We visited this winery in October and immediately we knew that we had to feature their wines. This winery seems to have it all. Its location is set in the beautiful Chehalem Mountains. Its setting is rolling hills and acres of north-south running vineyards. It’s not uncommon to spot a soaring hawk in the blue sky. The views from their terrace and parking area are breathtaking. During our visit, many artists were attempting to capture the view on canvas. Some of them were able to multi-task, with a wine glass in one hand and a paint brush in the other.

The tasting room is spacious with sweeping views of the mountains. We were enthralled by the wonderful varieties of wine and by the beautiful mural that is painted above the tasting bar. As you roam the tasting room with a fine glass of wine in your hand, you can see first-hand the equipment used to produce their wine. The large window overlooks this room where “gravity flow” is the process they use to make wine. In gravity flow winery, the grapes fall naturally into the fermenting tanks and wine moves gently from the fermenters to the aging barrels. The gravity flow concept is simple and elegant and its worthiness has been validated by over 500 years of wine making in Burgundy.

As a native Burguadian, Bernard Lacroute naturally wanted to grow Pinot Noir. He quickly realized that Oregon offered great prospects. In 1991, he gave up his high tech job and purchased  a 420 acre cattle ranch in Yamhill, after seeing an ad for the property in Wine Spectator. They planted their first vines in 1992, primarily planting pinot noir and other Burgundian and Alsatian grapes. They are committed to the environment and have preserved as much of the land as possible.

You will not be able to “pop the cork,” on the wines from WillaKenzie. Winemaker, Thibaud Mandet uses twist-offs instead of corks. His reason was very simple—less cork taint. Although I love the romance of “popping the cork,” I don’t mind a twist off when the wine is as incredible as WillaKenzie.