Objectives After reading this chapter, you should be able to

Objectives

• After reading this chapter, you should be able to

• display an understanding of the development of the wine industry in Washington and Oregon
• describe the differences between the grape-growing regions of Washington and Oregon and the types of wine that they produce.
• compare and contrast the risks from weather in Washington and Oregon.

Introduction

• Second only to California, the Pacific Northwest is one of the nation’s most important wine- producing regions.

• Oregon and Washington’s wine-growing regions range from 400 to 600 miles north of California’s Napa and Sonoma appellations.

• This places them approximately at the same latitude as the Bordeaux and Burgundy regions of France.

Introduction (continued)

• Oregon and Washington combined account for about 4 percent of the United States production of wine.

• Washington’s vineyards are predominantly in the drier eastern part of the state, and several large producers make up most of the wine.

• The Oregon vineyards, in contrast, are located primarily in the state’s western half, and small wineries and vineyards predominate.

Washington State

• After California, Washington State is the nation’s second largest producer of table wine, making nearly seven times as much wine as Oregon.

• In recent decades it has undergone rapid growth.

• From 1993 to 2003, wine grape acreage increased more than 250 percent and the number of wineries increased 300 percent.

• Chardonnay, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon are widely planted.

Washington State Wine— Historical Perspective

• The state’s first grapes were planted by members of the Hudson’s Bay Company at Fort Vancouver in 1825.

• This is not much later than the winemaking began in California; however, the Washington industry developed at a much slower pace.

• In eastern Washington the first grapes were planted in the Walla Walla Valley around 1859.

• Grapes grew particularly well in eastern Washington because its dry climate helps to prevent rot and mildew.

Washington State Wine— Historical Perspective (continued)

• At the turn of the century, the commercial industry began to develop in the Yakima Valley.

• In 1905, Stone House Winery was founded in the middle of the Yakima Valley by Elvert Blaine.

• He hired a French Canadian winemaker named Paul Charvet, and soon they were using both traditional vinifera varieties as well as Concord grapes to produce wine.

The Concord variety is native to the East Coast of the United States.

• The Concord variety is native to the East Coast of the United States.

• Because of their tolerance to the Northwest's cold winters, native American grapes from the East Coast like Concord and vinifera-native American hybrids such as Isabella became popular.

Prohibition and Rebirth

• Prohibition had much the same effect on Washington’s wine industry as it had in California.

• Although wineries were devastated by the law, vineyards flourished producing grapes for juice and home winemakers.

• After Prohibition was repealed in 1933, the state set up the Washington State Liquor Control Board to regulate the consumption of alcohol.

• It did this by controlling the distribution and sale of wine and spirits through state-owned stores.

Prohibition and Rebirth (continued)

• Although the goal of the state stores was to limit consumption by being the only source for consumers to purchase alcohol, they also wanted to encourage the wine business in the state.

• They did this by giving a significant tax break on the wines that were produced from grapes grown in Washington.

• The first winery started after repeal was St. Charles Winery on Stretch Island in Puget Sound.

• In 1937 there were 42 wineries operating in the state, but just five years later there were only 26.

Prohibition and Rebirth (continued)

• The production of Washington wine declined in the decades following World War II, and consumption declined as well.

• The quality of Washington wines during this time was generally substandard, and there was little incentive to improve because the protectionist laws limited competition.

• This trend first began to change in the early 1960s; Washington State University began conducting research on winemaking and vinifera grapes in eastern Washington.

A Growing Industry

• In 1962 a group of amateur winemakers formed the Associated Vintners.

• The group soon owned a winery and vineyard land and concentrated on producing premium wine from vinifera grapes.
• Associated Vintners was renamed Columbia Winery in 1983.

A Growing Industry (continued)

• In 1967 one of the state’s largest wineries, American Wine Growers, hired California Winemaker André Tchelistcheff as a consultant and renamed their brand Ste. Michelle Vintners.

• Ste. Michelle was purchased by US Tobacco in 1974 and renamed Chateau Ste. Michelle.
• The new ownership opened a number of wineries under the corporate name Stimson Lane Vineyards & Estates.
• By 2003 they were producing almost two-thirds of the wine bottled in the state.

A Growing Industry (continued)

• In 1969 the Washington State legislature removed its tax on wine imported from out of the state.

• Increased competition from out of state wineries forced producers to improve their product.

• In the late 1960s more than 20 times more vineyard acreage was planted to Concord than vinifera.

A Growing Industry (continued)

• As the consumption of table wines grew, Washington State wineries started producing better wines, and development dramatically increased.

• Growers and vintners shifted efforts towards making wines from vinifera grapes that were more acceptable to consumers.

A Growing Industry (continued)

• In the early 1980s two trade organizations were formed to help promote the wine industry in the state:

• In 1981 Washington Wine Institute was formed to promote the business.
• The Washington Wine Commission was created in 1983, focused on the marketing and promotion of Washington wine.

Washington Wine Today

• By 2002 Washington had 28,000 acres of vinifera vineyards and more than 240 wineries.

• Today Washington State is the second largest producer of wine after California.

• The cost of vineyard development in Eastern Washington is much less than it is in California.

• This allows Washington wineries to sell their product at a reasonable price.
• In recent years it has also become known for making high-quality wines.

The Wine Regions of Washington

• Washington is split into its eastern and western halves by the Cascade Mountain Range.

• The western half is more urbanized and has the rainy weather and thick forests.

• The eastern half is sparsely populated, with a dry climate.

• The dry weather is due to the rain shadow that is caused by the Cascades blocking storms coming in from the Pacific.

The Wine Regions of Washington (continued)

• The rainfall averages about 8 inches per year, one-fifth of the rainfall on the coast.

• This is not enough to support vines; therefore, the majority of the state’s vineyards are irrigated.
• The ideal climate combined with irrigation makes Eastern Washington one of the country’s most productive agricultural regions for many crops.

• Ninety-nine percent of the wine grapes in Washington are grown east of the Cascades.

Eastern Washington is also marked by cold winters with occasional subzero weather.

• Eastern Washington is also marked by cold winters with occasional subzero weather.

• Bud break is delayed, beginning about three weeks after it does in the Napa Valley.

• In spite of the late start, harvest takes place about the same time as in Napa.
• This is due to the more northern latitude having longer days during the growing season.

The cold winters are also responsible for winterkill.

• The cold winters are also responsible for winterkill.

• If the temperature falls below 5°F, it can cause damage to the dormant buds and grapevines.
• This weather does not happen every year, and when it does, it has a greater affect on yield than quality.

• Although phylloxera was discovered in the state in 1943, it has not increased its range.

• Today almost all of the state’s vineyards are own-rooted and grown without the use of a rootstock.

The Columbia Valley

• The Columbia Valley AVA is made up of the drainage of the Columbia River in the eastern half of Washington State as well as a small portion of north central Oregon.

• Established in 1987, it is one of the largest AVAs in the country, encompassing nearly 11 million acres with 17,000 acres planted to grapes.

The Columbia Valley (continued)

• The Columbia Valley has three AVAs as well as a number of sub-appellations that are not official AVAs located within its boundaries.

• These appellations combined produce more than 98 percent of the state’s grapes with the most popular varieties being Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, White Riesling, and Syrah in order.

Yakima Valley

• The Yakima Valley AVA is formed by the watershed of Yakima River.

• It runs for 60 miles southeast from the town of Yakima along the Yakima River.

• Established in 1983, it was Washington’s first AVA.

• It contains just over one-third of Washington’s vineyard acreage and a number of both small and large wineries.

• Chardonnay is the most widely planted variety followed by Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and White Riesling.

Red Mountain

• Red Mountain was established in 2001 and is Washington’s smallest AVA.

• It lies above the valley floor on the western face of Red Mountain on the eastern edge of the Yakima Valley.

• The appellation covers 4,000 acres and lies within both the Yakima and Columbia Valley AVAs.

• The first vines were planted in 1975, and currently there are 700 acres of vineyards.

• Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are the most widely planted varieties, followed by Syrah and Sangiovese.

The Walla Walla Valley

• The Walla Walla Valley lies at the southeastern edge of the Columbia Valley Appellation, and the southern portion extends into Oregon.

• It has a slightly warmer climate than most of the Columbia Valley AVA and receives more rainfall.

• This allows for some of the vineyards to be dry-farmed, meaning grown without irrigation.

• In recent years the Walla Walla Valley has experienced dramatic growth.

• Today it is the home of more than 40 small wineries, more than double the amount it had in 1999.

The Puget Sound Region

• The Puget Sound appellation contrasts in almost every way to Eastern Washington.

• It has a maritime climate and experiences much more rain and less prolonged freezes than the interior of the state.

• In spite of the fact there are few vineyards, Puget Sound has more than 30 wineries, including some of the state's largest producers.

• Most of the wineries source their grapes from east of the mountains to make their wines.

The Columbia Gorge Appellation

• Established in 2004, the Columbia Gorge AVA is Washington’s newest appellation.

• It extends on either side of the Columbia River Gorge into Oregon and Washington.
• The west is cool and wet with a climate that is similar to Oregon’s Willamette Valley, and the east side is warm and dry like the Columbia Valley.
• There are approximately 300 acres of vineyards split between the Oregon and Washington sides.

Oregon State

• Set in between California and Washington State, Oregon is the country’s fourth largest producer of wine.

• Pinot Noir makes up over one-third of the vineyard acreage and is the state’s most important variety.

• Like Washington State, the industry has had tremendous expansion in recent years.

• In spite of the growth, the majority of the producers remain very small, with more than half making less than 5,000 cases per year.

Oregon State (continued)

• Although the state bottles only a fraction of the wine that Washington does, it has even more wineries, with more than 300.

• The limited production of the wineries also means that Oregon wines usually command higher prices than those of Washington State.

Oregon State Wine— Historical Perspective

• In the mid-1800s, settlers were attracted to Oregon’s rich agricultural land, and many came to settle the area by crossing the Oregon Trail.

• One of them, Henderson Luelling, was a horticulturist and planted Oregon’s first grapevines in the Willamette Valley in 1847.

• One of his wines won a medal at the California State Fair in 1859.

• By the 1850s viticulture was also being developed in southern Oregon. Peter Britt established a winery named Valley View Vineyard.

Oregon State Wine— Historical Perspective (continued)

• In the 1880s, two brothers named Edward and John Von Pessls came up from California to the Umpqua Valley region of southern Oregon.

• They planted cuttings of Zinfandel and other vinifera varieties obtained in Napa.

• To the north in the Willamette Valley, Earnest Reuter was making wine out of white vinifera grapes and won a gold medal at the 1904 world’s fair in St. Louis.

Although early vintners enjoyed some successes, viticulture in Oregon never developed to the extent it did in California.

• Although early vintners enjoyed some successes, viticulture in Oregon never developed to the extent it did in California.

• Most of the state’s agriculture was located in the Willamette Valley, which growers considered too damp and cool for wine grapes.

• What little industry existed was wiped out by Prohibition in 1920.

After Prohibition, a handful of small wineries did exist.

• After Prohibition, a handful of small wineries did exist.

• Most produced fruit wines from berries and other crops that were grown on their own farms.
• Most of these wines were consumed close to home and rarely left the state.

• In 1938, there were 28 bonded wineries in Oregon; in 1958, nearly all were closed.

The Beginning of an Industry

• In the 1960s winemakers began to make table wine from traditional wine varieties.

• In southern Oregon, Richard Sommer began Hill Crest Vineyard.
• In the Willamette Valley, Charles Coury began growing vinifera where Ernest Reuter had grown grapes in the 1880s.
• In 1966 David Lett of the Eyrie Vineyard Winery planted Pinot Noir vines in the Dundee Hills region of the Willamette Valley.

The Beginning of an Industry (continued)

• Over the next two decades, Pinot Noir became Oregon’s most important wine.

• Pinot Noir can be difficult to produce.
• This makes it well suited to the handmade, labor-intensive techniques used at Oregon’s small vineyards and wineries.
• In 1975 Oregon State University in Corvallis began to import Burgundy Pinot Noir clones best suited for table wine production.

Oregon Wine Law

• In 1977 Oregon enacted some of the strictest labeling and composition laws in the United States.

• A wine labeled “Estate” must be grown within 5 miles of the winery.
• The composition of a wine must be at least 90 percent of the varietal listed on the label.
• Generic European terms such as Champagne and Burgundy cannot be used.

Oregon Wine Today

• From 1992 to 2002, the number of wineries in Oregon grew from 78 to 250, and Oregon ranked fourth in production after New York State.

• Small independent producers are common, and the largest winery bottles only 125,000 cases a year.

• Pinot Noir is the most popular grape being 54 percent of vineyard acres.

• The best-known Oregon white wines are Pinot Gris and Chardonnay.

• Phylloxera has spread slowly; consequently, half of the state’s vines are still own-rooted.

The Wine Regions of Oregon

• Oregon has eleven AVAs, eight are located west of the Cascade Mountains.

• Of the eight western appellations, half were recently established in 2004 and 2005.
• The western appellations have more of a maritime influence on their climate and lie entirely within the state.

• Inland are the Columbia Gorge, Columbia River, and Walla Walla Valley appellations.

• These appellations are shared with Washington.

The Willamette Valley

• The Willamette Valley Appellation lies in the northwest of the state and is Oregon’s most prolific region for agriculture.

• Established in 1984 it is Oregon’s largest and contains nearly 75 percent of the vineyards in the state.
• The appellation is formed by the watershed of the Willamette River and extends 125 miles north to south.
• It is cooler and wetter than Napa and Sonoma with a similar pattern of wet winters and dry summers.

The Willamette Valley (continued)

• Most wineries are located just to the southwest of Portland in Yamhill County, particularly between the towns of Newberg and McMinnville.

• Yamhill County alone has one-third of the state’s vineyards and grows 45 percent of Oregon’s Pinot Noir.
• This area has more than 50 wineries, including some of the state’s most well-known producers.
• Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris are the most widely planted varieties.

The Willamette Valley (continued)

• Many vineyards are planted on the hillsides of the Dundee and Eola Hills.

• The hillsides provide good drainage for both water and cold air during the winter.
• The northern Willamette Valley is home to the sub-appellations of Dundee Hills, Yamhill-Carlton, and the McMinnville AVAs.

• Although the southern Willamette has less vineyards and wineries, it is home to the state’s largest winery, King Estate.

The Appellations of Southern Oregon

• Southern Oregon is home to three AVAs, the Umpqua, Rogue, and Applegate Valleys.

• Located south of the Willamette Valley these appellations are smaller and lie about the same distance inland.
• Here the coastal mountains are higher, and the region experiences less of a cooling influence from the Pacific Ocean.
• This, coupled with its southerly location, gives the region warmer, drier climate than the Willamette Valley.

The Appellations of Southern Oregon (continued)

• This drier terroir means that there is less concern of early rains affecting the harvest.

• Warmer grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah do well in the Umpqua, Rogue, and Applegate Valleys.

• Together these appellations grow roughly a fifth of Oregon’s wine grapes.

Eastern Oregon

• Eastern Oregon is home to The Columbia Valley and Walla Walla Valley appellations.

• The appellations together have about 1,000 acres of vineyards, roughly 4 percent of Oregon’s total acreage.
• The majority of both appellations lie in Washington State, and the climate is more similar to eastern Washington than the appellations of western Oregon.

Summary

• Although the wines of the Northwest are often eclipsed by the volume of wine made in California, they represent a significant and growing segment of American wine production.

• With Washington State wines, consumers expect good Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot at affordable prices.

• With Oregon wines, customers look for distinctive Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris from wineries with limited production.

• Northwest wineries enjoy a great deal of support in their home states and are becoming better known throughout the rest of the country.