BELLE PENTE

Vineyard & Winery

Great wine is made in great vineyards!

Since the beginning, we've taken a two pronged approach to insuring that our winery is supplied with the finest raw materials possible.

First, we selected and are developing an outstanding estate vineyard site located in the exclusive Yamhill-Carlton District of the Willamette Valley. The vineyard rises from 300 to 500 feet in elevation with south-east, south, and south west exposures. The second wine released from this young vineyard (our 1998 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir) was selected among the top Oregon wines of the vintage by the Wine Spectator, Steve Tanzer (International Wine Cellar), and Clive Coates (The Vine). We now have over 16 acres planted on the property, including 12 acres of Pinot Noir and 2 each of Pinot Gris and Chardonnay, along with a few rows of Gamay Noir.  All of the vineyard blocks have been farmed organically since 2000, and biodynamic techniques were adopted starting in 2005.  Wayne Cook (one of the most experienced vineyard managers in Oregon) is our consulting viticulturist. Marcial Gonzales is our crew foreman, assisted by Eliseo Flores & Diego Bermudes.

Second, we've aggressively sought out unique, high quality, independent vineyards from which to source grapes. Many of these vineyards are over 20 years old, and all are located in Yamhill County, most within a 5 mile radius of our winery:

Pinot Noir:

Murto Vineyard - Dundee Hills - Source for vineyard designated wines since 1997.  6 acres are dedicated to producing grapes for us. This is our largest non-Estate vineyard, which is managed to our specifications by Mike and Robin Murto with assistance from Andy Humphries' vineyard crew.

Bella Vida - Dundee Hills - Source since 2001 (primary component of our Dundee Hills bottling). Owned and managed by Steve & Allison Whiteside.

Pinot Gris:

Whistling Ridge - Ribbon Ridge - Source since 1996.  2 acres of grapes are dedicated to Belle Pente.  Owned and managed by Dick Alvord and Patricia Gustafson with assistance from Chuck Ransom.

Walker Vineyard - Yamhill-Carlton District - Source for Pinot Gris since 2002.  2 acres.  Owned and managed by John Walker

Rivenwood Vineyard - Yamhill-Carlton District - New source for Pinot Gris starting in 2007.  2.5 acres adjacent to our estate vineyard.  Owned by  Rick and Heather Karl, and managed by Belle Pente as an extension of our estate vineyard.

Riesling:

Yamhill Vineyards - Yamhill-Carlton District - Source since 1998.  1 acre total in two distinct parcels. Owned and managed by Ralph Stein.

Chehalem Mountian Vineyard - Chehalem Mountain - Source for Riesling (from 35 year old vines) from 2002 thru 2006.  1 acre. Owned and managed by George Hillberry.

Gewurztraminer:

Hyland Vinyard - McMinnville - Source for old-vines Gewurztraminer in 2003, 2005, and 2006.  1 acre. Managed by Jack Trenhaile,

Muscat:

Stag Hollow Vineyard - Yamhill-Carlton District - New source starting in 2005.  1 Acre. Owned and managed by Mark Huff and Jill Zarnowitz.