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• 1. [Image] Volunteers picking Merlot at Rocky Knoll

  	Rocky Knoll’s grapes grow in one of the region’s prime locations, a prominent knoll bordering the Cascade foothills on the east slope of the Rogue Valley. Clay soil low on the flanks of the hill quickly ...
  	Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Volunteers picking Merlot at Rocky Knoll Author: MJ Daspit; Eric Weisinger, Rocky Knoll Vineyards (Or.) Rocky Knoll’s grapes grow in one of the region’s prime locations, a prominent knoll bordering the Cascade foothills on the east slope of the Rogue Valley. Clay soil low on the flanks of the hill quickly yields to the rocky, sandy loam that characterizes most of the vineyard. The vines progress halfway up the hillside below exposed sandstone outcroppings. The region benefits from a climate similar to that of the Bordeaux and Mediterranean regions famed for their wines. Dunbar Carpenter planted the original vineyard in the mid-1970s and it has been added to over the years. In keeping with the experimentation of the region’s early grape growers, the vineyard was terraced east to west, a laborious process that yielded a distinctive vineyard and distinctive fruit. The vines, a combination of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, now range from nearly thirty years old to eleven years old, offering a complexity of character unparalleled in the Rogue Valley. Young, ripe, and fruity tannins emblematic of the best Southern Oregon wines are integrated with the dark, aged full body of the older vine fruit, rewarding creativity on the part of the winemaker. The wines are forward and complex, distinguished by their black fruit and lingering finish. (Jan. 2014) Title: Volunteers picking Merlot at Rocky Knoll Author: MJ Daspit; Eric Weisinger, Rocky Knoll Vineyards (Or.) Rocky Knoll’s grapes grow in one of the region’s prime locations, a prominent knoll bordering the Cascade foothills on the east slope of the Rogue Valley. Clay soil low on the flanks of the hill quickly yields to the rocky, sandy loam that characterizes most of the vineyard. The vines progress halfway up the hillside below exposed sandstone outcroppings. The region benefits from a climate similar to that of the Bordeaux and Mediterranean regions famed for their wines. Dunbar Carpenter planted the original vineyard in the mid-1970s and it has been added to over the years. In keeping with the experimentation of the region’s early grape growers, the vineyard was terraced east to west, a laborious process that yielded a distinctive vineyard and distinctive fruit. The vines, a combination of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, now range from nearly thirty years old to eleven years old, offering a complexity of character unparalleled in the Rogue Valley. Young, ripe, and fruity tannins emblematic of the best Southern Oregon wines are integrated with the dark, aged full body of the older vine fruit, rewarding creativity on the part of the winemaker. The wines are forward and complex, distinguished by their black fruit and lingering finish. (Jan. 2014) Close