We would like to introduce you to one of our newest suppliers Swick Wines! Here are some words about these wonderfully unique and authentic wines, direct from winemaker Joe Swick.
"I'm a Portland, Oregon native and 5th generation Oregonian. I got into the wine industry in 2003 with a cellar position at Owen Roe Winery. Between 2003 and 2013 I spent ten years and 15 harvests working for many different wineries in different wine regions around the world...
Oregon- Owen Roe, Sineann, Penner-Ash, Domaine Serene
Califorinia- Siduri, Kosta Browne
New Zealand- Villa Maria, Felton Road
Australia- Yarra Burn, Bay of Fires, Stefano Lubiana
Portugal- Niepoort
Italy- Ceretto
In 2013 I decided to move back home to Oregon and start Swick Wines in the Willamette Valley. My focus is on making Pacific NW inspired wines that show vintage and place as authentically and naked as possible. Meaning nothing added to the wine and nothing taken away. This, in my opinion, is the true expression of "terroir" or place. I work with sustainable or organically farmed vineyards only (not irrigation as well). The wines see little or no sulfur (depending on vintage) and gentle or no filtration. NO industrial wine products of any kind are added (aside from sulfur if needed). No yeasts, no malo, no acid corrections, no temp control on the ferment or wines... Nothing is controlled. 100% stems are used in my red wines. Red vinifications are worked by foot 1-2 times a day.
My wines showcase the "fruit" aspect in a very subtle way. They are more focused on mineral, salinity and freshness. Tannins are direct and firm without being harsh. Because I work with cold sites, alcohols are lower and acids are quite a bit higher than most wines from Oregon/Washington.
ALL of the 2015 wines are zero sulfur added at any time. I will continue with this style unless I feel that a small sulfur add is needed."
Vermont Wine Merchants currently carries 4 wines from Swick - two whites, and two reds - we have very limited quantities of each of these wines, talk to your sales rep if you'd like more information!
2015 Melon de Bourgogne
Melon made in a Swick style. Not trying to emulate Muscadet. Full Malo. Lots of salty characteristics with weighty palate and long finish. 21 days skin contact. no SO2 . On gross lees until bottling.
2015 “Les Sous-Bois” Pinot Gris
The fruit for the 2015 Les Sous-Bois Pinot Gris is sourced from the dry farmed Dampier and Crooked Acres vineyards on the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge AVA. Fermented and aged in neutral oak on gross lees, the wine undergoes full malolactic fermentation and is bottled unfiltered. Swick's 2015 Pinot Gris is texturally dense with flavors of golden baked apple, just-ripe pineapple, and stony minerality. This finishes with tangy citrus fruit and a savory leeriness.
2014 Willamette Pinot Noir
The Pinot Noir is sourced from several cooler Willamette Valley sites (Cancilla, Medici, and Fairsing vineyards), which impart a lighter texture and more brambly, savory flavors. On the nose there are dried black cherry, violet, and sous bois aromas; on the palate the wine reveals sapid black fruits (black cherry, blackberry, black raspberry) and undertones of damp earth, dried herbs, and clove. An excellent Pinot Noir that punches well above its weightier and more expensive counterparts.
2014 “Les Sous-Bois” Pinot Noir—$21.00
The Pinot Noir is sourced from the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge AVA, at vineyards situated at nearly 1,500 feet. Fermented whole-cluster for 30 days and aged in neutral oak for 14 months, this Pinot Noir is redolent with black cherry skin, black raspberry, clove, and star anise flavors and finishes with an earthy and roasted meat quality. The volcanic (basalt) soils of these vineyards impart considerable density and tannins relative to Swick’s Willamette Valley Pinot Noir offering.