In 1998 we bottled, for the first time, a small number of cases of wine from three very special blocks in our estate vineyards. The old vines in these three blocks can produce wines of extraordinary depth and complexity and, in great years like 1998, are so distinctive and multifaceted that they can stand alone. The approximately 500 cases of the three single-block bottlings were in addition to our “regular” Willamette Valley bottling. In 1999, another extraordinary vintage, we once again bottled about 500 cases of our special small-lot wines in addition to our Willamette Valley.

Although 2000 was another excellent year, we felt that, while the wines from our three special blocks were very good, they were not multidimensional enough to be bottled individually. After repeated tastings we felt that the best wine we could bottle from 2000 was one wine – all our lots blended together. So we made no small-lots, only our Willamette Valley bottling. The result is a wine with the concentration and vibrancy of very young vines and the power, elegance, depth, complexity and structure that comes only from older vines.