Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/759645
{ SOMMjournal.com } 83 With 140 certified sustainable acres of estate fruit, grapes from respected growers exclusively in the Willamette Valley are also pur- chased by the acre—one requirement is that they be certified sustain- able, organic or biodynamic. Located in the northernmost area of the Willamette, Chehalem Mountains is the largest AVA in the region. Maria took the somms on a tour of the 30,000-square-foot, four-level, gravity-flow winery and their beautiful new tasting room.. Named Collina del Sogno, or "dream hill," it was designed by their father, mechanical engineer turned wine pioneer Dick Ponzi. "It's a big change from our former 2,000-square-foot "garage" where it was practically home winemaking," Maria offered. "Our chal - lenge in the modern day is to continue making high-quality wine but on a larger scale." Overlooking their Avellana Vineyard, Maria explained, "The soil clas- sification in the Northern slope of the Chehalem Mountains AVA is predominantly Laurelwood soil; composed of basalt base with top soil of ice age windblown sedimentary soils, it defines our terroir here on the north slope of the Chehalem Mountains. We believe it brings in dark cherry, bramble and a white pepper signature to our Pinot Noir." The Chehalem Mountains AVA was created in 2007, and the Ponzis have recently petitioned for a sub-AVA under the Laurelwood name. Winemaker Luisa Ponzi plants all Ponzi Pinot Noir blocks "clonal massale"—a term that refers to the planting of several dozen clones in a single block. These clones are specially selected for the site and are unsystematically planted, like wildflowers. This method allows the clones to complement one another, producing consistent wines of distinct quality and superior complexity, despite vintage variability. Currently, Ponzi's Avellana Vineyard and the Abetina 2 block at Aurora Vineyard are planted in this way. "I spent years evaluating clones individually," Luisa explained. "Ultimately blending the wines was always preferred. Making that step to the vine - yard level just makes sense to me." The Valley's (that's what the locals call it!) flagship dirt is the red, volcanic Jory soil over basalt rock, most notably found in in the Dundee Hills AVA. This is said to give Pinot Noir a dusty, earthy character and also tends to offer more red fruits in a lighter color. Sokol Blosser and Domaine Drouhin are excellent examples. Laurelwood soil is a windblown silty loam, brownish, red-tinged in color and ashy in texture. It is very fertile, drains well and is a result of the silt blown into the Valley that remained after a mass glacier retreat between one million and 50,000 years ago. This profile is rare in the Willamette Valley except in the Chehalem Mountains AVA. Pinot Noir grown in this type of soil tends to exhibit higher-toned red fruits, earthiness and a white pepper character; Ponzi's vineyards predominantly feature this profile. Similar examples include the Cascade and Cornelius series. Willakenzie is the best known sedimentary soil in the Valley, a result of sandstone shale from the ocean floor when Oregon was under the sea about 15 million years ago. This uplifted layered marine sediment is dry and soft like tal - cum powder and is the oldest bedrock in the Willamette. Pinot Noir grown in the Ribbon Ridge, Yamhill-Carlton and McMinnville AVAs typically offer more black-fruit character, are darker in color and in some cases require a bit of age. The Woodburn soil series is a Missoula flood sediment deposited as early as 12,000 years ago. This fertile soil makes-up the majority of the Valley floor. Sokol Blosser's Red House Block Riesling and Cattail Block Pinot Gris feature this profile. —Jessie Birschbach Somm campers Chevis Scott of Nostra and James Te'o of Park Central Hotel during a punch-down at Ponzi. The Spoils— I Mean Soils—of Willamette Valley