What Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley of Oregon and Brut from Breede River Valley of South Africa have in common? One committed family of the founders Anthony and Angela Beck.

We expected to taste traditional varietal wines of the region when we step into the room, and we did. With a twist!

We started with something that many premier wineries in the region are offering or planning to offer - a sparkling wine made in a traditional method with traditional grapes of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Only this sparkling wine came from South Africa.

We were quite surprised to find South African wine in Oregon winery tasting room. As we discovered, Anthony and Angela have another winery in South Africa that was founded by Anthony's father in 1984 with the goal to produce premier sparkling wine.

Lucky for us, they offer some of their sparkling wines in Angela Estate tasting room and we had a chance to taste one of them.

Brut Zero definitely has its distinct character. It was created without the use of added sugar in the dosage. Dosage is the liqueur which is added just after disgorging. It consists of a mixture of reserve wine and very pure cane sugar and determines the type and style of sparkling wine. It's up to winemaker to decide how sweet or dry the final product is going to be.
Brut Zero is among of the very few zero dosage wines.

The absence of dosage allows the intrinsic qualities of the wine and its terroir character to shine through.
Its unique character was apparent on the nose with white flower, crushed warm yellow apple, sweet cream of the almond croissant, and brioche-like aromas.

Tasting Notes

On the palate, Zero's extra dry nature was coming with apple, fresh cut grass, freshly baked croissant, and mineral notes.
Brut Zero is a well-balanced bubbly showing the skill of the winemaker, quality of the fruit and unique character of South African wines.

Graham Beck winery only makes this wine in exceptional vintages from the very highest quality juice (tête de cuvée) in limited quantities. With its price tag of under $35, it's a steal.

The sparkling category made without dosage is a challenging wine to make and we have tried some unsuccessful attempts at it. This type of sparkling gaining in popularity amongst chefs, sommeliers, fashionistas and food enthusiasts and due to its ultra-dry, crisp and refreshing characteristics this style of bubbly will find many fans amongst the health conscious.