Drink of the Week: Three Otters Skin Contact Viognier

The leaves are changing, the air is crisp, yadda, yadda… you get it, it’s fall. And while the very season itself has become a trope these days, it certainly comes with delicious benefits. I’m talking about transitional season wines—brightly aromatic but with a little more oomph to cut the chill. Skin-contact, or “orange”, wines are a natural match, and the hazy, golden Three Otters Skin Contact Viognier hit the spot like a gently falling leaf.

In Oregon’s Willamette Valley, the family-run Fullerton Wines makes predominantly Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (having a soft spot for the wines of Burgundy), with grapes sourced mostly from L.I.V.E. Certified and organic vineyards throughout the valley. The skin-contact Viognier is a bit of an outlier for their (albeit playful) Three Otters label, though no less meticulously crafted. The second vintage of the style to be released, the 2020 Viognier opens with a fresh and zesty aroma that becomes heady and floral as the chilled wine warms. Crisp and gently acidic with flavors of tangerine and orchard fruit, the extra tannins offer a nice grip before softening into the slightly briny taste of green olives. It’s a bottle I’d open while cooking dinner, with its evolving flavors and aroma carrying perfectly through the whole meal. $22, fullertonwines.com