The Wine

A pretty ruby color, richer than we have seen in many vintages, but with aromas of the essence of the vineyard: wood and earth, bark, and an undertone of fresh grass and cherries. There is orange peel and pomegranate on the nose, and the first sip has a pleasant entrance of red fruit with a touch of lemon rind and cherries again—an ocean of cherries! The subtle tannic structure shows up a bit after opening, some cola flavors emerge, with a classic Laurelwood spice on the finish—white pepper and clove, an oaky flourish. It’s a very pretty wine, almost as if a band of hobbits had just raided your cherry orchard. This 100% Pommard wine is aged in 50% new French oak.

“Fair winds and following seas”—the traditional farewell of a Navy sailor, said to those that they have served upon the occasion of departure, with a hope that their journey away from their former shipmates will be joyous and prosperous; that the seas will be favorable and pleasant; an unspoken acknowledgement that their service together has been cherished; a promise they will see each other again, whenever that may be. Our wine family lost our founder this year: Ronald Johnson, who planted the vines of this wine so many years ago. His son, Kevin, rebelled from the wine life and joined the Navy, but the vines eventually brought him back. This former Naval officer and his wife, Beth, crafted this wine in celebration and commemoration and as a fitting Hail and Fairwell to his father. May you enjoy it with someone you cherish, with those who are about to embark on a great journey, and with anyone who you want to let know how much they mean to you.

This wine is made from one barrel of 42-year-old self-rooted Pommard and one barrel of 32-year-old self-rooted Pommard (“below the road”). The oldest block of our vineyard is the 10-acre North where the winery sits. We treasure these self-rooted, dry-farmed vines for their ability to produce graceful and lovely wines every year that stand apart from our other Pinot noir offerings. The components are paired together in a combination that doesn’t exist in our current lineup, but showcases the beauty of old-vine Pommard-clone Oregon Pinot noir.

The Winery

Dion Vineyard was founded in 1973 with plantings on a five-acre plot in what is now the Chehalem Mountains AVA of the Willamette Valley. Dion is short for Dionysus, the Greek God of Wine and Viticulture (and fertility—ha!) and also winemaker Kevin's middle name, although he was founded in 1970 and started the wine label in 2007. The vineyard has grown to 60 acres and continues to supply quality grapes to others in the Willamette Valley. Kevin and Beth produce fewer than 1,000 cases of wine from estate fruit in a small, hands-on facility. The Old Vine Pommard block is their favorite.

Learn more about Dion Vineyard
Follow: @dionvineyards

All wine is sold FOB the location of the winery that produced the lot purchased. WVWA is not responsible for shipping wine. Shipping or delivery arrangements, expenses and insurance are the sole responsibility of the purchaser. Any shipment of wines out-of-state is the responsibility of the purchaser, who is solely responsible for compliance with the laws and regulations of said state.

The producing winery currently has distribution in the below listed countries and states. A list of distributors is available upon request.

USA: NY, OR