Owned and farmed by Quail Run Vineyards, Sundown Vineyard is the source of some of our best lots of Cabernet Franc.
Planted in 1999 in silty loam soils, the Cabernet Franc blocks in this vineyard include both cordon trained vines and the Scott Henry trellis system, with slight eastern aspect leading to steep terraces backed by high mountains, offering high sunlight with protection from afternoon heat, leading to cool evenings. We manage the canopies closely to minimize methoxypyrazines to balance the typical varietal green and vegetal characters, and to bring out more of the intense floral and fruit character of the wine. Sundown Vineyard is Salmon-Safe, Oregon Certified Sustainable, and L.I.V.E. certified.
The vintage started out just ahead of historically cool vintages - a wet, cool spring from March through May. In fact, growing degree days indicated the 2017 vintage was on track to be among the coolest of the decade, however, what really marked the vintage - dozens of wildfires that swept through the west coast. The fires started in July and lasted for months, burning hundreds of thousands of acres in Washington and Oregon, blanketing the cities of Seattle and Portland in smoke and ash. The flames came within a few miles of some vineyards, but didn't inflict any damage, unlike the devastating wine country wildfires in California. That said, many vintners took extra precautions in the vineyards. Luckily, most grapes came to wineries unscathed, with only a few reports showing smoke taint in the resulting wines. As for the fruit through out the state, grapes were showing excellent concentration, complexity and natural acidity. Whereas 2016 had warmer than normal conditions in most areas in August, bringing on an early vintage - with many vineyards in Southern Oregon starting to harvest white varieties as early as the second week in August - 2017 was on a more "normal" schedule with the first picks starting at the very end of August and early September. Overall, quality was exceptional.