Our Vineyards
When we moved to the Willamette Valley, we were a little overwhelmed by the remarkable amount of land it covered. To put it into perspective, the Willamette Valley has sub-appellations that are larger than the entire Napa Valley. To truly understand this remarkably fertile ground, you need to drive around the valley, tasting wines and learning about the soil, climate, and elevation of these appellations. However, this only shows you someone else’s expression of that region.
As a vintner—someone who works the land, crafts the wines, and manages the business—it’s crucial to source grapes from these regions and discover what resonates with you. It’s about finding your own expression of each appellation compared to others. This pursuit took me down a long and exciting journey seeking out some of the most notable vineyards around the valley. Currently, Moffett Vineyards is produces wine from 7 different appellations around the Willamette Valley and The Rock’s District of Milton-Freewater.
Freedom Hill Vineyard
Mount Pisgah of Polk County AVA
One of the more recognizable vineyards in the state, Freedom Hill upholds a high standard of farming and clonal selection. I waited several years to gain access to this vineyard, hoping for a single clone called Courey to become available. With persistence and good timing, I was able to take over this 1.3-acre section of the 80+ acre vineyard. Block contracts provide consistent earnings for the vineyard and allow the winery to control crop size and picking decisions, which is perfect for me.
Bieze Vineyard
Eola-Amity Hills AVA
This is a little different from the Freedom Hill contract; here I have an acre contract that serves the same purpose. I purchase by the acre, not by the ton, so I can again control the yields and harvest decisions. This site is remarkable, and the Pommard clone is amazing. The first Moffett bottling in 2014 was from the Bieze Vineyard.
Van Duzer – Thoma Vineyard
Dundee Hills AVA
Here is another block contract where I control and purchase all of their Swann clone of Pinot Noir. This is by far the most unique clone I’ve ever seen or worked with. This 1.79-acre block only gives me a mere 2.25 tons of fruit—in a healthy year! The clusters are so small that they don’t weigh much, but they produce a really flavorful and powerful wine. 2023 is the first vintage of this wine, and I truly hope to have it for the long haul!
Malliris Vineyard
Chehalem Mountains AVA
This is such an amazing little vineyard with 10 different clones and varietals planted on 7 acres. I produce a variety of wines from this site, including Aligoté, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gamay, and multiple Pinot Noirs. I discovered this site while searching for the Wente clone Chardonnay (pictured), which is scarce in Oregon but that I had previously worked with in California.
Borderland Vineyard
The Rock’s District or Milton-Freewater AVA
The Rock’s is the only AVA in the United States whose boundaries are defined by a single soil series, this alluvial fan of the Walla Walla River is composed of deep, round, basalt cobbles and gravels that I have heard are a couple hundred feet deep. This is my only tonnage contract, I purchase 2 tons of Syrah and roughly a 100 pounds of Viognier that is also grown on site and harvested at the same time to co-ferment them at the winery. Due to the travel time, Borderlands harvest in the early morning (3-5am) and we usually have very cold grapes at the winery by 10am.