Vineyard Configuration
The VSP trellis configuration for the vineyard is 5 ft row spacing with over 10,000 Pinot Noir vines spaced 2 ft apart. This results in a very high-density vineyard that might be one of the highest density planted vineyards in North America. This high density results in vines that are not overly vigorous and have shorter canopies that need to be pruned back accordingly to a lower bud count during the winter.
The remaining varietals which make up remaining 5000 vines are planted at 4 to 5ft spacing.
Because the west facing vineyard is situated at the higher end of the valley and slopes gently west, it receives the maximum amount of sunlight possible as the vineyard is bathed in sunlight from when the sun rises over the Cascade Mountains to the East and then sets of the Olympic Mountains to the West.
One way to have the biological terroir of the vineyard imparted onto the grape clusters is to have an extremely low fruiting wire, which in our case is approximately 12” off the ground of our no-till soil. This allows the yeast and natural fungi found in the flora and fauna of the land to be part of the grape clusters surface when harvested. What you taste is what you get from the vineyard!
Farming Practices
No pesticides and no herbicides allowed, because of this we’ve become extremely good at weed whacking, we’re weed whacking ninjas!
We use compost created on site along with cover crops of legumes, wild carrots and other natural plants to replenish the soil with nutrients, carbon, and humus. With the adjacent cattle farm, hey fields, conifer forests, and wetlands, there are many helpful insects that live in the vineyard and help control pests.
As the growing season changes to the dryer ripening period of the vintage, the dryer clay soil with its poor cation exchange capacity combined with the root stock of the grafted vines and the high density of the vineyard, the vines really struggle to keep producing fructose and glucose late into the ripening period. As a farmer it’s a delicate balance to farm the vines in a way not let them shut down but keep the leaves green and producing sugars yet still let the vines struggle enough under these conditions to produce the right hormonal changes that result in producing the best flavor compounds in the grapes.
Want to know more?
If you would like to know more or have any question please, please, please do contact our winemaker Darrin so he can describe the vintage, farming techniques and practices, or any other questions regarding the vineyard or wine. Here is a direct line that you can call or text: 360-860-1759. Please don’t hesitate to contact him, it’s one of the main parts of his job and he really enjoys hearing from you.
