Review: Wines of Iterum, 2026 Releases
Joe Dobbes is an icon in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, whose wineries Dobbes Family Estate and Wine by Joe have been staples of the region for decades. Iterum is Dobbes’s self-proclaimed “retirement project,” a prestige brand founded in 2019 that draws on Dobbes’s deep knowledge of Oregon terroir and features numerous single vineyard expressions in its arsenal.
The bottles are quirky — they don’t even note the varietal on the front label — but that only adds to their significant charm.
Thoughts on four new releases follow. 2022 is the current vintage for most of these wines.
2024 Iterum Estate Sauvignon Blanc Orchard House Vineyard – Remarkably expressive for sauvignon blanc (though not an iconic offering from Willamette), this is a fruit-forward expression of a classic style, with upfront notes of apricot and peach layered with saline and, later, coconut cream, chased by lemon curd. The lattermost of these offers a decidedly tart character to the finish, though the lemon meringue pie quality finds a tempering note in late-arriving notes of crushed graham crackers and some toasted coconut. Dessert is served. A- / $50
2022 Iterum Estate Chardonnay Orchard House Vineyard – The pale straw color of this wine is misleading, as it’s a fairly classically structured chardonnay, though the oak and vanilla are kept in check by terraced layers of lemon peel, grapefruit, and mild notes of guava. The body is rich and exotic, and it would evoke the best wedding cake you’d ever had if there was more sugar in the mix, but fortunately there’s not. Instead, a bright acidity brings the finish to a slightly salty crescendo, with echoes of lemon, almond, and orchids draped around the neck. A- / $75
2022 Iterum Estate Pinot Noir “Old Friend” Quailhurst – This Chehalem Mountains AVA bottling surprised right away with its boldly earthy attack, gravelly and almost muddy, any sense of fruit requiring a lengthy spell in glass before it reveals itself. When it does, dried cherries and prunes force their way forward to eventually dominate, layered with dark chocolate, graphite, and ashy creosote. The experience remains heady, almost overwhelming, the weight of its massive body a leaden twist on the pinot formula. Time in glass helps loosen the threads a bit, but this takes a significant amount of patience. B / $90
2022 Iterum Estate Pinot Noir “Old Friend” Symonette Vineyard – A vibrant and far different pinot than the Quailhurst bottling, this Eola-Amity Hills expression is a lithe expression of Oregon pinot noir at its very best: Bright cherry fruit, layered with both raspberry and strawberry, is chased by soothing notes of black tea, followed by the lightest dusting of crushed slate and powdered anise. The earthier notes complement a lively fruit attack, the finish finding a deft balance between the two halves, concluding with an echo of fruit tea, ever so slightly exuding a minerally dust. It goes on and on forever, back and forth, back and forth. One of my favorite pinots in recent memory, I love this stuff. A / $90
The post Review: Wines of Iterum, 2026 Releases appeared first on Drinkhacker: The Insider’s Guide to Good Drinking.