Former NFL quarterback purchases new Walla Walla winery and vineyard, will open two new tasting rooms in 2023
This week Bledsoe Wine Estates, based in 2007 by former NFL quarterback Drew Bledsoe and his spouse Maura, introduced the acquisition of àMaurice Winery and its adjoining vineyard facility in Walla Walla Valley.
“It’s a extremely particular piece of property,” says Josh McDaniels, normal supervisor and director of winemaking. “We’re thrilled.”
The two,000-square foot vineyard constructing and 20-acre winery are positioned within the Higher Mill Creek space of the valley. With plantings first established by the Figgins household (Leonetti Cellar, FIGGINS, Toil Oregon) in 1997 at their Higher Mill Creek Winery, the realm has turn out to be famend for its Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and, to a lesser extent, Syrah.
On the website, Bledsoe Wine Estates will open a tasting room for its Bledsoe | McDaniels label, a Willamette Valley Pinot Noir and Walla Walla Valley Syrah challenge that launched in 2019. The ability has a focused opening date of Spring Launch Weekend 2023. The vineyard additionally plans to open a Bledsoe | McDaniels tasting room in Willamette Valley in 2023 on the 80-acre Eola-Amity Hills property bought final 12 months.
McDaniels says the acquisition of the àMaurice property is the belief of a long-held objective to personal land on this area of the valley. “The entire time I have been [at Bledsoe Wine Estates], I’ve been in search of a chunk of property in Mill Creek. I’ve tried endlessly.”
The reason being not simply the high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot that comes from this space. For McDaniels, who grew up on this a part of the valley, it’s rather more private.
“I’ve at all times beloved that space,” he says. “It’s quintessential Walla Walla to me. It is the reservoir up there, it is the Mill Creek River, it is the mountains – the Blues, it is the timber, and the wheat fields.”
Certainly, the realm is outrageously scenic. It additionally creates a few of the greatest wines within the valley and can doubtless sooner or later get its personal appellation designation if native wineries so need.
Higher Mill Creek is at present residence to Walla Walla Vintners, àMaurice, and Abeja, along with quite a few vineyards. Figgins is establishing a wine cave within the space with plans to construct a vineyard. The world has turn out to be more and more fashionable of late, with Echolands buying 340 acres in 2020 and Jackson Household buying its first Washington winery there earlier this 12 months.
McDaniels says the acquisition of the positioning performed out over time. In 2019, he was approached to see if he was desirous about buying fruit from àMaurice Winery.
“I jumped on the alternative,” McDaniels says. Finally, he was launched to the Schafer household and inquired concerning the availability of the property.
“I knew I used to be , however I may inform it was very emotional for [Tom Schafer],” McDaniels says. “It was very private to me too.”
Presently, the brand new Bledsoe | McDaniels property is 12.5 acres planted primarily to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. Further plantings subsequent 12 months will elevate the acreage to fifteen. The vineyard has acquired fruit from this property since 2020. The Cabernet and Merlot from the winery will likely be used for the vineyard’s Doubleback label, devoted to Cabernet Sauvignon. The Syrah will go to Bledsoe | McDaniels.
With the acquisition, Bledsoe Wine Estates now owns an astonishing 370 acres of land in Walla Walla Valley. The vineyard additionally owns 80 acres in Willamette Valley, making a Northwest vinous empire. Roughly 115 of the mixed acreage is at present planted. Along with its Doubleback and Bledsoe | McDaniels labels, the vineyard additionally has Bledsoe Household Wines. With this sale, every vineyard may have tasting rooms in Walla Walla Valley. Bledsoe Wine Estates additionally has a tasting room in Bend, Oregon.
Regardless of the massive quantity of latest acreage, McDaniels says manufacturing is not going to develop dramatically. Slightly, property fruit will likely be used to interchange current contracts. Manufacturing will enhance slowly over time. Doubleback is nicely on its technique to being fully property targeted.
“To have the ability to be actually, really an property grown Cabernet now with Doubleback and have fully completely different terroirs to enter that wine has been simply actually rewarding and gratifying and thrilling,” McDaniels says.
With its elevated property, the vineyard additionally now has its personal devoted winery crew. The crew is employed year-round, has full medical health insurance, and has full retirement advantages.
“I am unable to speak sufficient about how constructive that is been for all of us, that cultural shift with our crew and our workers,” McDaniels says. “Our enterprise is to create real happiness for ourselves and our prospects. That is it. All of our workers are a part of that. Wine occurs to be the medium that we get to provide that have to individuals.”
The Schafer household established àMaurice Cellars in 2004. Over time, guided by winemaker Anna Schafer Cohen, the vineyard grew to become identified largely for its Viognier, Malbec, and Bordeaux-style blends. The àMaurice 2010 Boushey Winery Grenache stays one of many best examples of this selection I’ve ever had from Washington.
àMaurice stopped making wine within the 2019 classic. The Schafer household will retain the title àMaurice Cellars and present stock. The household will proceed to promote the wine it has.
“We’re elated to be passing all our exhausting work and imaginative and prescient, which has been intensely emotional and private, to a different true household enterprise,” the household mentioned in an e mail to its prospects. “We are going to miss our candy winery, but we’re grateful that the Bledsoe and McDaniels households will keep it up our legacy.”
Picture by Richard Duval.
