Ovum Wines 'Big Salt' White Oregon 2023

Ovum was founded in 2011 by married couple Ksenija Kostic and John House; inspired by their time spent working together at Chehalem, they set out to showcase the diverse terroirs of Oregon using the riesling grape as their medium. They source grapes from a range of sites across the state, but the unifying factor is their winemaking: All of their wines are made with native yeast fermentations in neutral oak and acacia barrels and Nomblot concrete eggs, with extended lees contact and no additions or subtractions apart from a small amount of sulfur. Bottling takes place without fining or filtration. ‘Big Salt’ is a blend of 50% riesling, 30% gewurztraminer, 14% early muscat, 3% sauvignon blanc, and 3% miscellaneous other grapes, sourced from up to 10 organically farmed vineyards in the Columbia Gorge, Willamette Valley, Elkton, Dundee Hills, and Rogue AVAs. The muscat and gewürztraminer see 3-24 hours of skin contact, while the riesling gets a mere 3 hours of partial skin contact, all of it co-fermented rather than blended after fermentation. If you could bottle a day at the beach, this might be it: zesty, aromatic, and refreshing, lively layers of spicy white flowers, fresh peach, savory briny undertones, and a squeeze of citrus will keep you coming back for sip after sip! Sustainably grown, vegan.