Vignerons - (pronounced, Veen-ye-rōn)
(There is “old French song that says that the best fertilizer in the vineyard is the footprint of the owner.)
Oregon's Willamette Valley is a small-scale wine making environment, reminiscent of the village strewn landscape of Burgundy, where the winemakers who tend their own vines and live next door to their vineyards are called, vēn-ye-rōns
Producing primarily Pino Noir Oregon's Willamette Valley is full of vēn-ye-rōns.
Most of the wineries sit amid their own vines, giving the wine making teams’ total control over their fruit from beginning, to end.
Daily access to their vineyards allows them to respond to changing conditions throughout the year.
It also allows them to work quickly during crush; the fruit is picked and processed the same day.
The wineries goal is to express in their wine the unique character of their place, or ter wahr, to have in the bottle be a direct reflection of what their land gives them."
'The concept of a Veen-ye-rōn, says Gypsy Dancer Estates owner Gary Andrus, 'is someone who grows his grapes, picks his rootstocks, picks his soil (or tehr-wahr), picks his clones, picks his spacing, picks his techniques. L-I-V-E, biodynamic organic, sustainable or 'nuked', using Modern or Historic wine making techniques--and he makes those decisions and executes that decision inside the cellar.
That's because he wants to make the wine that's in his own mind.
It's his wine, the most superlative, or the worst'. The Willamette Valley is full of Veen-ye-rōns.
Today Oregon has a reputation for producing world class wines.
Principal plantings include Pino Noir and Pino Gri. Other reds include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Zinfandel; other whites include – Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blonc, Pino Blonc, Sémillon and Gewürztraminer.
Our selection of tours are designed to encompass the best of Oregon's wine industry.
Packages are intended for independent travel groups.
