In the News

November, 2006: A Bountiful Harvest, Finally!

It’s late fall, and Assistant Winemaker Jim Esper is spending most of each workday shoveling pomace (grape skins, seeds, and mush) out of fermentation tanks and into half-ton bins, then dumping them into the press to produce some of the nicest press wine we’ve tasted in a number of years.  While it’s not the most exciting work (as Jim reminds us), it does signal that the light at the end of the harvest tunnel is growing more visible every day. Fall rains are only now just starting to show up, and we need it, for the summer and fall have been quite dry and the earth has been looking mighty parched.

But that’s not always so bad when you’re trying to ripen Pinot noir.  In fact, the fall season started out a “nail biter,” with nearly three weeks of overcast, showery weather in September. Just when we were beginning to wonder whether we were going to see the sun again before next spring, a beautiful Indian summer began, with warm sunny days and clear, cold nights.

The last few, crucial weeks of weather prior to harvest reminded us a bit of the 2002 vintage (still one of our favorites). As is often the case, patience (in terms of waiting to pick until each vineyard block was fully ripe) was a key attribute this year, for the best flavors in our Pinot noir did not develop until quite late in the ripening process.

We’re very excited by what we’re tasting in many of our fermenters – bold, rich flavors, complemented by structure that is well-balanced for the intensity of the underlying wines.  Even sections of our six vineyards that do not normally impress us have beautiful, pure fruit, and some blocks are showing downright stunning flavors and beautiful, supple textures.

Finally, every block in every vineyard – even the late blocks in our high-elevation Chestnut Hill Vineyard, ripened completely this year, and we are most thankful for that. More pertinent to you, our readers and customers, is the fact that we’ll have (finally!) more than our usual tiny quantities of Pinot noir to sell in a bit more than a year.

July, 2006 - Lemelson Vineyard Hires a New Winemaker

In July, we welcomed new Winemaker Anthony King and his family to Oregon. Anthony comes to us from Acacia Winery, a major Pinot noir and Chardonnay producer from Carneros, in the cool-climate region of the Napa Valley.  Prior to working in wine production, Anthony was the wine writer for the Austin Chronicle in Austin, Texas.

Anthony received his Masters Degree in Viticulture and Enology from the nation’s premier school in the field, the University of California at Davis. Prior to working as Winemaker at Acacia, Anthony was Assistant Winemaker and Vineyard Manager. A Texas native, Anthony and his wife Kara have two children and live in McMinnville.