Diary Of Start-Up Winemaker: Year Four With A Vineyard

2011 marks the fifth anniversary of our little vineyard on the frontier. It's been five l-o-n-g years since we took the plunge and transformed a steep and distinct hillside out in the middle of wild, windy Oregon wheat country into a vineyard going on its 4th vintage, to make wine like no other from only the grapes we grow.

Can that be right? We planted in 2006; at the end of our third growing year in 2008 we had our first harvest; then 2009, 2010, and holding our breath for 2011, which is our 6th growing year. Yes. This will be, if all goes well, our 4th harvest. We thought you might enjoy a tiny peek in on those five years, for what happened along the way—to us and to our land—is as much a part of the wine as the grapes we make it from. Each day this week I'll add a year, so you won't get overwhelmed and want to run for the hills, the way we want to, at times. Hold on! Here we go.

2006: The Planting and the Big Freeze is found here.

2007: Summer of Short-Lived Joy, the Big Fish, and the Rift is found here.

2008 : The Fight for Our Land, Sam is Born, and Our First Vintage is found here.

 

2009 : The Range Fire that Could've Taken It All, But All-in-All Not a Bad Year

It is now our fourth growing year and Scott seems to be acclimating more and more to the rhythm of a vineyard at a distance, particularly the juggle between his day job and new role as a father. It is not easy. Leroy, our old-time cowboy vineyard consultant is now gone from the picture, and we are saddened by this beyond all measure. Health issues have claimed him, and although still on the planet, he is not the man we used to know. Soon we don't even know where he is.  

In the vineyard, Scott invests in bird netting to fix the bird issues; we have to ensconce the entire producing acreage in a net. It's quite an endeavor. And we put in owl and kestrel houses, to attract birds of prey to help us keep the songbirds and rodents down.   

Sam turned one that year, and the night before his birthday we got a phone call: a range fire out in wheat ground had spread and was in our vineyard. We were speechless, and helpless, so far away in Portland. Thankfully, the adjoining land owner, the "rift" farmer who called to relay the news, was the only one who went in to fight it. It went three rows in and stopped.

The rest of the summer, particularly August and September, were very hot, and as the grapes ripened, we wondered (and worried) about whether the fruit, our hopeful second harvest, would take on any smoke smells. How the heck would we deal with smoky wine if that's what happened? (It's always something.) Scott spoke to an expert, who told him the physiology of the grapes was too early to take on smoke smells, so we let that concern rest.

Stephanie was "coming back," finding her own voice and role in a dream venture (the wine) that was not hers, and finding her "mama shoes" actually fit. As the New Year approached and we reflected on 2009, we felt that all in all, despite the range fire, we were happy the stress of the legal battle had dissipated, and were able to come up with a Top-Ten List for our blog, The Uncultivated Life. 

Stay tuned tomorrow for 2010 : The Big Release and Wine Hustle. 

 

With a vineyard planted in the "unproven" wilds of wheat country outside The Dalles, Ore., Scott Elder and Stephanie LaMonica struggle to promote their label, The Grande Dalles, and make a go of selling their wine. From the start, the couple has set out to do things their own way, with the belief that staying out of the crowd is better than being lost in it. These posts share their ups and downs.