14 Feb Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Native Flora NV (2022) Ruby Primo Red Wine, Dundee Hills, Oregon
I was utterly captivated by the color of the bottle sitting on my counter. So, I opened up a bottle of Native Flora “Ruby Primo” Red Wine. The label says it was a red wine, but it easily could be mistaken for a dark-colored rosé wine. But if you know the winemaker Scott Flora, you know that he loves to be a contrarian, as I once wrote about him in a story. With this wine, he is creating a new category, Rubies. I opened this bottle with friends on our weekend in Sedona and whether the wine is in fact a red wine, a rosé wine, or a ruby, it is an utterly delicious wine. That is why the Native Flora NV Ruby Primo is the Please the Palate wine of the week.
About Native Flora
Founded by Scott and Denise Flora in 2005, Native Flora is a 33-acre property sitting at 800 feet elevation in the Dundee Hills. The vineyard is surrounded on three sides by forest and open-sky fills the fourth side. Scott and Denise live on the property and make sure that everything from the farming to sales is rooted in what they call “intelligent integration”. You cannot put a label on Native Flora. They are not sustainable or organic or biodynamic. Scott marches to the beat of his own drum and everything on their property, the land, the vineyard, the people, the buildings, the flora and fauna, the weather, work in harmony to grow great grapes. The vineyard supplies geothermal heat and cooling to the facility, and in return, the facility captures, filters, and stores rainwater for the vines. Biodiversity in the vineyard provides protectection from pests and disease and there are Babydoll sheep who mow the vineyard and prune and fertilize the vines.
About Ruby Primo – Red Wine
Native Flora produces a selection of Pinot Noirs, as well as sparkling wines, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, and Pinot Gouges. Scott also makes a white Pinot Noir and a rosé of Pinot Noir. Ruby Primo was produced in response to the saturated landscape of rosé wines. In contrast to what he calls “wimpy and sweet” blush wines, “rubies” was created as a new category to offer “deep, flavorful, dry, age-able, garnet jewels.” Scott describes Ruby Primo as between a Provence Rosé and a Village Rouge and somewhat akin to the Clairet wines of Bordeaux.
Tasting Notes
Ruby Primo is 99%+ Pinot Noir but that is all Scott will tell you. However he makes the wine, the result is a brilliant, translucent red apple color. The nose of the wine is vibrant with aromas of fresh cherry, cherry Jolly Rancher, and wild strawberry. As the wine sat in the glass, white pepper and savory notes started to appear. On the palate, the wine is smooth and juicy but also textured.
Food Pairing
We started our evening with this wine and it drank so easily on its own. But this wine would also be a great food pairing wine. It has the savory texture to stand up to foods that you would enjoy with rosé and other light red wines. Try it with light pasta dishes, grilled salmon, herb-roasted chicken, a Margherita pizza, or turkey burgers.
Where to Purchase
Native Flora NV Ruby Primo Red Wine, Dundee Hills, Oregon retails for $36 and is available from the Native Flora website. 2021 Ruby sold out in record time and 2022 Ruby is selling quickly because this is a fun wine to drink.
Get to know Scott Flora:
Read about Scott Flora, the Contrarian Winemaker, as I wrote about in the Napa Valley Register.
Meet Scott Flora and get to know him in 30 questions on the Wine Soundtrack podcast.