French Creek Vineyard

French Creek Vineyard was established in 1980 with the planting of 10 acres of Wente Clone Chardonnay. We contract 2 acres every year, and those grapes go into The Enchantress. This vineyard sits at the top of a gentle south facing slope, and is planted in wind blown loess with a thick layer of caliche that sits on fractured basalt. One of the coolest geological features is a Missoula flood erratic that sits just below the vineyard in a pasture. An iceberg floated down stream during one of the Missoula flood events and deposited its contents on this site 10-15,000 years ago! Our good friend and vineyard manager of this site is Damon LaLande, one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet!

Les Collines Vineyard

Les Collines Vineyard is located on the Eastern slopes of the Walla Walla Valley, in the foothills of the Blue Mountains. It is a cooler site in the valley and receives more moisture as well. We have 2 blocks of Syrah that we source from Les Collines, both of which usually end up in the Levitation Syrah. Block 23 is lower in the vineyard, with very deep loess soils, and typically sets a tiny crop. It is planted to the traditional VSP trellising. Block 50 is higher up the hill, and has a modified, minimally pruned sprawl canopy very unique to Walla Walla. In certain vintages we will bottle a very special wine called “Off He Goes” in memory of Trey’s mentor, Eric Dunham. We always pick the blocks separately and use quite a bit of whole cluster (100% with the Block 50). It is also one of the prettiest sites in the valley.

Lewis Vineyard

Lewis Vineyard is located on the south-facing upper slopes of the Rattlesnake Hills in the Yakima Valley and sits at 1270 feet elevation. We have a 4 acre block of Syrah that we have been working with since 2007 (and Trey has worked with this vineyard since 2000). It produces a gorgeous, red-fruit slathered Syrah (think freshly picked raspberries and cherries) with notes of bacon fat and exotic spices, and because it’s a cool site, the wines always retains their acidity. It’s one of the main components of the Levitation Syrah. In certain vintages we produce a wine (bottled in magnum only) called “The Flip Side”, and it is 100% Lewis Syrah. The vineyard is planted in very deep loam soils, with great drainage for moisture and root establishment. We typically pick this vineyard in mid October.

Red Mountain Vineyard

Red Mountain Vineyard is located within the Red Mountain AVA, one of Washington State's warmest AVAs. It is known for producing big, structured red wines with copious amounts of tannin, minerality, and fresh red fruits. We source 6 acres of fruit from this vineyard, established in the mid 1990's. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot are all sourced to go into our flagship Cabernet, The Illusionist, as well as our flagship blend, The Archimage. As mentioned before, this site is one of the warmest that we work with. The soils are a complex mix of Missoula flood deposits, wind blown loess, and caliche.

Elene's Block (Phinny Hill Vineyard)

Elene's Block, our five acre Estate block in Phinny Hill Vineyard, is located in the heart of the Horse Heaven Hills AVA, across the road and uphill from Champoux Vineyard. Though relatively young, it consistently provides us each vintage with some of the most varietally-correct Cabernet and Cabernet Franc grapes in the cellar. The vineyard is managed by Brandon Beightol and his family, farmers in the region for several generations. The soils are Malga and gravelly fine loam, have great drainage, and provide rich minerals for a consistently even crop.

Stoney Vine Vineyard

Stoney Vine Vineyard is our Estate Vineyard located in the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA. It is an 18.5 acre planting of Syrah (3 clones). We produce The Psychedelic Syrah from this remarkable site. The vineyard is growing in the ancient Walla Walla River bed, which is made up predominantly of basalt cobbles that were washed down out of the Blue Mountains over thousands and thousands of years. As the river shifted, it left these cobbles (100-300 feet deep in certain areas) deposited within the valley. This area has been growing tree fruits since the first settlers came into the valley in the 1800's, as well as grapes. The first commercial plantings of grapes were established in the late 1990's, and now this area is one of the most desirable places in Walla Walla.

The wines that come off of Stoney Vine Vineyard are very savory, with notes of game, olives, iodine, minerality, and plums. Perfectly suited for Syrah, we use some of it for The Levitation, and our best barrels go into The Psychedelic.

Upland Vineyard

Upland Vineyard is essentially a monopole, its own vineyard within the Snipes Mountain AVA. Todd Newhouse farms this unique vineyard site for our Grenache that goes into The Sorceress. The block where the Grenache is farmed is planted on a fairly steep incline, on a south facing slope. The soils consist of a combination of the ancient Columbia River cobbles and wind blown loess and loam. Driving into the vineyard, you pass dramatic road cuts that highlight the river cobbles, soils that were dramatically shifted upwards by tectonic activity hundreds of thousands of years ago. Upland sits on this anticline, basking in the sun. It is one of the warmest AVAs in Washington State, perfectly suited for Grenache.

Ziggy Stardust Block (Elevation Vineyard)

The Ziggy Stardust Estate Block of Elevation Vineyard is our newest acquisition to our portfolio of vineyards. It is located up the North Fork of the Walla Walla River, and is a true microclimate in the Walla Walla Valley. It sees very different weather patterns than the majority of the valley. More rain, extreme heat, but moderated highs and lows, it has more frost free days than the rest of Walla Walla. Planted all to Syrah, this extremely steep, rocky vineyard is planted at meter by meter spacing. which is roughly 4200 plants for just one acre of grapes. The vines and posts had to be jackhammered into the pure, fractured basalt just to be established! Our first crop was in 2016. The wine is called Spiders From Mars, and it something special for Syrah lovers!

WeatherEye Vineyard

WeatherEye Vineyard is one of the most ambitious vineyard projects in the United States. But don’t take it from us, here is an excerpt from Alder Yarrow of Vinography from an article written in 2002.

“Mark my words: the greatest wines Washington State has ever produced will come from one of the most ambitious vineyard projects I have ever seen in the United States. And when I say “will come,” what I mean is now is the time to get on the mailing lists for these wines (or go find them at your local specialty retailer) because they’re about to become some of the most sought-after wines made in Washington State, and perhaps the country.”

We are fortunate to work with 3 blocks of Grenache from this VERY special site. Some of it ends up in our “Sorceress” Grenache, and some of it ends up in our single vineyard cuvee called “Higher Ground”. Ryan Johnson is the vineyard manager of this remarkable site. Make no mistake about it, the grapes that come out of these blocks are truly special. Please do yourself a favor and pick up a bottle when you can!