To create an AVA (American Viticultural Area) it takes years of climate, soil, watershed, and historical research along with the cooperation of a diverse group of people to get it over the finish line. In other words, it is no easy feat to define a unique growing area. Having been around the process in my…
Not long after I arrived at Pike Road in February 2018, we released our 2016 Pinot Noir from Fairsing Vineyard. The wine was interesting and delicious, but a bit shy at first. As it aged over the following year or two, it blossomed into one of my favorites from our Single Vineyard line-up. I kept…
We get fruit from some super-star vineyards of the Willamette Valley – well-established names and reputations like Shea, Temperance Hill, and Zenith. Winemakers love to work with these benchmark sites, but sometimes the real fun is the discovery of something relatively unknown and being on the cutting edge of something new. Xander Taryn Vineyard is…
La Dolce Vita Vineyards – Passionate owners aspiring to greatness! A textbook Oregon spring day was the perfect time to get out of the office and explore one of the small, family-owned vineyards where we source our grapes. As a red-tailed hawk screamed above, we jumped on a quad with Scott Hildebrandt, owner of La…