Vine to Bottle
Mount Adams, viewed from a hilltop at Red Willow Vineyard, Fall 2010.
All 'Vine to Bottle' photographs by Alan D. Robertson.
Majestic Cabernet Sauvignon at Red Willow Vineyard.
Sampling at Red Willow.
Yakima River, viewed from a knoll at the edge of Artz Vineyard on Red Mountain.
Looking toward Grandview from the vineyards of Boushey, Fall 2010.
Young tempranillo, planted specially for Fall Line at Boushey Vineyard.
The first few ferments of the season, Fall 2010.
An active fermentation, just punched down.
A final step before press, rinsing the freshly hydrated barrels.
Still retaining a bounty of juice, a fermentor half-full of pomace after the free run has been pumped to barrel.
After the free run is pumped, the back-straining work begins: shoveling the pomace from fermentor to press basket.
Into the press basket the still-juicy pomace goes.
Press begins, as the carefully aligned plate starts its journey into the stainless steel cylinder.
As the plate presses onward, the pomace gives up its remaining bounty.
And a steady flow of new wine is gently pumped to barrel.
Marking the end of a phase, the newly fermented wine finds home in French oak barrique.
From fall to spring, now, one of several bottling days, Spring 2011.
A view of the morning crew (and wine to be bottled), from preparation of the empties to packing of the newly filled.
A closer look at the empties, flushed with nitrogen, as they approach the filling carousel.
And now from the other side, the corking and finishing stations.
Newly filled bottles, stacked and awaiting the next and final phase.
The final phase: capsuling, labeling, and packing.
The skill station: spinning the capsules.
The thrill station: applying the labels.
The final touch.
Vineyards
Fall Line Winery purchases fruit under long-term arrangements with a select group of exceptional vineyards and growers in eastern Washington State. (This is the half of the state that lies on the 'dry side' of the Cascade mountain range, which runs north-south from British Columbia to southern Oregon.)
Currently, Fall Line partners with three superb vineyards, all in Washington's first officially designated AVA, Yakima Valley: Artz Vineyard, also part of Washington's smallest AVA, Red Mountain; Boushey Vineyard, in central Yakima Valley; and Red Willow Vineyard, in the very western edge of Yakima Valley. Although all are within the broader Yakima Valley AVA, each vineyard's particular site is very distinct from the others'.
Red Mountain, as Paul Gregutt (Washington Wines & Wineries, 2007, University of California Press) describes, was "sculpted by repeated glacial floods...that deposited massive granite boulders and layered its thin soils with an unusual mix of rock, clay, and mineral. It's a windy place..." and one of the warmest of Washington's AVAs. Fred Artz, the owner/grower of Artz Vineyard, was the long-time manager of the well-known Klipsun Vineyard. In fact, Artz is adjacent to Klipsun on its north side. Artz Vineyard is attractively situated with a slight northerly slope and somewhat more protected from strong western-slope winds. Fall Line has partnered with Artz since 2004. The winery purchases the three principal Bordeaux varietals, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, and merlot. The cabernet franc and merlot form the foundation of Fall Line's Artz Vineyard blend (designated the Red Mountain blend prior to the 2006 vintage); some of the cabernet sauvignon rounds out the Artz blend, and some contributes to Fall Line's Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
Boushey, owned by grower Dick Boushey, is located in the relatively cooler central Yakima Valley. One of Washington's most highly regarded growers, Dick, as Gregutt writes, "is right out of central casting. He looks the part of a Yakima Valley grape grower. Sturdy, plain-spoken, and self-effacing, his cool, weathered gaze and measured words convey an impression of solidity, calm, and fortitude." Fall Line has partnered with Boushey since 2003, when the winery purchased a small volume of cabernet sauvignon planted in 1980. This volume of 'old-block' cabernet grew over the ensuing years. In 2007, Dick planted a block of tempranillo specially for Fall Line. And in 2008 Fall Line expanded its relationship with Boushey even more significantly, signing on for additional blocks of cabernet franc, merlot, and cabernet sauvignon. From the beginning, Boushey's 'old-block' cabernet has been the central component of Fall Line's 100% Cabernet Sauvignon blend. The more recent blocks of Bordeaux varietals compose Fall Line's Boushey Vineyard blend (to be introduced in 2010). And the tempranillo composes the winery's only departure from Bordeaux-style blends (to be unveiled in 2011).
Union Gap, on the southern edge of Yakima, marks the northwestern entrance to the Yakima Valley AVA. The Yakima River is nearby. Describing a road-trip with Master of Wine and renowned winemaker David Lake, Paul Gregutt notes, "Virtually all of the valley's vineyards follow the river as it bends east, but we turned sharply west, directly toward the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Here, at the extreme north-western edge of the Yakima Valley, is one of the prettiest and most unusual vineyards in Washington state..." Red Willow Vineyard, pretty indeed and uniquely situated. Atop one of its several hills sits a beautiful stone chapel, and in the not-very-far distance looms the majestic Mount Adams. The vineyard's high elevation and far western location also put it beyond the reach of the cataclysmic Missoula floods, which so prominently shaped the characteristics of the majority of vineyards in the broader Columbia Valley. Consequently, Red Willow hosts a considerably wider variation of ancient soils. Fall Line initiated its relationship with Red Willow in 2008, contracting for blocks of cabernet franc, merlot, and cabernet sauvignon. Most of this fruit composes a Red Willow Vineyard blend (to be introduced in 2010); some of the cabernet sauvignon contributes to Fall Line's Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
For its first two harvests in 2003 and 2004, Fall Line purchased merlot and then merlot, cabernet franc, and cabernet sauvignon from Destiny Ridge Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA. Horse Heaven Hills comprises a large basalt plateau area, stretching west-to-east from Sunnyside to the Tri-Cities and north-to-south from Interstate 82 (and a steep ridge along the southern boundary of Yakima Valley) to the Columbia River. The southern boundary of Destiny Ridge Vineyard is on a north-facing ridge directly above the Columbia River. For the 2005 through 2007 harvests, Fall Line contracted with Aldercreek Vineyard. Aldercreek is a few miles inland from the Columbia. Its terrain slopes gently southward and is bordered on the north by Alder Canyon. Fruit from Destiny Ridge and Aldercreek compose Fall Line's very distinctive Horse Heaven Hills blends.