WINERY NEWS
Audeant Wines Score Big at the 2021 Decanter World Wine Awards
Taking Top Honors from Oregon
July 12, 2021
Portland, OR • Audeant Wines, the limited-production winery led by winemaker Andrew Riechers crafting top-tiered Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Rosé in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, is making headlines for their recent global acclaim awarded to them by the all-star panel of judges at the 2021 Decanter World Wine Awards.
At the London-based event which featured over 18,000 wines, their 2017 Audeant Willamette Valley Pinot Noir took home the only Platinum Medal & 97-point score awarded in the Oregon wine category - making it one of the highest rated wines in the world and the top-rated wine from Oregon in the competition. Further, with its 97-point rating, it stood shoulder to shoulder with other acclaimed California wineries as one of the top-rated wines from America.
“We are beyond excited to see our wines appreciated by the world’s most influential and experienced wine industry professionals,” stated Owner and Co-Founder Teal Walker. “We started Audeant with the intention of making wines that would rival the best in the world, and in just a few short years since our first release, here we are. I am so proud of Andrew and send a thank you to all the judges that weighed in at the Decanter World Wine Awards. It is truly an honor.”
In addition to taking the top spot in the category, a second single-vineyard offering - Audeant’s 2017 Luminous Hills Vineyard Pinot Noir - was awarded a Gold Medal and 95-points. Thus, adding another entry for Audeant to this year’s Oregon top-10 for the young winery.
The 18th edition of the Decanter World Wine Awards saw a record number of wines judged. Across 15 days, almost 170 expert wine judges, including 44 Masters of Wine and 11 Master Sommeliers, evaluated 18,094 wines from 56 countries. It is widely considered to be the most prestigious wine competition in the world.
The Audeant program is led by Andrew Riechers – a young winemaker with seriously notable experience. Before Audeant, Andrew crafted wines at Antica Terra with Maggie Harrison, at J.K. Carriere with Jim Prosser, and spent valuable time working alongside legends in Burgundy, New Zealand, and California. It was not until 2016 that Andrew would join forces with Audeant Proprietor Teal Walker after bonding over a multiple hour wine tasting during her first ever visit to the Willamette Valley. The resulting partnership has been nothing short of extraordinary.
Audeant wines can be purchased online at their website www.audeant.com or by visiting their winery near Salem where they offer winemaker led wine tastings by appointment 5 days a week.
Interviews are available upon request.
Media Contact: Matthew Thompson
matt@premiercrusolutions.com
Phone: 214.289.6425
november 17, 2020
“If life never changed, there would be no room for good things that are still to happen” … Elizabeth Harmon, author
We, alongside our colleagues from 00 Wines, had been planning an exclusive invite only event which we coined The Perfect Pairing. This event was intended to showcase eight highly acclaimed wines across our Chardonnay and Pinot Noir portfolios on November 27th & 28th. However, things suddenly changed last Friday when the State of Oregon instructed a ‘Freeze” for in person wine tastings over the course of the next several weeks. My how plans change quickly in 2020!
But as with most things in 2020, we are rolling with the news and the show must go on!
Therefore, instead of you visiting us, we have switched things up and will be bringing this special event to you – virtually. We want to cordially invite you to an exclusive and rare virtual wine event that pairs two of the fastest rising Pinot Noir & Chardonnay producers in the Willamette Valley – 00 & Audeant Wines.
Exclusive to this event, we have hand-selected and will be hand-bottling eight highly acclaimed wines – 2017 Audeant Rosé, 2018 Audeant Chardonnay, 2017 Audeant Pinot Noir, 2017 Audeant Nysa Pinot Noir, 2017 00 VGW Chardonnay, 2018 00 EGW Chardonnay, 2018 00 Chehalem Mountain Chardonnay, and 2018 00 VGR Pinot Noir - in individual 5 oz sample bottles to create a limited number of sample-sets that we are offering to our friends in the Greater Portland and Willamette Valley area from Portland to Salem. Each set is $80 and includes complimentary local delivery in addition to access to one of three virtual conversations taking place on Saturday, November 28th. These sample-sets are the perfect accompaniment to this online conversation that will feature the owners and winemakers from 00 & Audeant.
The eight-bottle sample set will easily serve two and give each attendee a taste of these special, limited production wines. Unfortunately, these repackaged sample-sets are only available to residents of the Greater Portland and Willamette Valley region due to our dedication to wine quality and regulations.
For our friends out of state, we hope that you too will join us by either purchasing 750 ml bottles of the 8 highly acclaimed wines in the sample set, or by purchasing one of our mixed and matched 750 ml & 1.5 L Magnum offerings that we have built together:
750 ml 6-pack: 2018 Audeant Chardonnay, 2017 Audeant Pinot Noir, 2017 Audeant Nysa Pinot Noir, 2017 00 VGW Chardonnay, 2018 00 EGW Chardonnay, 2018 00 VGR Pinot Noir - $400 (+tax & shipping)
1.5 L Magnums: 2017 Audeant Rosé (the last remaining Rosé - the ’17 & ’18 750ml are both sold out), 2017 Audeant Pinot Noir, 2017 00 VGW Chardonnay, 2018 00 VGR Pinot Noir - $460 (+tax & shipping)
Additionally, all mixed and matched offerings are also available for complimentary delivery before or after Thanksgiving for our local residents, and as always you can also go to the 00 or Audeant websites to purchase wines of your choosing.
Reservations are limited to the first 30 guests on November 28th at 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm Pacific. This is the final pouring until Spring for both wineries, so we invite you to take part in this one-of-a-kind, end of season event. Please secure your spot and order your wines quickly as space is limited by emailing tealwalker@audeantwines.com or calling 312-497-3369. You don’t want to miss it.
Cheers,
Your friends at 00 & Audeant Wines!
Alexis Halbert Fundraiser
August 11, 2020
Two of my greatest passions in life are horses and wine. Since the young age of five, I have been a competitive equestrian and have developed special bonds with amazing horses throughout my life. I wouldn’t find something that I was as equally passionate about for decades, twenty years ago to be precise, when I developed my love for wine. Now I have a winery of my own in Oregon’s Willamette Valley – something I had never dreamed would be possible!
I tell you this because this past winter I had the opportunity to meet and watch a young and talented 15-year-old rider, Alexis Halbert, and her horse, Charisma, build a bond and grow tremendously together. I learned just a few weeks ago about a freak accident that left this young, ambitious, and eager competitor paralyzed. The accident, unfortunately, also took the life of her beloved horse and partner.
As this tragedy constantly entered into my mind and brought tears to my eyes I felt helpless and continued to think about what I could do and how I could best help both the family and Alexis get back on her feet. Alexis is currently recovering after surgery on her spinal cord in a rehab facility where she is working hard to walk again. Her advancement is promising, but the road to recovery is long and does not come without a cost. Her insurance is not covering the facility and rehab, which are estimated to total $320K.
I would love to make a difference in Alexis’ life and ultimately it is my goal to raise money to get her on her feet and back up on a horse again. Therefore, I am personally making a pledge to donate 20% of all Audeant Wine sales for the remainder of August in support of Alexis Halbert. Your wine purchase will help Alexis and her family afford the medical bills she needs to heal both physically and emotionally.
For this special fundraiser, and in celebration of our most recent high scores from Vinous, we are offering a hand-selected 6-pack of our highly acclaimed wines. We also invite you to create a mixed or matched case of your own here. Note that we will hold all ground shipment orders until the weather window is favorable. If your shipping state is not listed on our site, please email us directly at info@audeantwines.com.
We are a small, handcrafted winery making only 1000 cases per year, therefore please secure these wines while you can. Every bit counts, so please help us make a difference today! Also feel free to donate directly to Alexis’ fundraiser.
Thank you for your support.
-Teal Walker, Proprietor
This 6-pack represents the Audeant wine-making philosophy and profile, with wines from each of our first three vintages - including wines from our inaugural 2016 release. You will receive one bottle of each of the following:
- 2018 Rosé of Pinot Noir
- 2017 Audeant Pinot Noir - 92 points Vinous / 92+ Robert Parker
- 2017 Luminous Hills Vineyard Pinot Noir - 93 points Vinous / 93 Robert Parker
- 2017 Nysa Vineyard Pinot Noir - 94 points Vinous / 93 Robert Parker
- 2016 Audeant Pinot Noir
- 2016 Nysa Vineyard Pinot Noir
$350 per six-pack