Kicking off the 2021 Vineyard Growing Season with Rain Oregon and Washington have a reputation for rainy weather. I have never lived anywhere where there is such a preoccupation with rainfall. The truth is that here in the northern Willamette Valley we have a wet season and a dry season. Normal rain patterns are wet winters and dry summers. Average … Read More
Clementine Cake, a Winter Delight
Clementine Cake, a Winter Delight | two recipe versions, including gluten and dairy-free Winter is upon us and the markets are full of zesty organic clementines, mandarins, kumquats, juicy oranges and lemons in all sizes. Clementine Cake is unique in that it uses the entire fruit, including peel, pith and pulp. We have experimented with different types of citrus fruit, … Read More
Wrapping up Three Feathers Harvest 2020
Three Feathers Harvest Report 2020 As I write this, sitting in a comfortable chair with my feet up, it is hard to believe that the Harvest was a mere month ago. I have only now started to calm down and not feel that I must leap out of bed at 5 AM to work. The rains have finally arrived in … Read More
Veraison Diary
50 Shades of Purple Véraison is a French word describing the process of ripening in grapes. After the plants bloom, they go through a two month long period of maturation during which the plants, essentially climbing vines, put on tremendous growth of the shoots and tendrils. Just when you are exhausted from trimming, hedging and trying to keep the vines … Read More
Behind the Scenes
Behind the Scenes Behind the facade of any enterprise is the man power that brings every job to fruition. Given the size of the Three Feathers Farm & Vineyard we cannot possibly do everything ourselves. We are very fortunate to have two terrific workers; Scott Pote and David Pederson, who are our Essential Team Members. Both native Oregonians they take … Read More
Three Feathers Estate & Vineyard celebrates a glorious Oregon summer with a family photo session
Photo Session at Three Feathers Estate & Vineyard We are having glorious weather in the vineyards in Hillsboro, Oregon. Time for our family to enjoy the best that Oregon has to offer and an excellent opportunity for a photo shoot. Three Feathers Estate & Vineyard owners Christine Stimac (left) and daughters Cynthia Stimac (middle) and Elise Prudhomme (right) pose in … Read More
Stirred, not Shaken
Stirred, not Shaken: Clarification of our 2016 Three Feathers Pinot Noir We received a text message from Dan Duryee, our winemaker at Lady Hill Winery, to say that our Three Feathers 2016 vintage Pinot Noir would go through the filtration process that day. “Is there anything to photograph?”, Christine texted back. Up pops a photograph of a strange machine and … Read More
Barrel Tasting at Lady Hill Winery
Barrel Tasting with our Winemaker Dan Duryee Our tasting compared the four barrels against each other. Winemakers do this to ensure that none of the barrels are bad or “off” tasting before they are blended. One of the barrels was noticeably different. The simplest explanation was that the barrel manufacturer was different from the other three. Interesting that that would … Read More
Harvesting and Custom Crush at Lady Hill Winery
Custom Crush at Lady Hill Winery with Winemaker Dan Duryee Recent genetic studies of grape varieties has identified Pinot Noir as one of the oldest grapes in the world. A small cluster variety, Pinot Noir has a reputation for being a finicky grape. It prefers cool nights and warm days. The wine is light in color and flavor and on … Read More
First Grape Harvest at Three Feathers
First Grape Harvest Block 1, Pinot Noir #667, Brix 22, TA 3.1 Friends and Family gathered to pick our first grapes. We sent 12 tubs to the state-of-the-art wine making facility at Lady Hill Winery in St. Paul for a custom crush. We watched as the wine making team, Dan and Tony, escorted our grapes on the path to greatness! … Read More