Introduction

Winemaking: The Continuation of Terroir by Other Means.®

Welcome to the Amalie Robert Estate Farming Blog, aka FLOG. By subscribing, you will receive regular FLOGGINGS throughout the growing season. The FLOGGING will begin with the Spring Cellar Report in April. FLOGGINGS will continue each month and detail how the vintage is shaping up. You may also be FLOGGED directly after the big Cluster Pluck with the yearly Harvest After Action Report. Subscribe now and let the FLOGGINGS begin!

Rusty

"This is one of the Willamette Valley’s most distinguished wineries, but not one that is widely known."

- Rusty Gaffney, PinotFile - September 2016

Josh

"Dena Drews and Ernie Pink have been quietly producing some of Oregon's most elegant and perfumed Pinots since the 2004 vintage. Their 30-acre vineyard outside the town of Dallas, abutting the famed Freedom Hill vineyard where Drews and Pink live, is painstakingly farmed and yields are kept low so production of these wines is limited. Winemaking includes abundant use of whole clusters, which is no doubt responsible for the wines' exotic bouquets and sneaky structure…"

- Josh Raynolds, Vinous - October 2015

David

"...Dallas growers Dena Drews and Ernie Pink... showed me this July three of their reserve bottlings and thereby altered my perception of their endeavors. Since these are produced in only one- or two-barrel quantities, they offer an extreme instance of a phenomenon encountered at numerous Willamette addresses, whose really exciting releases are extremely limited. But they also testify, importantly, to what is possible; and what’s possible from this site in these hands revealed itself to be extraordinary!... And what a Syrah!"

- David Schildknecht, The Wine Advocate - October 2013

Wine & Spirits

"Finding that their whole-cluster tannins take some time to integrate, Pink and Drews hold their wines in barrel for up to 18 months - so Amalie Robert is just releasing its 2008s. And what a stellar group of wines: Bright and tart, they possess both transparency and substance, emphasizing notes of rosehips and sandalwood as much as red berries. The pinot noirs alone would likely have earned Amalie Robert a top 100 nod this year. But the winery also produces cool-climate syrah that rivals the best examples from the Sonoma Coast. And the 2009 Heirloom Cameo, their first attempt at a barrel-fermented chardonnay, turned out to be one of our favorite Oregon chardonnays of the year. Ten vintages in, Amalie Robert has hit its stride."

- Luke Sykora, Wine & Spirits Magazine – September 2011

Copyright

© 2005 – 2021 Amalie Robert Estate, LLC

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Amalie Robert Estate Climate Update: 2008 April

Hello,

This is the climate update for the month of April, 2008. The Spring of 2008 has been cold, or maybe I just need a better hat.

We have accumulated 1.83 inches of rain since the 1st of April and that is 1.08 inches less than the same period in 2007. Q1 2008 rainfall was 15.24 inches and was 2.93 inches more than the 12.31 inches of rain for Q1 2007. The historical 30 year average for Q1 is 19.72 inches of rain, or 536,384 gallons per acre. Also, based on this historical average, we can expect Q2 to provide about 5.91 inches of rain, +/- 5.91 inches of rain.

We have not recorded any degree days this month. Our highest high was 80.90 and our lowest high was 76.70. Our lowest low was 27.60 and our highest low was 29.30 degrees Fahrenheit. For comparison, we did not record any degree days for April 2007; about 25 degree days for April 2006 and 49 degree days for April 2005.

The vineyard floor has been chisel plowed and rotovated in alternate rows and an early Round-up spray was applied in alternate rows. Note to self - replacement chisel plow springs are about $32.80, each plus s/h.

We experienced bud break in the Chardonnay on April 28, and it was the only variety brazen enough to do so. As they say, "he, who travels fastest, travels alone."

Once again, we appear "on-track" for the vintage of the century

Ernie