Inspirations

My name is Gideon Beinstock. I have been involved in just about every possible aspect of the wine industry over the past 25 years: consumer, buyer, seller, educator, writer, and - for 10 years now - maker. Saron, my wife and inspiration, has many years of experience in viticulture, and a magic touch with all living things: dogs, cats, chickens, rabbits, bees, even little human kids. We have decided to dive into this dubious financial adventure out of many other-than-commercial reasons: love of wine (especially Pinot Noir), love of outdoors work (especially viticulture), the artistic challenge (we both had artistic aspirations and education), and our wish to do something productive in our lives. Wine is for us an integral part of our lives, a source of enjoyment, and an endlessly expanding horizon to explore. We hope our wines will enhance your life in similar ways.

A Special Place

A cool microclimate in the Oregon House Valley: forty five hundred vines planted on a gentle, well-drained, north-east facing slope. Red loam and clay topsoil on decomposed granite and volcanic ash subsoil, sprinkled with fragments of granite rocks, basalt, and quartz. The virgin soil is pure, uncontaminated, alive with microorganisms and earthworms.

The Sierra Nevada Foothills are not the first to spring to mind when thinking about Pinot Noir in California, and yet this site provides an ideal microclimate and soil combination for its demanding nature. The soil - poor in organic matter and rich in minerals - has a unique combination of volcanic, clay, and alluvial elements, providing a rare equilibrium of water retention and good drainage. Our growing season is neither too dry nor too wet, neither too hot nor too cold. Bud break in late-March to mid-April, bloom in late-May to mid-June, harvest in early-September to mid-October.