Fifteen years ago, our winemaker and co-founder, Joe Wright, came to Oregon. An avid fisherman and outdoorsman, Joe was lured by the towering volcanic mountains and rugged rivers of the Pacific Northwest. His winemaking career began at Willamette Valley Vineyards, where he tutored under Joe Dobbs for seven years. With a straight forward and earthy style, Joe is totally immersed in all aspects of creating his dream Pinot from the facility he personally designed for just this purpose.
Our 18,000 sq ft. winery is located in downtown Corvallis, which is considered to be the heart of the Willamette Valley. Joe designed the facility to produce twenty thousand (20,000) cases of quality Pinot Noir wine per year. Our harvests in 2002 and 2003 were limited to 5,500 cases,8000 cases in 2004, 14,000 cases in 2005, and 18,000 cases in 2006. With the exception of the Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, Joe ages his Pinot Noir in French oak barrels, using from sixty to one hundred percent new oak each year for the different blends.