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About Us – What began simply as a way to “get back to the land” after a decades long departure from ranching roots in Colorado, MonksGate Vineyard has become the heart-and-soul expression of our devotion to responsible farming and the crafting of premium wines. Our 50-acre farm is located in the now-acclaimed Yamhill-Carlton AVA of Oregon’s Northern Willamette Valley where we, and subsequently our daughter and Second-Generation farmer Rebecca, were drawn to the maritime climate of cool nights, warm dry summer days and, of course, the opportunity to produce stellar wines!
Our vineyard site enjoys moderate elevation changes of 200 to 460 feet on predominantly south to southwest slopes allowing for even ripening across the blocks, which is useful in inclement years. The predominant soil type is Willakenzie, a silty clay loam over siltstone, although the gophers give rise to occasional piles of bright red clay-based soils found in the hills of a neighboring region adding to the diversity of our site. Mother Nature does our irrigating and we practice sustainable farming methods to ensure that the land will be environmentally and economically viable for generations to come.
And we have been “blessed” so to speak in our neighbors as well. Our property abuts that owned by a nearby Trappist Abbey whose monks had for years walked across our land as a form of meditation and who, after an unexpected chance encounter with us when two monks appeared from among our trees, became a source of historical knowledge about the local flora and fauna. They watched with pleasure as we began the daunting task of taming the acreage that had been claimed by 30-foot high fir trees, 20-foot high scrub oak and Oregon’s weed of choice, blackberries.
And, yes, we did install a gateway, complete with statue of Saint Francis of Assisi, in the deer fencing to assure the monks may continue their contemplative walks unimpeded. Thus, a name was born!
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