Sokol Blosser Winery
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Sokol Blosser Winery is a vineyard, tasting room and winery facility located northeast of
Dayton, Oregon Dayton is a city in Yamhill County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,534 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History The city was founded in 1850 by Andrew Smith and Joel Palmer. Palmer, who also served as Oregon Superintend ...
in the
Red Hills of Dundee The Red Hills of Dundee is a mountain range in Yamhill County, Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, w ...
in
Yamhill County Yamhill County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 107,722. The county seat is McMinnville. Yamhill County was named after the Yamhelas, members of the Kalapuya Tribe. Yamhill Cou ...
. It was founded by Bill Blosser and Susan Sokol Blosser in 1971 in what is now known as the
Dundee Hills AVA The Dundee Hills AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Yamhill County, Oregon. It is entirely contained within the Willamette Valley AVA, and is approximately southwest of Portland, near the towns of Dundee and Dayton. The area is i ...
. Sokol Blosser Winery is family owned and operated by second-generation co-presidents, siblings Alex and Alison Sokol Blosser, and is the 6th largest wine producer in Oregon. Sokol Blosser is considered to be “synonymous with sustainability,” and produces
Pinot Noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words for ''pine'' and ''black.' ...
,
Pinot Gris Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio (, ) or Grauburgunder is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot Noir variety, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name, but the gra ...
, Chardonnay, proprietary blends Evolution White and Evolution Red, a range of other Evolution wines, and small quantities of single block Pinot Noirs,
Rosé A rosé () is a type of wine that incorporates some of the color from the grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine. It may be the oldest known type of wine, as it is the most straightforward to make with the skin contact method. ...
of
Pinot Noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words for ''pine'' and ''black.' ...
, White Riesling
dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal ...
, and sparkling wine.


History

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 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 s ...
industry. The first
Pinot Noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words for ''pine'' and ''black.' ...
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 John Storrs may refer to: * John Storrs (sculptor) * John Storrs (architect) * John Storrs (priest) See also * J. Storrs Hall, American nanotechnologist * John Storr Rear Admiral John Storr (18 August 1709 – 10 January 1783), was an officer of ...
. The winery opened a new tasting room in 2013, designed by architect
Brad Cloepfil Brad Cloepfil (born 1956) is an American architect, educator and principal of Allied Works Architecture of Portland, Oregon and New York City. His first major project was an adaptive reuse of a Portland warehouse for the advertising agency Wieden ...
of
Allied Works Architecture Brad Cloepfil (born 1956) is an American architect, educator and principal of Allied Works Architecture of Portland, Oregon and New York City. His first major project was an adaptive reuse of a Portland warehouse for the advertising agency Wieden ...
. The Tasting Room received the American Institute of Architects - Northwest and Pacific Region 2013 Design Award 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 The Eola Hills are a range of hills northwest of Salem, Oregon, United States. They stretch from the community of Eola about north to Yamhill County. They are divided from the Salem Hills by the Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is ...
and in 2021 bought a 65-acre parcel in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA called Kalita Vineyard. 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 The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
about the experience of founding the winery. An expanded and revised edition was published in 2017 as ''The Vineyard Years: A Memoir with Recipes'' by West Margin Press.


Second generation transition

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 Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...
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. 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. 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.


Sustainability

Sokol Blosser Winery has been Certified Organic by the
Oregon Department of Agriculture The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is responsible for agriculture in Oregon. This agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon promotes and regulates food production and safety. It is headed by the director of agriculture, appoin ...
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. At the north end of a main
Pinot noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words for ''pine'' and ''black.' ...
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. Also in 2007, Sokol Blosser Winery was recognized by the City of
Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
’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. In 2008, Sokol Blosser Winery was recognized by
Oregon Secretary of State The secretary of state of Oregon, an elected constitutional officer within the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of Oregon, is first in line of succession to the governor. The duties of the office are auditor of public accounts, ch ...
Bill Bradbury Bill Bradbury (born May 29, 1949) is an American politician who served as a member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly and as the 23rd Oregon secretary of state from 1999 to 2009. Bradbury was an unsuccessful candidate for the 2010 Oregon gube ...
with a prestigious Oregon Sustainability Award, honoring the winery as an organization that had taken dramatic and comprehensive steps to incorporate sustainability into operations.
TreeHugger ''TreeHugger'' is a sustainability website that reports on news, and other subjects like eco-friendly design, homes, and gardens. It was rated the top sustainability blog of 2007 by Nielsen Netratings, and was included in Time Magazine's 2009 ...
awarded Sokol Blosser Winery with their Best Green Winery award in their inaugural Best of Green Awards in 2009. 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. Sokol Blosser Winery is a participant in th
Carbon Reduction Challenge
an initiative begun by
Oregon Governor The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...
Ted Kulongoski Theodore Ralph Kulongoski ( ; born November 5, 1940) is an American politician, judge, and lawyer who served as the 36th Governor of Oregon from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in both houses of the Oregon Legislative As ...
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.‘The Green List 2010’
, June 2010.
The Winery publishes a Sustainability Report annually (available on its website).


Vineyards


Red Hills of Dundee

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 Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...
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.


Eola Hills

The Winery leases and farms organically a 20+ acre vineyard called Blossom Ridge in the
Eola Hills The Eola Hills are a range of hills northwest of Salem, Oregon, United States. They stretch from the community of Eola about north to Yamhill County. They are divided from the Salem Hills by the Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is ...
. 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.


Yamhill-Carlton AVA

In 2021 the Winery purchased the 65-acre Kalita Vineyard (only 23 acres are plantable). The vineyard is about 12 years old and is planted entirely to Pinot Noir, but the Winery intends to plant about 3 acres of Chardonnay in 2023. 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 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.


Winery

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. The winery processes approximately 1000 tons per year from its own vineyards and grapes purchased from other Oregon 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.


Production and distribution

The Winery sells approximately 90,000 cases per year in 50 states and 12 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, 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, Grenache, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc-White Riesling blend, White Riesling, and boxed wines (Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Big Time Red and Lucky No. 9 White).


References

{{Coord, 45.25121, -123.0495, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-OR, display=title Buildings and structures in Yamhill County, Oregon Wineries in Oregon Food and drink companies established in 1971 1971 establishments in Oregon