Winemaker Notes
Knudsen Vineyard is one of the Willamette Valley’s most historic vineyard sites. Knudsen is famous for innovation that has continually improved quality from clonal selection to high-density vine spacing.
Vineyard Notes
The 2018 growing season began with a relatively mild and dry winter and moderately cool spring,
leading to budbreak during the second and third weeks of April. Temperatures picked up in May and
continued into a beautiful mid-June bloom. The rest of the summer was warm and very dry, with no
precipitation for nearly 3 months. Early September remained warm and dry through the beginning of
the sparkling harvest, but then cooled down with a few days of precipitation in the middle of the
month. Our still wine grapes were able to ripen perfectly during a period of beautiful late
September/early October weather. Overall, the 2018 harvest was quite condensed, starting with
lower-elevation Lone Star Chardonnay in the Eola-Amity Hills on September 4th and finishing with
high-elevation Pinot Noir at Spirit Hill Vineyard on October 2nd.
Accolades
“The 2018 Knudsen Vineyards Brut is a composition of 96% Pinot Noir and 4% Chardonnay—the Pinot Noir comes from the last of the old vines at Knudsen, planted in 1974. It offers inviting scents of mushroom, caramel, pie crust and red apples. The medium-bodied palate is dry, creamy and rounded, and it boasts alluring savory layers on the long finish.” -Erin Brooks, Wine Advocate
