FRIENDS & FAMILY SPRING 2024 ALLOCATION

Hello Friends and Family -
 
Greetings from the Hazelfern fam! Hope that you had a great winter and are gearing up for what is turning out to be an early and warm Spring here in the Willamette Valley. The buds on the vines emerged at Hazelfern this week, and we’re hopeful for another great season in Oregon.

We’ve spent winter here at Hazelfern bottling our new wines from the crowd pleasing 2022 vintage and prepping the vineyard for an exciting year ahead. We’ve also been hard at work remodeling the house at our new Hazelfern Ranch property, and are excited to open the Willamette Valley’s newest wine country Airbnb later this summer (Hazelfern Friends & Fam will get priority access). We’ve also been busy planning several fun events here at the barn that we can’t wait to share!

Enough about us, let’s talk about the new wines!

We’re very proud to release the first of our new 2022 wines over the next few weeks including the brand new “Sea Ghost” Pinot Noir (it’s inspired by the ancient sea beds here in the Willamette Valley and the wine is so good!). The 2022 growing season was marked by an April frost that got our season off to a very late start. Miraculously, Fall was unseasonably warm and the rains held off until November. The Pinot Noir was able to fully ripen and the resulting wines have incredible depth, intensity, and enough refreshing grip to help them age. 2022 will be remembered as a miracle vintage, and we’re so excited to finally share the new wines with you! 

A Note about Chardonnay: 2022 Chardonnay is much harder to come by as the vines were especially hard hit by the frost (see Bryan’s vintage report below). We held back our 2021 Little Hells Chardonnay knowing that there was such a small amount of 2022, and we are very excited to release the new Little Hells this Spring!

Follow along on Instagram for regular updates from the farm!
 
Spring Friends & Family Wine Allocation:

First up is our 2022 Pinot Noir from The Hazelfern Vineyard - the vineyard Bryan and I planted here at the Hazelfern barn with our daughters when we first started. It’s been so fun to see this dream of growing our very own wine from the vines we planted become a reality, and we’re SO EXCITED to share the delicious results! The 2022 “The Hazelfern Vineyard” Pinot Noir is delicious and will be even more rewarding if you can wait to drink it this Fall.

Next up, we're excited to introduce you to a brand new Pinot Noir called, "Sea Ghost." Nerd alert: Up until twelve-million-years ago, our region was covered by the Pacific Ocean. As the Willamette Valley rose up from the sea through volcanic activity, the lower elevation foothills remained as dried up sea beds. In these ancient and sandy marine soils, we often find old seashells and fossils from the creatures who were trapped and left behind. This year, we made a wine that tells the stories of those old ghosts that inhabited the ocean beds millions of years ago. "Sea Ghost," is a wine that features three marine sedimentary vineyards - Arlyn, Cancilla, and Stormy Morning. The sandy soils lend themselves to wines that are intense, dark fruited, and structured. If you've enjoyed our wines from Silvershot, Yamhill Springs, or Robinson Family Vineyard in the past, Sea Ghost is here to be your new favorite haunt.

Last, and certainly not least, is our single-vineyard Chardonnay called Little Hells. From the windblown slopes of Chehalem Mountains’ Little Hells Canyon, these Chardy vines have displaced the former hideout of the moonshiners and rum runners that ran the rugged banks of Cedar Creek in dry county days. Little Hells is owned by our good friends, Devin and Kristin Andolsen, and the wine always features fresh flavors of honey crisp apples and slate-like minerality. With the frost of 2022 damaging most of our Chardonnay crop, we have been quietly holding back the release of the new 2021 Little Hells, and we're very excited to share it with you!

The Spring Friends & Family allocation includes six bottles - 2 bottles each of 3 new release wines:
 
·      2022 Pinot Noir, The Hazelfern Vineyard (Friends & Family $60/bottle)
·      2022 Pinot Noir, Sea Ghost (Friends & Family $50/bottle)
·      2021 Chardonnay, Little Hells (Friends & Family $50/bottle)
 
Be sure to check-out Bryan’s winemaking and tasting notes below.

In addition to the wines we’ve made for Friends & Family, we’re excited to release the brand new 2023 Rosé of Pinot Noir just in time for summer. We also have the new 2022 Gamay Noir and a couple additional Pinot Noirs and Syrahs available – be sure to grab them for your summer gatherings while they last.

Additional wines available this month:

  • 2023 Rosé of Pinot Noir (Friends & Family $22/bottle: Regularly $30/bottle)

  • 2021 Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley (Friends & Family $30/bottle: Regularly $39/bottle)

  • 2021 Pinot Noir, Prime Cut, Willamette Valley (Friends & Family $75/bottle: Regularly $85/bottle) 98 points (IWR)

  • 2022 Gamay Noir, Willamette Valley (Friends & Family $35/bottle: Regularly $45/bottle)

  • 2021 Syrah, Stoney Vine Vineyard, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Walla Walla Valley (Friends & Family $50/bottle: Regularly $60/bottle)

  • 2021 Chardonnay, Willamette Valley (Friends & Family $30/bottle: Regularly $39/bottle)

  • 2021 Chardonnay, Prime Cut (Friends & Family $62/bottle: Regularly $75/bottle) 96 points (Jeb Dunnuck)

UPDATE YOUR SHIPPING ADDRESS, CREDIT CARD, AND/OR ORDER ADDITIONAL WINES HERE

Fresh News:


  1. We’re extremely grateful for all your continued support and enthusiasm for Hazelfern – our family is so thankful for the opportunity to share our wines with you. Hope to see you back in the barn soon!
     
    Thanks!
    -Laura, Bryan, Adalyn, Ava, Gus & Sadie

About the 2022 Vintage in the Willamette Valley:

2022 will go down as a miracle vintage highlighted by a late frost in mid-April that damaged the primary buds on the vines and delayed the start to the growing season.
 

The 2022 vintage was set-up with a mild winter and warm and dry March, prompting an early bud break and setting up the risk for frost. On April 14th, the Willamette Valley was hit with a rare late frost which damaged the buds and reset the season. Thankfully, grape vines have secondary buds to mitigate risk, and these new buds emerged 3-4 weeks later kicking off a late start to our growing season.
 

The weather stayed cool and wet through the end of May, and then a warm and dry Willamette Valley summer ensued. With the late frost reset, harvest was pushed into late September and October. We had a very warm October here in Oregon with temps reaching into the 90’s. This late dry and warm weather ensured that all grapes achieved peak ripeness before the Fall rains arrived in November.
 

The results?
 

Chardonnay: Unfortunately, we lost most of our Chardonnay fruit to the frost. Chardonnay buds emerge earlier in the season than Pinot Noir, so the Chardy plants were more impacted by the frost. The vines survived the season, but the fruit yields were extremely low, and there is not a lot to go around.

Pinot Noir: The 2022 Pinot Noirs have incredible intensity and depth while remaining light on their feet (they are sexy!). The wines show velvety texture with enough balanced grip to help them age, and these wines are sure to be crowd favorites.

(qty. 2) 2022 Pinot Noir, The Hazelfern Vineyard, Chehalem Mountains, Willamette Valley
*$70 / $60 (Friends & Family)

I’m so excited to share our new Pinot Noir from the vines we planted here at the Hazelfern barn in 2015. Our first Pinot Noir vintage was in 2019, and it sure has been rewarding to see these vines grow up and discover the personality of this vineyard and the resulting wines.
 
Living here on the property and doing much of the farming myself, I get to interact with these vines every day throughout the growing season. Each year, I watch them grow and adjust to the weather, and I start to think about how I want to make the resulting wine starting early in the season. In 2022, I was here to witness the frost damage on April 14th and all of the damaged buds that had us concerned about losing the entire vintage. It was incredible to see the vines recover 4 weeks later with their secondary buds - I love a good comeback story!
 
The vineyard here is planted on Jory (volcanic) soil, and in the Willamette Valley, we like to say that red volcanic soils produce red fruited and elegant wines. Now that we’ve completed the 2023 harvest, and I’ve had a chance to make wines from these vines for several vintages, it’s safe to say that the consistent fruit profile is spiced red plum and the wines are showing good depth and minerality on the finish.
 
This wine represents our entire journey as 1st generation farmers and winemakers, and I really hope you enjoy it!

Tasting Notes:
 
Elegance and grace from our estate vineyard. Aromas of farm fresh Santa Rosa red plums, McIntosh apples, and Spring apple blossoms, are accented by savory tones of fresh earth, and a rush of baking spices like cinnamon stick, clove, and nutmeg. On the palate, this wine is plush with a salty minerality that carries the long finish.
 
Delicious with:  salty cheeses, mushrooms, and pork chops
 
100% Pinot Noir
13.1% alcohol

Geek out:

  • Aged 12 months in 100% French Oak (20% new oak)

  • Featured clones: Pommard, Wädenswil, Mt Eden, Dijon 113, 115 and 667

  • 5-day cold soak

  • 16-day fermentation

  • pH: 3.75

  • Unfined and Unfiltered


Vineyard Facts:

The Hazelfern Vineyard:

  • Located on-site in Newberg, OR at the Hazelfern Barn

  • Clones: Pommard, Wadenswil, Mt Eden, and Dijon clones 113, 115, and 667 planted in 2015

  • Dry farmed and farmed using organic practices

  • Soil: Jory (volcanic)

  • Elevation: 475 feet

Pinot Noir @ Three Cedars Vineyard planted on a beautiful north facing slope in the Laurelwood District AVA.

(qty. 2) 2022 Pinot Noir, Sea Ghost, Willamette Valley
*$60 / $50 (Friends & Family)

I'm so excited to welcome a brand new wine to the Hazelfern family this Spring - please help me in welcoming Sea Ghost!

A quick history lesson is Geology: Up until twelve-million-years ago, our region was covered by the Pacific Ocean. As the Willamette Valley rose up from the sea through volcanic activity and plate subduction, the lower elevation foothills remained as dried up sea beds.

In these ancient and sandy marine soils, we often find old seashells and fossils from the creatures who were trapped and left behind. This year, we made a wine that tells the stories of those old ghosts that inhabited the ocean beds millions of years ago.

"Sea Ghost," is a wine that features three marine sedimentary vineyards - Aryln, Cancilla, and Stormy Morning. The sandy soils lend themselves to wines that are intense, dark fruited, and structured. If you've enjoyed our wines from Silvershot, Yamhill Springs, or Robinson Family Vineyard in the past, Sea Ghost is here to be your new favorite haunt.

The label: If you catch Sea Ghost in the right light, you'll notice that the label features iridescent foil as a fun nod to the iridescence found inside the old seashells.

Tasting Notes:

Layered depth and decadence. Aromas of Luxardo cherries, cocoa dust, crimson clover, umami, and a twist of blood orange peel, are accented by fresh sea spray, morning glories, driftwood, and spruce tips.

Delicious with:  comté cheese, mushrooms, and pork
 
100% Pinot Noir
13.8% alcohol
 
Geek out:

  • Aged 14 months in 100% French Oak (25% new oak)

  • Featured clones: Pommard, Wadenswil, and Dijon clones 115, 667, and 777

  • 5-day cold soak

  • 16-day fermentation

  • pH: 3.78

  • Unfined and Unfiltered


Vineyard Facts:

Arlyn Vineyard:

  • Clones: Pommard and Wadenswil clones

  • Dry farmed and Biodynamic

  • Chehalem Mountains AVA

  • Soil: Willakenzie (marine sedimentary)

  • Elevation: 250 ft

Cancilla Vineyard:

  • Clones: Pommard, Wadenswil, and Dijon clones 667 and 777

  • Dry farmed and certified Organic

  • Tualatin Hills AVA

  • Soil: Melbourne (marine sedimentary)

  • Elevation: 400-600 ft

Stormy Morning Vineyard:

  • Clones: Dijon clones 115 and 777

  • Dry farmed with organic farming practices

  • Tualatin Hills AVA

  • Soil: Kinton (marine sedimentary)

  • Elevation: 250-500 ft

High elevation and incredibly rocky basalt soils make Rock Block an incredible site for growing world-class Chardonnay.

(qty. 2) 2021 Chardonnay, Little Hells, Laurelwood District, Willamette Valley
*$60 / $50 (Friends & Family)

Those of you who know me well or follow us on Instagram, know that I love Willamette Valley Chardonnay! I love to make Chardonnay, and I love to drink Chardonnay. It's a huge focus for us in the winery, and in 2021 we made five (%!!!) different Chardonnays that I'm so stoked about!

Chardonnay from the Willamette Valley is not your mama’s Chardonnay – no oily and flabby butter bombs out here. I love that Chardonnay can be made in so many styles, and that the decisions I make as a winemaker can really impact the outcome of the wine.
 
The 2021 Little Hells Chardonnay comes from the windblown slopes of Chehalem Mountains’ Little Hells Canyon. The Chardy vines have displaced the former hideout of the moonshiners and rum runners that ran the rugged banks of Cedar Creek in dry county days - not too long ago, this area was dry, and old moonshiner cabins still sit at the bottom of the vineyard.

Little Hells is owned by our good friends, Devin and Kristin Andolsen, and the wine always features fresh flavors of honey crisp apples and slate-like minerality. With the frost of 2022 damaging most of our Chardonnay crop, we have been quietly holding back the release of the new 2021 Little Hells, and we're very excited to share it with you!

Tasting Notes:

Precision and texture. Flavors of Jonagold apples, farm apricots, and fresh lemon curd, are layered with accents of wisteria, lemon thyme, flint, oyster shells, and Oregon hazelnuts (that's filberts to the old-timers out there). A stoney minerality carries the long finish.

Delicious with: gouda cheese, shellfish, creamy pasta
 
100% Chardonnay
13.5% alcohol

Geek out:

  • Aged 12 months in 100% French Oak (30% new oak)

  • Featured clones: Dijon 76, 95, 96

  • 35-day fermentation

  • Full malolactic fermentation – six months

  • pH: 3.40


Vineyard Facts:
 
KAV Estate Vineyard (aka, Little Hells):

  • Located in the Chehalem Mountains’ Little Hells Canyon

  • Dijon clones 76, 95, and 96 planted in 2014

  • Dry farmed and sustainable LIVE Certified

  • Chehalem Mountains AVA near Newberg, OR

  • Soil: Laurelwood (Loess wind-blown)

  • Elevation: 550 ft

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