Winderlea Journal
Journal Categories
Budbreak Arrives at Winderlea
"Budbreak”: the glorious time of the year when the vines wake up from their winter dormancy. For those more curious about what causes budbreak, it is stimulated as soil temperatures rise, osmosis causes water to be drawn upward into the plant through the xylem. This...
Winderlea Celebrates B Corp Month
As I write this, most of us at Winderlea are engaged in finalizing our application to be re-certified as a B Corp. It seems fitting then that March is B Corp Month, when the B Corp community comes together to celebrate, “People using business as a force for good.”...
Story of St. Vincent and History of Pruning
There are at least 30 saints who are honored for an association with wine, but of all St. Vincent is at the top of the list. St. Vincent was born toward the end of the third century and is the protomartyr of Spain (first one martyred for Christian beliefs). He was a...
Spring is coming!
On Tuesday, Donna and I experienced one of the first signs of Spring; the blessing of the final blends of Rosé. We’ll have two very distinct wines again this year, one from the Winderlea Estate Vineyard and the other, the Clos Vernier from Worden Hill Vineyard. Both...
Fig and Pork Salad With Willamette Valley Pinot noir
By Chef Tony Parker | Serves 4 Ingredients1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed1 oz garlic pepper rub1 oz olive oil10 oz spring mix greens2 oz balsamic vinaigrette2 tbsp butter1 for each salad- sweet onion 2 for each salad- seasonal pear, peeled and sliced thin8 for each...
Leaving Space for Beauty and Discovery
I've been trying to compose this in my mind in the weeks before Father's Day but had trouble getting it to a final form. I've been thinking about the idea of leaving space. This takes many forms; leaving space for others, leaving space for beliefs that are...
Pinot Blanc and Summertime Peach Salad
Seasonal and delicious, this salad only takes a few minutes to whip up and pairs perfectly with our Alsatian style Pinot blanc. The 2019 Pinot blanc shows notes of grapefruit and papaya, with an underlying briny character that compliments those juicy stone fruits...
Watermelon Salad with Mint & Pancetta | 2020 Rosé of Pinot noir
By way of our friends and neighbors at Red Hills Market we've put together a recipe to create the perfect pairing for this year's lush and layered Rosé that's bursting with juicy watermelon and strawberry. Buy a bottle of Rosé here! Ingredients 8 lb. whole seedless...
Supporting our Pollinators in a Laissez-Faire Hive
There are so many stories to tell right now. May is Oregon Wine Month, so we are especially attuned to sharing the unique characteristics of the Oregon terroir, and especially of the specific vineyards farmed by Winderlea and our grower friends. Bud break...
We’re Putting it in Neutral | 2021 Solar Panels
We've been having some very nice sunny days lately and the forecast is for several more ahead of us. After months of grey and drizzly weather, it's hard to convey how much the sunshine is welcome. The daffodils are in bloom, fruit trees are flowering, and in the...
Seasonal Rhythms of The Cellar
I stepped outside yesterday after a day spent toiling away in the cellar. A bright beam of late afternoon sun caught me by surprise and my face wrinkled. The coming and going of sporadic spring showers tapping the metal roof above all afternoon had tempered my...
A New Adventure Awaits
After years of living in Oregon and enjoying all this area has to offer, my husband and I feel a pull to a rural way of life. So, we've decided to do some traveling and experience life in other parts of the country. Our first stop along this journey is to live in the...