celebrated estates. Named for their daughter, the winery emerged during a pivotal era for Oregon wine, when passionate vintners were proving that New World Pinot Noir could stand alongside Burgundy's greatest.

Now, the Evenstad family’s Domaine Serene is one of the world’s great wineries, with a list of accolades as long as Oregon summer’s day.They’ve placed two different wines in Wine Spectator’s Top-3 Wines of the Year, set the record for highest-scoring Oregon Pinot (and then set it again), and have been named one of the Worlds 50 Greatest Wineries by James Suckling.

And even more impressively, they bested three different Grand Crus from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in blind tastings—across three different vintages. Current release on any of those Burgundies would be well over $2,000 per bottle.

So when they turned their attention to crafting one of the great sparkling wines of the world, every winemaker on the West Coast took notice. And for good reason.

Now on its fourth iteration, their Evenstad Reserve Brut is a stunning bottle of bubbles, which harnesses Oregon’s cool climate and expensive, quality-focused cellar techniques for a wine that blew us away.

They source from their estate vineyards in the Dundee Hills—which are some of the most coveted sites in the entire Willamette Valley—and pick early for brightness and vibrancy, building richness and texture during élevage. Based on Pinot Noir with a splash of Chardonnay, it’s barrel-fermented a la Krug, the Evenstad Reserve Brut is then aged in wood for a full eight months before bottling and another 38 months en tirage. 

The results are spectacular. Joyful and vibrant, it’s got massive aromas of yellow apple, peach, and lemon curd with an underlying layer of hazelnut praline. The mouthfeel is lush and complex with citrus and orchard notes, zippy acidity, and a lasting, long finish. While it’s fantastic on its own, this is a slam-dunk pairing with fried chicken, gougères, or a truffle mac and cheese.