Oregon producer secures prime vineyard

One of Oregon’s oldest wine producers, Adelsheim Vineyard, has expanded its holdings with the purchase of a 59-acre site in the Chehalem Mountains AVA.

The Bryan Creek vineyard (photo credit: Kent Derek Studio)

The deal includes the 20-acre Bryan Creek vineyard, a major source of grapes for a number of Adelsheim wines, including its Elizabeth’s Reserve Pinot Noir.

Although originally planted by Adelsheim in 1989 and managed by its team since then, until now the vineyard has been owned by Jess and Joy Howell. However, after Jess passed away three years ago, his family decided to put the property up for sale this spring.

“We are extremely pleased to be able to acquire the ownership of this site,” said president and co-founder David Adelsheim of the acquisition. “This will allow us to upgrade the current plantings and add as much as an additional 15 acres of new vineyards.”

He also noted the increasingly pressing need for Oregon producers to safeguard their grape supply as international interest in the state grows. “In this period of major vineyard acquisition by some very large wineries, it is a very important step for us to have the security of owning one of our best estate sites,” remarked Adelsheim.

Meanwhile Adelsheim Vineyards’ winemaker Dave Paige emphasised the value of this particular corner of the Willamette Valley as a source of high quality, distinctive grapes.

“The wines produced from this cool site have distinct mineral flavours that are unique in our estate vineyard portfolio,” he outlined. “It has rich, deep volcanic soils that provide moisture throughout the growing season, and an excellent southern slope.”

This latest purchase joins Adelsheim’s existing vineyard holdings of 223 acres across 10 different sites. In total the winery, which was established in 1971, currently produces around 40,000 cases each year.