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THE GIFT OF 2011 .
. .
One might think that if you were to design the perfect growing season for producing Pinot noir, you'd choose normal bud break in early April; sunny days for timely bloom and a modest fruit set; a warm, relatively dry summer, topped off with a moderately cool, dry fall ripening season. Such was not the case at Foris Vineyards in 2011.
The perfect growing season creating one of the best vintages in 37 years of grape growing, was one plagued with problems. Foris is nestled in a pristine alpine valley in southwestern Oregon's rugged Siskiyou Mountain range. A late start, cool summer, well placed rains and frost, gave worry at the time, but in retrospect, what happened resulted in exceptionally good grape quality.
"Given our focus on Pinot Noir and Alsatian white varietals at Foris, we usually produce our best wines in cool years here in the Rogue Valley, but with 2011 being the coolest recorded growing season in Oregon's history, we were nervous early on," commented Foris Winemaker, Bryan Wilson. "The unusual season has become an opportunity for us to showcase an exceptional vintage in Southern Oregon."
What stands out is that the apparent disaster in the spring made the wine in the fall. Bud break at the 122 acres of Foris estate vineyards normally is around April 10th but this year it was the last few days of the month. The nice part about this late bud break was that there were very few nights that threatened
to frost.
May continued cool and brought above average rainfall, slowing vineyard growth. This built water capacity in the soil for the vines. Bloom was ten days late, occurring in late June. Knowing there is a relationship between bloom and harvest date, the decision to carry slightly less fruit than normal was made, as less fruit ripens earlier than heavier crops.
July to early September, a perfect temperature range for grapes to grow best, continued every day through the summer. Nighttime temperatures were around 50 degrees and daytime temperatures never hit 100 degrees and were almost always in the high 80's to low 90's,
Thus, in early September it appeared that the season was slightly catching up to an average harvest date. That is, until the vineyards received almost 3 ½ inches of rain occurring in 3 storms over a 7 to 10 day period. Luckily, because the season was behind, the berries were still firm and rot pressure did not occur. When the storms hit, the vineyard soils were very dry and the water helped the vines.
Then the gift came! Foris was blessed with 40 days plus of Indian Summer. There was no rain with nighttime temperatures in the high 30's to high 40's, and daytime temperatures in the 70's to low 80's.
Harvest started October 13th and as usual Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris were the first varieties to be picked. Not only were the sugars and acids wonderfully balanced, the long cool growing season yielded unusually flavorful white juices and deeply colored and spiced Pinot Noirs with great textures.
As the crew finished picking these varieties, Riesling, Pinot Blanc, and Gewurztraminer caught two nights of 27 degree frost. These varietials were picked within a week after the frost. As the grapes were fully ripe, the frost was actually a benefit, concentrating the flavor and sugars through dehydration of the berries. A storm hit November 3rd and produced 1/10th of an inch of rain and the last two tons of fruit, out of 800 was picked the morning after the storm.
Foris founder and owner, Ted Gerber noted, "Locals claim if you have a difficult, late spring, you'll get a great, late fall." It's happened many years, and 2011 is testament to that fact, looking to be a stellar vintage at Foris Vineyards!
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: Ted Gerber, 800-843-6747 foris@foriswine.com
