Our Vineyards
Nothing is more important in making great wine than the
terroir of the vineyard. A primary element of terroir is the soil and the
history of the vineyard soils in the Columbia Valley of Eastern Washington is
a fascinating one. They are the effects of the Ice Age floods that occurred
15,000 to 20,000 years ago. The below story is summarized from an article by
Andy Perdue in the Fall, 2005 issue of the Wine Press Northwest
magazine.
At the end of
the Ice Age, part of the Cordilleran ice sheet crept down into Idaho. This
lobe of glacial ice blocked the Clark Fork River creating Glacial Lake
Missoula that covered western Montana. Eventually, this ice dam failed setting
loose a 500-foot-high wall of water that swept southwest across Eastern
Washington at 60 mph. These floods were equal to 10 times the instantaneous
flows of all the rivers in the world combined. After this first dam broke, the
glacier continued its march south, blocking up the Clark Fork River again and
the entire process repeated itself another 80 to 100 times every 50 to 75
years. Each time, more gravel, sand and silt was washed south, shaping today’s
Washington wine country. Since the end of the Ice Age, wind has continued to
shape the landscapes of the Columbia Valley. The winds blow from the southwest
adding a top layer of sand and silt to create the perfect terroir for premium
wine grapes.
Champoux Vineyard
is one of the oldest vineyards in the
Columbia Valley. Formerly known as Mercer Ranch, Champoux Vineyard
provides us with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from the 24-year-old block # 2 and
the 14-year-old Baby Poux block.
We
began our association with this vineyard in 1989 – the year we started our
winery and the year Paul Champoux became the vineyard manager. He later
purchased the vineyard as the general partner with 5 other wineries. This
vineyard has always had a reputation for producing classic Cabernet Sauvignon
and is now also producing exceptional Cabernet Franc and Merlot.
Visit the Chateau
Champoux website at http://www.geocities.com/chateaucr/
Charbonneau Vineyard
is a beautiful site overlooking the Snake River and is another old vineyard by
Washington State standards. We have been buying Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot
from Mickey Witherspoon since 1990. Because it is a cooler site, the grapes
will often ripen at lower sugar levels, producing softer wines that blend well
with the more structured wines from the other vineyards.
Ciel du Cheval
Vineyard is
in the tiny but highly acclaimed Red Mountain appellation and is named after
the Horse Heaven Hills that lie just to the south. Owner, Jim Holmes,
pioneered the planting of wine grapes in this appellation. We've seen the
quality from this vineyard steadily improve as he continues to discover the
best viticultural practices for his site. His grapes consistently produce
dark, structured wines with intense fruit and mineral flavors. We are fortunate to receive
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot from vines up to
20 years old.
Pepper Bridge,
is
in the Walla Walla
appellation and is a showpiece
vineyard that provides us with Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.
The vineyard uses cutting edge technology on
its irrigation and weather systems. Weather data, temperature, humidity, wind,
and sun energy units, are recorded around the clock and the data is downloaded
to computer by phone line. Over sixty moisture-measuring points are spread
throughout the farm and moisture is data logged once an hour, 24 hours per
day.
The soils in this vineyard are Walla Walla Silt
Loam, which is a wind-blown glacial loess that is young and full of minerals.
This silt loam contains one-third sand and is very free draining.
Visit the Pepper
Bridge website at http://www.pepperbridge.com/
Sagemoor Family of Vineyards.
We buy merlot from the Bacchus and Dionysus vineyards which are located on a
beautiful site that slopes down to the Columbia River. This site
produces exceptionally dark merlot with good acidity. From the Weinbau
vineyard in Mattawa, we buy Cabernet Franc that produces a wine with delicious
fruit and lovely fragrance.
Dineen
Vineyard. This
vineyard is located on the highest point in the town of Zillah, which is in
the Yakima Valley appelation. This site is relatively cool, which allows
the Cabernet Sauvignon to ripen slowly and retain its acid.
Last updated November 23, 2005
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