2019 Spirit Hill Blanc de Noir

The 2019 growing season began with a cold and wet winter followed by wet and warm spring, leading to a late April bud break. A few frost scares in April gave way to a warmer than average spring. The early June bloom was dry and sunny, with a touch of rain affecting the later ripening Spirit Hill Vineyard in the cool, windy Eola-Amity Hills. Some late June and early July precipitation created a small amount of disease pressure, while the rest of the summer was quite moderate, with fewer heat spikes than we’ve seen the last number of summers. September brought with it a significant cool down and a series of scattered rain showers, making harvest much more old-school Oregon, dancing with the whims of Mother Nature. A more classically spread out harvest, we started with Pinot Noir in the Dundee Hills on September 4th and finished with Pinot Noir in the upper elevations of the Eola-Amity Hills at Spirit Hill Vineyard on October 16th.