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Located on a hillside in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA at the east end of the Van Duzer Corridor, Bethel Heights was one of the first wineries established in the Willamette Valley, founded nearly 45 years ago by two couples considered pioneers of sustainability in Oregon winemaking. Today led by the families' second generations, these outstanding 2019 Bethel Heights Winery releases continue their legacy of producing exceptional cool climate Oregon Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, earning some of the best ratings of the vintage.
Starting with a 50-acre high-altitude parcel in an area considered less than optimal for farming, Bethel Heights first began by planting and cultivating Pinot Noir, building a reputation for their grapes' quality and releasing their first estate wine in 1984. After the discovery of widespread phylloxera in Willamette in the 1990s, the winery resisted pulling out all their vines, instead choosing to slow the progression by implementing organic viticultural practices to increase soil health while replacing the dying vines one by one as needed. Sourced from a mix of the surviving "legacy" old vines and newer phylloxera-resistant plantings that are now fully mature, the 2021 Bethel Heights Vineyards wines harken back to Willamette's historically cooler vintages, boasting elegant fruit and balanced acidity emblematic of classic Burgundian-style Oregon Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. |