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Sokol Blosser Winery | |
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Location | Dayton, Oregon, USA |
Appellation | Oregon |
Other labels | Evolution, Meditrina |
Founded | 1971 |
First vintage | 1977 |
Key people | Susan Sokol Blosser, Bill Blosser, Alison Sokol Blosser, Alex Sokol Blosser |
Cases/yr | ~65,000 |
Known for | Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Rosé |
Varietals | Pinot Noir , Pinot Gris , Riesling , Müller-Thurgau , Chardonnay |
Distribution | All 50 states and 16 countries internationally |
Website | www.sokolblosser.com |
Sokol Blosser Winery is a historic vineyard, tasting room and winery facility located northeast of Dayton, Oregon in the Red Hills of Dundee in Yamhill County. It was founded by Bill Blosser and Susan Sokol Blosser in 1971 in what is now known as the Dundee Hills AVA. Sokol Blosser Winery is family owned and operated by second-generation President Alex Sokol Blosser, and is the 6th largest wine producer in Oregon. [1] Sokol Blosser is considered to be “synonymous with sustainability,” [2] and produces Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Blanc, and proprietary blends Evolution White, Red, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling and a range of other Evolution wines, and small quantities of single block Pinot Noirs, Rosé of Pinot Noir, White Riesling dessert wine, and sparkling wine. In 2023 the Winery introduced red and white Aperitif Wines, produced from a blend of alcohol distilled from their grapes and a blend of herbs.
As one of the pioneering wineries of Oregon, Sokol Blosser Winery has played a key role in developing and shaping the now prominent Oregon wine industry. The first Pinot Noir vines were planted on a 5-acre plot on a former prune orchard in 1971, and the first vintage was produced in 1977. In 1978, they built the first tasting room in Oregon, designed by noted Oregon architect John Storrs. [3]
In 2006, founder Susan Sokol Blosser wrote At Home in the Vineyard: Cultivating a Winery, an Industry, and a Life, a memoir published by University of California Press about the experience of founding the winery. [4] An expanded and revised edition was published in 2017 as The Vineyard Years: A Memoir with Recipes by West Margin Press. [5]
The winery opened a new tasting room in 2013, designed by architect Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture. [3] The Tasting Room received the American Institute of Architects - Northwest and Pacific Region 2013 Design Award [6] and has been written about in numerous architectural publications.
Adjacent vineyard land was purchased in the following years, bringing the estate total to 89 acres. They also lease land in the Eola Hills and in 2021 bought a 65-acre parcel in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA called Kalita Vineyard.
When the Blossers started the vineyards and winery, they had no idea if any of their three children (Nik, Alex, Alison) would be interested in taking over. Alex was the first one to show an interest and studied viticulture in college and worked as a vineyard foreman for another producer. Then, after a stint as a wine salesman, he came full-time to the winery in 1998 to help manage the vineyards and lead sales. While working, he got his MBA at Portland State University and certification from the University of California at Davis in winemaking. Meanwhile, Alison completed college, got an MBA and worked for several startups. Then, she too felt the lure of the winery and came to work in sales and marketing in 2004. After a year of slowly taking over operations, Susan completed the transition from her 25-year management of the company to Alex and Alison as co-presidents in 2008. In 2013 Alex took over as winemaker from Russ Rosner, who retired after 15 years as winemaker. Alex transferred winemaking duties in 2023 to Robin Howell when he took over as President and Alison retired from her Co-President position.
Bill and Susan continue active involvement in the winery, serving on the board of directors and helping out during crush and public events. Nik has also been very involved in the board of directors and major decision making over the years. He also led the creation of an aperitif wine which debuted in 2023.
Nik, Alex and Alison have created a plan to familiarize the third generation (Alexander, Jacob, Avery, Nikolas, Anna, Dario, Luca and Isabelle) with the winery and vineyards, and to enable them to work during the summers and harvest. They have created an internship program for those who graduate from college, if they want further involvement in the winery.
Sokol Blosser Winery has been Certified Organic by the Oregon Department of Agriculture since 2005. In 1996, Sokol Blosser's vineyards were the first to be certified Salmon-Safe, a program launched by the Pacific Rivers Council to publicize products produced without using pesticides and causing runoff that would harm salmon. Sokol Blosser's underground barrel cellar became the first US winery to receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification for an industrial building. [7] At the north end of a main Pinot noir vineyard block is a 24 kW photovoltaic solar panel array, which was installed in 2006 and provides approximately 25% of the Winery's energy needs.
In 2007, Sunset magazine honored both founder Susan Sokol Blosser and Sokol Blosser Winery with their prestigious "Green Winery of the Year" award. [8] Also in 2007, Sokol Blosser Winery was recognized by the City of Portland, Oregon’s Office of Sustainable Development for its commitment to green practices with the “BEST (Businesses for an Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow) Practices for Sustainability—Small Company” award. [9] In 2008, Sokol Blosser Winery was recognized by Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury with a prestigious Oregon Sustainability Award, honoring the winery as an organization that had taken dramatic and comprehensive steps to incorporate sustainability into operations. [10] TreeHugger awarded Sokol Blosser Winery with their Best Green Winery award in their inaugural Best of Green Awards in 2009. [11] The Winery was certified in 2015 as a Certified B Corporation, testifying to its commitment to people, planet and profit. B Corporation awarded the Winery for the third time its Best in the World Environment award in 2021. [12]
Sokol Blosser Winery is a participant in the Carbon Reduction Challenge, an initiative begun by Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski in 2009 as the Carbon Neutral Challenge, with the goal of inspiring businesses to measure and progressively reduce greenhouse gases. The Winery has been ranked multiple times as one of Oregon Business magazine's Top 100 Best Green Companies to Work For. [13]
The Winery publishes a Sustainability Report annually (available on its website).
The Winery's 89 acres of estate vineyards are all USDA certified organic and comprise 14 southeast- and southwest-facing parcels spread over the slopes of the hills. Each of the parcels is named for memorable things that happened on them, such as Goosepen (where we once had a flock of geese) to Peach Tree (which was a former peach orchard) to Concert (where we had an amphitheater where we held concerts in the 1990s) to La Joya (named after the home town in Mexico of Luis Hernandez, our vineyard foreman since 1989). The soils are Jory clay loam in the vineyards lying between approximately 500 and 800 feet elevation, which varies in depth from approximately 1 to 6 feet, and Willakenzie silty clay loam, which varies from about 6 to 10 feet depth and lies between about 200 and 500 feet in elevation.
Pinot Noir is the predominant grape planted and includes the Wadenswil, Pommard, Pinot Droit and the Dijon clones 777, 677, and 115. In addition, there are smaller plantings of Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, White Riesling and Müller-Thurgau. The vineyards were originally planted on their own roots because there was thought to be no phylloxera in Oregon. But, by the 1990s it became evident that phylloxera was slowly invading the vineyards and they were slowly replanted on rootstocks, using cuttings from the original vines.
Depending on the vintage, the Winery produces single-vineyard wines from selected barrels in some blocks, including Goosepen, Old Vineyard, Big Tree, Peach Tree, Twelve Row, Blackberry, Watershed and Orchard.
The Winery leases and farms organically a 20+ acre vineyard called Blossom Ridge in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA. This site is more exposed to the cool westerly winds from the ocean and therefore the grapes ripen later than in the Dundee Hills. This vineyard on Jory soils is planted entirely to Pinot Noir, although the Winery intends to plant Chardonnay in 2022. The grapes from the vineyard are used principally for the Rosé of Pinot Noir and sparkling wines.
In 2021 the Winery purchased the 65-acre Kalita Vineyard (only 23 acres are plantable). The vineyard was about 12 years old and is planted almost entirely to Pinot Noir, with an additional 3 acres of Pinot Meunier in 2024. The soils are Goodin, which is a silty clay loam derived from marine deposits ranging up to about 5 feet deep. The vineyards lie between about 500 and 700 feet elevation with a southerly exposure. This is the first vineyard with non-volcanic soils owned by the Winery and will produce wines distinctly different from the Dundee and Eola-Amity Hills. The overall degree days on this site are similar to the Dundee Hills. The vineyard will be converted to organic farming beginning in 2022.
The construction of the main winery building began in 1976 and the first crush was in 1977. A warehouse was added in 1979. In 2002 the Winery constructed an adjacent underground barrel cellar that was the first winery building to receive the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification as a green building. A storage and shipping fulfillment warehouse was constructed in 2022.
The winery processes approximately 1000 tons per year from its own vineyards and grapes purchased from other growers. The winemaking philosophy emphasizes minimum intervention. The Pinot Noirs destined for single-vineyard designations are gently destemmed and whole-berry fermented in open-top 2.5 ton fermenters using wild yeasts. These Pinot Noirs are barrel-aged in French oak for 14–16 months before bottling. We work with selected barrel makers in France to design barrels best able to bring out the unique characteristics of each Pinot Noir block.
The Winery sells approximately 65,000 cases per year in 50 states and 16 countries. In addition to premium wines sold under the Sokol Blosser label, the winery also produces a line of wines under the Evolution label.
Sokol Blosser wines: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, White Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Noir Rosé and three sparkling wines (Bluebird Cuvée, Blanc de Blanc, and Rosé of Pinot Noir).
Evolution wines: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Lucky No. 9 White (a blend of 9 grapes), Big Time Red, and Riesling.
Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new and developing wine regions, growing Chardonnay is seen as a 'rite of passage' and an easy entry into the international wine market.
Pinot noir, also known as Pinot nero, is a red-wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name also refers to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for pine and black. The word pine alludes to the grape variety having tightly clustered, pinecone—shaped bunches of fruit.
Bacchus is a white wine grape created by viticulturalist Peter Morio at the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding in the Palatinate in 1933. He crossed a Silvaner x Riesling cross with Müller-Thurgau.
New Zealand wine is produced in several of its distinct winegrowing regions. As an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, New Zealand has a largely maritime climate, although its elongated geography produces considerable regional variation from north to south. Like many other New World wines, New Zealand wine is usually produced and labelled as single varietal wines, or if blended, winemakers list the varietal components on the label. New Zealand is best known for its Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, and more recently its dense, concentrated Pinot Noir from Marlborough, Martinborough and Central Otago.
Cooper Mountain Vineyards is an American winery located in Beaverton, Oregon, United States. Started in 1978, the certified organic wine maker produces Pinot noir, Pinot gris, Chardonnay, and Pinot blanc. Located in the Portland metropolitan area, the vineyard is sited on the western slopes of Cooper Mountain, an extinct volcano.
Washington wine is a wine produced from grape varieties grown in the U.S. state of Washington. Washington ranks second in the United States in the production of wine. By 2017, the state had over 55,000 acres (220 km2) of vineyards, a harvest of 229,000 short tons (208,000 t) of grapes, and exports going to over 40 countries around the world from the 940+ wineries located in the state. While there are some viticultural activities in the cooler, wetter western half of the state, the majority (99.9%) of wine grape production takes place in the shrub-steppe eastern half. The rain shadow of the Cascade Range leaves the Columbia River Basin with around 8 inches (200 mm) of annual rain fall, making irrigation and water rights of paramount interest to the Washington wine industry. Viticulture in the state is also influenced by long sunlight hours and consistent temperatures.
The state of Oregon in the United States has established an international reputation for its production of wine, ranking fourth in the country behind California, Washington, and New York. Oregon has several different growing regions within the state's borders that are well-suited to the cultivation of grapes; additional regions straddle the border between Oregon and the states of Washington and Idaho. Wine making dates back to pioneer times in the 1840s, with commercial production beginning in the 1960s.
The history of Oregon wine production stretches back to before the state was incorporated. Settlers to the Oregon Territory planted grapes as early as the 1840s, however the production of wine has only been a significant industry in Oregon since the 1960s. Oregon wines first achieved significant critical notice in the late 1970s; in 2005, the industry sold 1.6 million cases of Oregon vintages with a retail value of US$184.7 million. In 2015, there were 702 wineries and 28,034 acres of vitis vinifera planted.
Auxerrois blanc or Auxerrois Blanc de Laquenexy is a white wine grape prevalent in the French region of Alsace, and is also grown in neighbouring Germany and Luxembourg. It is a full sibling of Chardonnay that is often blended with the similar Pinot blanc.
Bridgeview Vineyard and Winery is one of the largest wineries in Oregon. Located in Cave Junction, Oregon, Bridgeview is noted for its chardonnay, pinot gris, and pinot noir. Its 85-acre (340,000 m2) estate in the Illinois Valley is planted in the European style of dense six-foot row and four-foot vine spacing. Bridgeview also has an 80-acre (320,000 m2) vineyard in the Applegate Valley.
Stony Hill Vineyard is a Napa Valley winery in Saint Helena, California, USA, within the Spring Mountain District AVA. Unusually for Napa Valley, it formerly produced almost exclusively white wine, chiefly Chardonnay. The winery was founded in 1952 and was family-owned until 2018; it is now part of Lawrence Wine Estates, owned by Gaylon Lawrence Jr. and master sommelier Carlton McCoy Jr.
Victorian wine is wine made in the Australian state of Victoria. With over 600 wineries, Victoria has more wine producers than any other Australian wine-producing state but ranks third in overall wine production due to the lack of a mass bulk wine-producing area like South Australia's Riverland and New South Wales's Riverina. Viticulture has existed in Victoria since the 19th century and experienced a high point in the 1890s when the region produced more than half of all wine produced in Australia. The phylloxera epidemic that soon followed took a hard toll on the Victoria wine industry which did not fully recover till the 1950s.
The Eola-Amity Hills AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Polk County and Yamhill County, Oregon. It is entirely contained within the Willamette Valley AVA, and stretches from the city of Amity in the north to Salem in the south. The Eola and Amity hills cover an area west of the Willamette River approximately 15 miles (24 km) long by 6 miles (10 km) wide. The Eola-Amity Hills area benefits from steady winds off the Pacific Ocean that reach the Willamette Valley through the Van Duzer Corridor, a gap in the Oregon Coast Range, moderating the summer temperatures. The Eola Hills were named after the community of Eola, whose name was derived from Aeolus, the Greek god of the winds.
The Old Mission Peninsula AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Grand Traverse County, Michigan known for well-regarded Michigan wine. The Old Mission Peninsula extends northward from Traverse City into the Grand Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan, ending at Old Mission Point. The peninsula is 19 miles (31 km) long by 3 miles (5 km) wide at its widest point. The climate on the peninsula is moderated by the surrounding waters, helping to prevent frost during the growing season. Grape varietals suitable to cool climates, such as Riesling, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Pinot gris, Pinot noir, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot do best in the Old Mission Peninsula AVA.
Foris Vineyards Winery is an American winery located near Cave Junction, Oregon in the Illinois Valley region of the Rogue Valley AVA of Southern Oregon. As one of Oregon's pioneering grape growers, Ted Gerber planted his first vineyard in 1974. For 15 years, Gerber provided fruit to other winemakers, until 1986 when the winery was founded by Ted and Meri Gerber and the Foris label was launched.
Nova Scotia wine is Canadian wine produced in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia's wineries are primarily organized under the Wine Association of Nova Scotia, though not all wineries are members. The industry began in the late 1970s with the original Grand Pré Winery in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia.
Cono Sur Vineyards & Winery is a subsidiary of Concha y Toro Winery and is the third largest exporter of bottled wine in Chile. Established in 1993, its name is a reference to its location in the Southern Cone of South America and a play on the word connoisseur. In 2015, it was the official wine of the Tour de France.
Cristom Vineyards is an Oregon wine producer and vineyard based near Salem, U.S. It is in the Eola-Amity Hills wine region within the Willamette Valley AVA, about 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of Keizer.
Trisaetum is a winery located in Oregon's Willamette Valley. Established in 2003 by Andrea and James Frey, the winery, pronounced "tris-say-tum", was named after the founders two children, Tristen and Tatum. The winery is still family owned and operated and produces small lots of critically acclaimed Pinot Noir and Riesling from its estate vineyards. Trisaetum's older vineyard, the Coast Range estate, is a 22-acre (89,000 m2) vineyard located in the southwestern corner of the Yamhill-Carlton District AVA. Trisaetum's winery is located on its newer 17-acre (69,000 m2) vineyard in the heart of the Ribbon Ridge AVA.
Bethel Heights Vineyard is an Oregon winery in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA of the Willamette Valley. Founded in 1977 by twin brothers Ted and Terry Casteel, their wives Pat Dudley and Marilyn Webb, and Pat's sister Barbara Dudley, the vineyard was one of the earliest plantings in the Eola-Amity Hills region. A winery soon followed, with the first estate wines produced in 1984. Bethel Heights specializes in Pinot noir, offering several individual block and vineyard designated bottlings, but also produces wines made from Chardonnay, Pinot gris, Pinot blanc, Riesling, Grüner Veltliner, and Gewürztraminer.
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