Happy summer, friends! The time of sunshine and wine is finally here. The Compton Family farm is bursting with cherries and bustling with chickens, ducks, sheep, goats, pigs, dogs and our sons’ many activities. We’ve already enjoyed a few outdoor gatherings with friends and family celebrating graduations, solstice, and just sharing good food and wine under the setting sun.
In the true family-business style of wearing many hats, Matt Compton is both our winemaker and our vineyard manager. Compton wines are made with 100% locally grown grapes produced with a holistic approach from the soil up. We use regenerative agriculture in our vineyards to build resilient ecosystems and grow exceptional fruit to make exceptional wines. Mid-summer in the mid-valley brings bloom and fruit-set in our lush vineyards. Leaves on the vines shade the growing grape clusters from the intense summer sun, and the roots extend so deep down into the ground that irrigation is not needed past the first few summers after planting. We witnessed the delicate beauty of blossoming in late June. Harvest time falls roughly 110 days later, with harvesting for rose and sparkling wines a little earlier.
June marked our third Compton wine bottling of the year with whites, rose and reds. What’s up with the two different Compton wine labels? Our white label Garden Series wines are elegant, clean well-rounded wines and reflect our family’s belief in growing what we eat and doing our best to represent a true sustainable farm-to-table lifestyle. Our Compton Old Vine Series wines (gray labels) are Matt Compton’s finest hand-crafted wines from the best grapes of the vintage from our local vineyards planted over 25 years ago. These wines are estate-grown fruit or specially selected single vineyard wines that are sure to delight. Our old vine wines are released when our winemaker suggests the best reflection of each vintage and include some of our smallest production wines.
We’ve bottled these Garden Series wines in 2024: 2023 Pinot Gris – already earned a 92 rating – 2023 Rose of Pinot Noir – 2023 Chardonnay – (late July release) Oaked Chard is back by popular demand – 2023 Newton Creek Ramato – (late July release) – 2023 Sauvignon Blanc – 2023 Off-Dry Gewürztraminer from Mary’s Peak Vineyard – This is the last year of Mary’s Peak Gewürztraminer. The vines will soon be replaced with Pinot Meunier. We look forward to using Pinot Meunier for our sparkling wine program and perhaps also a single varietal Meunier.
We’ve bottled these Old Vine Series wines in 2024: 2023 Mary’s Peak Vineyard Riesling – only 30 cases produced – 2023 Pinot Blanc – Compton Family Farm Vineyard -2022 Mary’s Peak Vineyard Pinot Noir – only 145 cases produced -2022 Alpine Cuvée Pinot Noir – 2022 Llewellyn Cuvée Pinot Noir – 2022 Croft Vineyard Pinot Noir – A new Pinot Noir in our collection!
We have so many wonderful new wines to look forward to! We sincerely thank you for enjoying the Compton wines our family is so proud to share with you, and thank you again for sharing them with the special people in your life. All of our wines represent the rewarding, hard work we do together, and our joy in the lives we have in this community. With so many distractions in the world, it’s important to be present with each other and support local. We hope to enjoy some wine in the sun with you soon!
Cheers!
Cheers, Matt & Tabitha Compton
July 2024
COMPTON PICK-UP CLUB
THE WINES
Garden Series
Sauvignon Blanc, 2023 (2 & 6 Mix Clubs)
Oregon grapes meet New Zealand style and it tastes like summer! We always make sure our Wine Club Members get to enjoy our small production Sauvignon Blanc before it’s gone. 100% Willamette Valley Sauvignon Blanc, organically grown by our friends at family-owned Croft Vineyards.
Garden Series
Pinot Gris, 2023, 92 rating (6 Mix Club)
New News! 92 Rating 100% dry-farmed Willamette Valley Pinot Gris from a superstar lineup of vineyards: Compton Family Farms, Newton Creek, Hoot & Howl, Logsdon Ridge and Mary’s Peak. The 2023 growing season produced outstanding quality fruit to make wonderful wines.
Old Vine Collection
Pinot Blanc, 2022 (6 Mix Club)
Tabitha’s favorite! Estate Pinot Blanc vines were planted in 1997 at our Compton Family Farms Vineyard in Philomath, Oregon. This Southeast facing vineyard is lower elevation and benefits from the rich soil series of the Willamette Valley. The cooler micro-climate here allows us to pick our Pinot Blanc later in the season when the flavors are full and expressive.
Garden Series
OSU Woodhall Vineyard Pinot Noir, 2021 (2 Red Club)
A blend of old vine Pinot Noir clones from A and C blocks at Woodhall III Vineyard in Alpine, Oregon, aged 10 months on 20% new French Oak before blending and bottling. Worthy of cellaring but also so delicious today.
Mary’s Peak Vineyard Pinot Noir, 2019 (6 Mix & 6 Red Clubs)
We reserve this special small-lot wine for our wine club members and in the Tasting Room. 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, Mary’s Peak, this dry-farmed vineyard consistently grows top quality Pinot Noir.
Alpine Cuvée Pinot Noir, 2017 (6 Mix & 6 Red Clubs) 93 RATING
A blend of old-vine pinot noir from two dry-farmed vineyards in Alpine, Oregon: Woodhall III Vineyard, planted in 1976, and Bovine Vineyard, planted in 2008. Soils are Basalt and Red Jory series volcanic soils that typically show redder fruit aromas and flavors and elegant tannins.
Old Vine Series
Llewellyn Cuvée Pinot Noir, 2017 (6 Mix & 6 Red Clubs) 93 RATING
Llewellyn Cuvée Pinot Noir, 2018 (2 Mix & 2 Red Clubs) 92 RATING
A blend of old-vine Pommard, Wädenswil and Dijon 115 pinot noir from three dry-farmed vineyards off of Llewellyn Road south of Corvallis/Philomath: Compton, Hoot & Howl, and Mary’s Peak Vineyard. These vineyards have alluvial and marine sedimentary soils which grow Pinot Noir that exhibits voluptuous and denser dark red berry and blue/black fruit with darker floral earth tones and bigger, heavier tannins.
July 2024 RECIPE
Summer Crostini of Pinot Noir Cherries, Chevre and Thyme
Pairs with Compton Pinot Noir
Ingredients:
Sliced baguette (any bread is okay)
Cherries pitted and halved
Pinot Noir
Goat cheese (choose your favorite)
Prosciutto (optional)
Thyme (fresh or dried)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Sautéed Cherries: Save some of the cherries uncooked for garnish. Butter your pan on medium heat and toss in the halved cherries. Sauté for 1-2 minutes, then add a generous splash of Pinot Noir and cook for another minute. Stir in a generous glug of balsamic and a dash of thyme and let rest as you make the crostini’s. You can also cook the cherries in a pan on your grill.
Crostini: Lightly brush both sides of the sliced baguette with olive oil
In Oven: Preheat to 400 degrees. Arrange on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. SET A TIMER to prevent burning. Bake for 5-7 minutes, flip over, and bake an additional 5-7 minutes until the slices are toasted to your liking. The crostini are done when they achieve a golden-brown surface with a lightly crispy interior. If you dare to broil, keep your eyes on it, and a quick 1-2 minutes each side may be all you need.
On a grill: Use grill tongs to flip the oiled bread to toast both sides. Remove from heat when you have the desired golden crispiness and appetizing grill marks.
Assembly: Take the still warm crostini and spread generously with goat cheese, layer on the Prosciutto and sautéed cherries, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with more fresh thyme, salt, and pepper to tase. Add a few fresh cherries on top