What inspired you to transition from winemaking in New Zealand to establishing a winery in the Columbia Gorge region of Washington?

The winery had achieved significant success in New Zealand, and we were eager for a new venture. We believed it was the perfect moment to buy a property in the USA where we could establish a vineyard, grow grapes, and make wine. This would not only offer a location for our family to visit a few times a year but also introduce our two sons to life in the USA. In our search for property we looked at Northern California, the Willamette Valley and considered parts of Washington. We initially had missed looking at the Hood River area until a friend that lived there emailed me and said I should look. I had previously visited Hood River early in my career when I was conducting contract research work as a consultant. In the 1970s there were very few acres of vines in the area and not many in the Willamette either. 

Upon visiting Hood River in late 2004 we were struck by the beauty of the area and the newly established vineyards and wineries. We kept looking at Underwood Mountain as it fit my idea of an elevated south slope for vineyards. A site that would be similar in growing conditions to New Zealand….cool climate because of its altitude as Underwood is almost 2000 feet elevation.

Once I saw the Celilo Vineyard that had been planted in the late 1970s, and was able to taste some wines made from those grapes I knew we had found a place. Luckily the 80 acre piece the winery is now on was available as raw land at a reasonable price and a deal was struck. We also bought another 20 acres down the street that we eventually planted to vines and then sold.

Can you share any specific techniques or traditions from New Zealand that influence your winemaking philosophy in the Columbia Gorge?

We do things quite different from many typical winemakers both in New Zealand and at Underwood. In the vineyard we use Pest Management strategies that I was taught at the University of California. We monitor for all pests and only spray when we see them in a sufficient quantity to cause damage. We spray far less than even organic farmers who still routinely spray by calendar. This saves money and reduces pesticide residues. We use large amounts of compost and supplement only when needed with foliar and other chemical fertilizers. We might irrigate 1-2 times a year but only in very dry years to keep the vines healthy. We do not agree with a widespread concept that stressed grapes provide better fruit. Stressed grapes produce out of balance wines which then require adjustments to be made by the winemaker.

Our approach to wine making is a bit different. White wines are fermented very cold, almost to the point of killing the yeast. This provides a very long ferment sometimes lasting 5-6 weeks. This saves all the fruit flavors especially in weak flavoured vines like Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc. This extended ferment allows longer lees contact giving weight and texture to the wines. 

The reds are fermented in a closed bag system that does not require any plunging of the skins. The system provides huge extraction but minimises harsh tannins from developing. All our reds have a soft, rounded finish. 

Oak barrels are not used. Instead we use premium oak staves obtained from the barrel manufactures. These are placed inside the tanks. This method provides us with clean wood each year that has no potential for contamination such as you might get in old barrels. It also allows us to fine tune the amount and type of oak we wish to use. We started using staves 30 years ago in New Zealand with some criticism that they should be used only for cheap wine. That criticism disappeared when we won Champion Chardonnay in the World at The International Wine & Spirits Competition in London and many other trophy’s after that in Hong Kong, San Francisco, Auckland, New York and other places. We feel we are experts in using that technique for premium wines.