Fall is here!
Happy harvest! Fall is the busiest time of year at the Compton Winery. Mother nature sets the schedule, and we follow along. By October 1st we will have crushed over 100 tons of grapes here! The whole Compton team has been working hard harvesting and processing grapes, (and all the cleaning that entails), bottling and labeling new wines, and keeping the Tasting Room well stocked and lively. During this busy time, we often cook and eat our family meals at the winery. Yes, you do smell something good wafting down the hallway! Breakfasts, lunches and dinners made with produce, eggs, meats, homemade cheese and bread from our farm sustain us through the long hours. Additional meals and treats from our local favorites help fill in the gaps, along with lots of coffee.
Happy harvest! Fall is the busiest time of year at the Compton Winery. Mother nature sets the schedule, and we follow along. By October 1st we will have crushed over 100 tons of grapes here! The whole Compton team has been working hard harvesting and processing grapes, (and all the cleaning that entails), bottling and labeling new wines, and keeping the Tasting Room well stocked and lively. During this busy time, we often cook and eat our family meals at the winery. Yes, you do smell something good wafting down the hallway! Breakfasts, lunches and dinners made with produce, eggs, meats, homemade cheese and bread from our farm sustain us through the long hours. Additional meals and treats from our local favorites help fill in the gaps, along with lots of coffee.
What magic happened in the vineyards this year to grow all these grapes? The 2023 growing season started off with a late cold spring, delaying bud break, and that saved us from the threat of a late frost (as happened in 2022). May weather brought warm days and heat spikes that helped to accelerate growth and shortened the time between bud break and flowering. Summer months were relatively warm and mild, with more heat spikes in August to help the vines catch up. The rain came in September and rehydrated the vines just enough to push grapes to desired ripeness, and it was all hands on deck to harvest and crush quickly. The 2023 vintage looks very promising.
As Crush winds down, let’s pop some bubbly and celebrate! Our Winery’s 20th anniversary year is the perfect time to release our first méthode champenoise sparkling wine, Compton Brut. Four years in the making, this elegant blend of old vine Pinot Noir and Chardonnay transformed from still wine to sparkling, all inside the bottle.
Thank you for being a member of our Compton Wine Club family and joining us in celebrating our 20th anniversary year. We raise a glass to you! Cheers! Matt and Tabitha Compton
October 2023
COMPTON PICKUP CLUB
THE WINES
Compton Wine Club Selections
October 2023
Compton Old Vine Series
BRUT SPARKLING WINE 2019 – NEW
Our new bubbly is here to celebrate our 20th anniversary year! Compton Brut is made with old vine Pinot Noir from Mary’s Peak Vineyard and old vine 108 clone Chardonnay from Hoot & Howl Vineyard in Philomath, Oregon, in the traditional method of sparkling wine making: a slow, elegant transformation from still wine to sparkling, all occurring inside the bottle.
Compton Old Vine Series
Concrete Egg Chardonnay, 2019
Classic Oregon Chardonnay with a perfumed nose of citron, white flowers, and vanilla. Balanced acidity, juicy fruit, delicate stone fruit – white peaches and white nectarines – finishing crisp and refreshing. Old Vine Chardonnay from the Compton Estate and Hoot & Howl Vineyard is whole-cluster pressed and placed in our concrete egg tank to ferment and age for 8 months before bottling. Concrete allows for a slow, cool fermentation with the wine circulating on the lees for a round, creamy mouthfeel without any use of oak.
Garden Series
Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, 2022 – NEW
The 2022 vintage of our popular Garden Series Pinot Noir is a blend of old vine Pinot Noir from three vineyards set in the coastal foothills in Philomath, Oregon. Fruit from each vineyard was fermented separately then aged in French oak barrels for ten months before being blended and bottled.
Garden Series
BoVine Pinot Noir, 2021
Matt Compton helped to plant BoVine Vineyard with Pommard and Wadenswil clones of Pinot Noir in Alpine, Oregon in 2008. The land was formerly cow pasture and we appreciate their bovine contributions to the soil. BoVine PInot Noir is aged for 10 months in French Oak before blending and bottling. Drink now or hold in the cellar for later.
Compton Old Vine Series
Mary’s Peak Vineyard Pinot Noir, 2019 – NEW
Mary’s Peak Vineyard was planted between 1977 and 1980 to the Wädenswil clone of Pinot Noir. Situated on East-facing slopes of alluvial, sedimentary loam soil, and in the rain shadow of the highest mountain in the Oregon Coast range, Marys Peak, this dry-farmed vineyard consistently grows top quality Pinot Noir. Only 79 cases were produced of this vintage.
October 2023 RECIPE
Pumpkin Risotto with Goat Cheese
Pumpkin Risotto with Goat Cheese
When Matt Compton isn’t making wine, tending vineyards, or working our family farm, you might just find him making fresh chevre with milk from our goats. Creamy, tangy chevre is the perfect topping for the fall flavors of this pumpkin risotto.
Serve with Compton Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, and we suggest using the same wine in the recipe for a truly harmonious food and wine pairing.
Ingredients:
4 cups bone broth or vegetable stock
1 cup canned pumpkin puree (you can also substitute fresh cooked and pureed pumpkin or butternut squash)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 shallot, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 ½ cups Arborio rice
½ cup wine
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (save some for toppings)
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Fresh black pepper
Toppings- optional
1 cup crumbled goat cheese
½ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup roasted and salted pepitas
Instructions
- 1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together stock and pumpkin, simmer. Cover and keep warm.2. Melt butter in a large dutch oven or saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and salt; cook 2-3 minutes until tender. Add thyme and rice and cook one minute longer. Add wine and stir until it has been completely absorbed, making sure to incorporate any tasty browned shallot bits stuck to the pan.3. To achieve creamy texture you will need to slowly stir in the stock, one ladle at a time. Add a ladle of warm stock and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated. Add another ladle of stock, continue the process allowing stock to absorb in between each addition. Cook until rice is done, but has a bite to it, it should be creamy in texture and will take about 20-25 minutes.4. Mix in parmesan, half of the parsley, and nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with remaining parsley, goat cheese, dried cranberries and pepitas. Serve immediately.