2021 Vintage
The 2021 growing season began in earnest in January, as we began to prune Vista Grande. This marks the beginning of our first foray into farming the grapes we will turn into wine. A drier than normal spring with some rain during flowering gave way to a hotter than normal summer (also dry!) punctuated by the heat dome that brought 115 degree heat to Oregon. Since the grapes were in a very developmental stage during this heat, we escaped any damage to the fruit. Even though we had a dry summer, the deep root systems were able to stay happy and wet. As we moved through August, the grapes slowly ripened and moved toward ripeness with the heat. September came around and brought back the cool nights that we are used to, preserving the acids while the sugars rose. We began harvest on September 12 with Gregory Ranch Chardonnay and stretched all the way to October 10 for our newest addition to the lineup - Temperance Hill Pinot Noir.
2021 brought new adventures all around for us. After buying grapes from Vista Grande vineyard since 2019, the opportunity to be involved in the farming was presented. We took over farming 2.6 acres of Dijon and Pommard clones of Pinot Noir. The excitement of trying something new and being involved in the growing was another step into the unknown for us. “Jump and net appears” is our unofficial motto, so this was right up our alley. There were many nights spent with my nose in several books, and many beers bought for people whose brains I was continually picking. I owe even more to the folks that came out and helped, great friends really do make a difference. We are so proud to be bringing you fruit from this vineyard that we grew ourselves - following organic guidelines - in the Chehalem Mountains. It is in barrel now and we think it is stellar…
We return with Gregory Ranch Chardonnay and Pinot Noir - the unctuous Yin to the delicate Vista Grande Yang. The commitment to Biodynamic farming is a big one and the beauty of this fruit shows. This site is way up in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA, surrounded by dense forest. The wines from GR are deep and brooding and will reward those that wait. Serious aging capabilities for the wines from this vineyard.
Temperance Hill is our newest addition. Organically farmed by Dai Crisp, this is one of the most special vineyards in Oregon. He literally wrote the books that I referenced above. There are accolades all around for Temperance Hill and Dai Crisp. I won’t even pretend to be a talented enough writer to describe the impact of the site and the man. Rocky soils, high elevation and exposure to the afternoon winds straight off the Pacific give the wines profound identity.
We had a change in our source of Syrah in 2021. Management of Lewis Vineyard changed hands and the fruit was sold to another winery. We went next door to Lonnie Wright’s home vineyard of The Pines and he agreed to sell us a few tons. Very excited to get to keep working with a legendary guy like Lonnie. I think the Mill Creek area is a perfect place to grow beautiful, nuanced Syrah.
Our 2021 vintage is sold out.