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CapitalPress.com
April 14, 2017
People & Places
A glass of bubbly, Oregon-style
Andrew Davis adds
sparkle to Oregon’s
wine production
Capital Press
Calendar
Entire contents copyright © 2017
EO Media Group
dba Capital Press
An independent newspaper
published every Friday.
Capital Press (ISSN 0740-3704) is
published weekly by EO Media Group,
1400 Broadway St. NE, Salem OR 97301.
Periodicals postage paid at Portland, OR,
and at additional mailing offices.
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
If Oregon becomes a hotbed of champagne-style sparkling wine production, industry observers say Andrew Davis and his mobile bottling
business will deserve much of the credit.
Western Innovator
Andrew Davis
Position: Founder of Radiant Spar-
kling Wine Co., McMinnville, Ore.
What he does: Provides consulting
and a mobile bottling operation to
produce sparkling wine using “meth-
ode champenoise.”
Background: Worked 10 years at Argyle Winery in Dundee, Ore.,
before starting his business.
At the heart of his work: Believes Oregon’s Willamette Valley
can produce high-quality sparkling wines and become the “New
World” equivalent of the Champagne region of France.
Online: http://radiantsparkling.com/
wine. Given that experience, “I
knew the promise of sparkling
in the Willamette Valley,” he
said.
He also knew the vintners
interested in making sparkling
wine would be shooting for the
same quality — and spendy
price range — as their Pinot
noir. They wouldn’t want to
produce simple wine with big
bubbles, “Big gushy wines that
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NE, Salem, Ore. A public hearing
will be held to receive comments of
the commission’s 2017-18 proposed
budget and the assessment rates for
the 2017 crop year. Members of the
public are welcome to present their
comments, either orally or in writing.
Written comments must be submit-
ted before April 20.
Through Sunday, April 30 Friday-Saturday
Wooden Shoe Tulip Fest 9 a.m.- April 21-22
6 p.m. Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm,
33814 S. Meridian Road, Wood-
burn, Ore. Stroll through 40 acres
of stunning beauty, experience ex-
pansive views of vineyards, distant
mountains and a few mud puddles.
Fresh flowers, food and fun. Cost: $5
per person or $20 per car. Website:
www.woodenshoe.com
Saturday, April 15
Oregon Women for Agriculture
30th annual auction and dinner. 5-9
p.m. Linn County Fair & Expo Cen-
ter, 3700 Knox Butte Road E, Alba-
ny, Ore. Website: owaonline.org
Wednesday, April 19
Adjuvants and Insect Control in
Cranberries 4-6 p.m. Dan Coming-
dore of Wilbur Ellis will be present-
ing, with questions and answers to
follow. Weather permitting, it will in-
clude a field trip to a farm. Langlois
Lions Club, Langlois, Ore. Cost:
Free
Wednesday-Friday
April 19-21
National Organic Standards
Board meeting. 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Sher-
aton Denver Downtown Hotel, 1550
Court Place, Denver, Colo. During
meetings, the board listens to public
comments, discusses agenda items
and then votes in a public forum.
Website: http://bit.ly/2gKsKgb
Thursday, April 20
Four-Part Farm/Ranch Succes-
sion Planning Workshop. 6-8:30
p.m. Canby High School, 721 SW
Fourth Ave., Canby, Ore. A free
four-part workshop on succession
planning with one-hour personal
counseling sessions for your family
after each workshop. Light dinner 6
to 6:30, workshop 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Course 1 on April 20 is an Over-
view of Farm Succession planning.
Course 2 on May 4 is Goal Setting
for You and Your Family, Course 3
on May 18 is Getting Organized, and
Course 4 on June 1 is Passing on
Management Roles. RSVP required.
Organized by Clackamas Small
Business Development Center and
Rogue Farm Corps. Cost: Free.
http://bit.ly/2opTHqO
Oregon Processed Vegetable
Commission. 7 p.m. Oregon Farm
Bureau Building, 1320 Capitol St.
Established 1928
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Capital Press Managers
John Perry ................................Publisher
Joe Beach ..................................... Editor
Elizabeth Yutzie Sell .... Advertising Director
Carl Sampson ................Managing Editor
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By ERIC MORTENSON
McMINNVILLE, Ore. —
Oregon wine is already a big
deal, especially the interna-
tionally acclaimed Pinot noir
coming from the Willamette
Valley and other regions, but
the next big thing may be bub-
bling up.
Industry observers say spar-
kling wine is on the verge of
breakout production and could
become the American version
of high-quality bubbly associat-
ed with the Champagne region
of France. And if that happens,
the industry will raise a glass to
Andrew Davis, whose Radiant
Sparkling Wine Co. is making
it possible for even small win-
eries to produce what they’ve
long known was possible but
didn’t pencil out.
Making sparkling wine
takes more time, equipment
and storage space than most
wineries can afford. Davis,
a veteran of Oregon’s wine
scene, provides a mobile unit
that bottles on-site for the criti-
cal secondary fermentation pe-
riod. He also prepares a yeast
culture specific to his client’s
wine and provides consulta-
tion on the harvest.
Since starting in 2013,
Radiant Sparkling Wine has
grown its client list to 34
vineyards. Sparkling wine
sits three to five years before
it’s ready to drink, and much
of what Davis and his clients
have produced is just begin-
ning to trickle out. Early re-
views indicate the reception is
“astounding,” Davis said.
Davis previously worked
10 years at Argyle Winery in
Dundee, which was an Oregon
pioneer in making sparkling
Capital Press
Second Annual Horsedrawn Ve-
hicle and Equipment Auction, 10 a.m.-
5 p.m. Yamhill County Fairgrounds,
2070 NE Lafayette Ave., McMinnville,
Ore. Preview starts at 8 a.m. both
days. Auction benefits the Youth Ed-
ucational Scholarship Foundation.
www.pacificoverlandexpo.com
Saturday, April 22
Local Meat Marketing and USDA
Processing Workshops. 10 a.m.-2
p.m. Carnation Farms, Carnation,
Wash. Workshops will focus on
market demand for local meats, eco-
nomics and processing options to
help determine what is best for your
livestock enterprise. Contact: Patrice
Barrentine at King County Agriculture
Program at Patrice.Barrentine@king-
county.gov or (206) 477-1556. Cost:
Free. Website: https://goo.gl/forms/
JENmH1PAWkQfZDaH2
Map and Compass Workshop. 9
a.m.-4 p.m. University of Idaho Exten-
sion Office in Kootenai County, 1808
North Third St., Coeur d’Alene, Ida-
ho. The program features 2-3 hours
indoors interpreting various natural
resource maps, followed by field ac-
tivities using magnetic compasses.
Those wishing to participate should
pre-register by Friday, April 14, at the
University of Idaho Extension office in
Kootenai County. Cost: $10. Website:
www.uidaho.edu/extension/forestry/
calendar
Saturday-Tuesday
April 22-25
California FFA State Convention.
Fresno Convention & Entertainment
Center, 700 M St., Fresno, Calif.
Website: www.calaged.org
Monday, April 24
Passing it On: Farm and Ranch
Succession Workshop. 5:30-8:30
p.m. OSU Extension Auditorium,
2050 NE Lafayette Ave., McMinn-
ville, Ore. Two-thirds of Oregon’s ag-
ricultural land will be changing hands
in the next 20 years, but the vast ma-
jority of farmers and ranchers don’t
have succession plans. Want to hear
about the trends in farm/ranch suc-
cession, access to land, and land
use? Want to learn the steps for pre-
paring a succession plan? Want to
hear the stories of local farmers who
have gone through the process?
want to gush out of the glass,”
as Davis puts it. “We will never
shoot for $15 to $20 for spar-
kling.”
Making sparkling wine by
what’s called the “méthode
champenoise,” or Champagne
method, is a lengthy, complex
process.
The wine, most often made
from slightly under-ripe Pinot
noir or Chardonnay grapes, is
fermented in a barrel first, then
bottled for the secondary fer-
mentation, which includes add-
ing the yeast and a bit of sugar.
The bottle is sealed with a tem-
porary “crown cap.” Next is the
“riddling” process, in which the
bottles are set at an angle, neck
down, so cloudy yeast particu-
lates settle at the opening. The
bottle necks are later frozen,
turned upright and the cap re-
moved. Pressure forces out the
frozen bits of yeast in a process
called “disgorging.”
Last comes the cork, foil
covering and the familiar wire
halter that holds everything in
place.
At least two companies, Do-
maine Serene and Willamette
Valley Vineyards, are building
new facilities to produce spar-
kling wine themselves. Davis
takes that as a compliment.
“That means there’s traction
to this,” he said. “For years we
talked about Oregon’s cool cli-
mate wines. What’s more cool
climate than sparkling?”
Thomas Houseman, the
winemaker at Anne Amie in
the Carlton area, recently had
Davis bring his mobile bottling
trailer out to bottle Brut Rose’,
a pink, dry sparkling wine.
Anne Amie has been making
sparkling wine since 2011, but
previously had to ship wine to
California for processing.
He said one of Anne Amie’s
Pinot noir vineyards is an espe-
cially cool site that made ripen-
ing difficult. “I kept fighting it
to make ‘still’ wine,” House-
man said. It’s much more suit-
ed to produce sparkling wine,
he said. “It’s nice to feel like it
isn’t a struggle to do.”
Davis said each wine va-
rietal has its “Old World” and
“New World” equivalent. Bur-
gundy, in France, was the origi-
nal home of fine Pinot noir, and
Oregon has become its counter-
part.
“Nowhere in the world
makes sparkling wine compa-
rable to Champagne,” he said.
“Oregon could.”
GASES / WELDING / SAFETY / FIRE
www.oxarc.com
20 Northwest Locations
Learn about recent research by
OSU, PSU and Rogue Farm Corps
on agricultural land transition. Hear
from attorney Joe Hobson about the
steps to passing your legacy to the
next generation. Learn from a land-
owner panel who has been through
the process. And hear about how
conservation easements can be a
tool to help you plan for succession
and leave a legacy. RSVP to Heath-
er Stoven: Heather.Stoven@oregon-
state.edu, 503-434-8910.
workshop. Light dinner 6 to 6:30, work-
shop 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Course 2 on
May 4 is Goal Setting for You and Your
Family, Course 3 on May 18 is Getting
Organized, and Course 4 on June 1
is Passing on Management Roles.
RSVP required. Organized by Clack-
amas Small Business Development
Center and Rogue Farm Corps. Cost:
Free. http://bit.ly/2opTHqO
Oregon Blueberry Commission.
Noon. Chemeketa Events at Wine-
ma, 4001 Winema Place NE, Salem,
Ore. A public hearing will be held on
the commission’s proposed budget
for the next fiscal year. For informa-
tion, call 503-364-2944.
Ag Innovation Showcase. Uni-
versity of California-Davis Con-
ference Center, 550 Alumni Lane,
Davis, Calif. Themes of the 2017
showcase include automation and
robotics, food safety, boosting nu-
trition and sensory value and in-
novation in the livestock and dairy
sectors. Website: www.foodaginno-
vation.com
Thursday, April 27
Growing Forest Mushrooms
workshop. 6:15-8:45 p.m. The work-
shop will cover techniques for grow-
ing a variety of edible forest mush-
rooms, including oyster and shitake
mushrooms. Kootenai County Fair-
grounds, Building 2, 4056 N. Gov-
ernment Way, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Cost: $15 by April 21. Website: http://
www.uidaho.edu/extension/forestry.
Friday, April 28
Forest Edibles workshop. 1-5 p.m.
This workshop will cover the range of
edible non-timber products that can
be harvested from forests. Kootenai
County Fairgrounds, Building 2, 4056
N. Government Way, Coeur d’Alene,
Idaho. Cost: $15 by April 21. Website:
http://www.uidaho.edu/extension/for-
estry.
Saturday-Sunday
April 29-30
Oregon Ag Fest. 8:30 a.m.-5
p.m. Oregon State Fairgrounds, 2330
17th St. NE, Salem, Ore. Ag Country
activities, a petting zoo, pony rides,
toy tractor races, a craft and garden
show and family entertainment make
for a fun and informative day. A ranch
breakfast is served on Saturday from
8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Cost is $6. Sunday
Ag Fest hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Ag
Fest cost: Free for 12 and under. $9
for 13 and older. Free parking. http://
oragfest.com/
Tuesday, May 2
Fungicide presentation. 4-6 p.m.
Bandon, Ore. Lindsay Well of Ocean
Spray will speak. A field trip to a farm
will be included. Cost: Free
Thursday, May 4
Four-Part Farm/Ranch Succes-
sion Planning Workshop. 6-8:30 p.m.
Canby High School, 721 SW Fourth
Ave., Canby, Ore. A free four-part
workshop on succession planning
with one-hour personal counseling
sessions for your family after each
Monday-Tuesday
May 8-9
Wednesday-Thursday
May 10-11
Managing for Resilience: North-
west Grazing Conference 2017. 8
a.m.-7 p.m. Pendleton Convention
Center, 1601 Westgate, Pendleton,
Ore. Featured speakers are Kit Pha-
ro and Fred Provenza. Pharo, cattle
breeder and owner of Pharo Cattle
Co., says, “The most profitable cow-
calf producers that I know of have
a low-input, grass-based program
with very efficient, low-maintenance
cows. These are also the happiest
producers I know of.” Provenza, pro-
fessor emeritus at Utah State Uni-
versity, is part of the BEHAVE team.
BEHAVE principles, based on 30
years of research: If we understand
how animals learn, we can train the
animals to fit the landscapes instead
of changing the landscape to fit the
animals. Cost: $227 by April 14,
$267 after. Website: http://bit.ly/2kp-
T9yb
Thursday-Saturday
May 11-13
87th Washington FFA State Con-
vention. Washington State University,
Pullman. www.washingtonffa.org/cal-
endar/
Thursday, May 18
FSPCA Preventive Controls for
Human Food — One-Day Blended
Course. 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Idaho Wa-
ter Center, 322 E. Front St. Boise,
Idaho. The new Food Safety Mod-
ernization Act (FSMA) regulation
requires every processing facility
to have a trained resource person
or “Preventive Controls Qualified
Individual“ who has completed a
specialized training course (such
as this one) that was developed
by the Food Safety Preventive
Controls Alliance (FSPCA) and is
recognized by the FDA. This per-
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son will oversee the implementation
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other key tasks. Cost: $330. www.
techhelp.org/events/342/fspcaboise-
may2017/
Mail rates paid in advance
Four-Part Farm/Ranch Succes-
sion Planning Workshop. 6-8:30 p.m.
Canby High School, 721 SW Fourth
Ave., Canby, Ore. A free four-part
workshop on succession planning
with one-hour personal counseling
sessions for your family after each
workshop. Light dinner 6 to 6:30,
workshop 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Course
3 on May 18 is Getting Organized,
and Course 4 on June 1 is Pass-
ing on Management Roles. RSVP
required. Organized by Clackamas
Small Business Development Cen-
ter and Rogue Farm Corps. Cost:
Free. http://bit.ly/2opTHqO
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essential rules, obligations, and re-
sponsibilities relating to ownership
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as well as the family values that will
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Saturday-Sunday
May 27-28
Capital Press ag media
Alpaca Shearing Day and Sale.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Alpacas of Ore-
gon, 21345 SW Aebischer Road,
Sherwood, Ore. Join EasyGo
Farm at Alpacas of Oregon and
take a break from the Memorial
Day Winery Tours to watch the
alpacas get their annual hair-
cuts. Get up close, hand feed
them and handle their luxurious
fleece. Shearing Day is Satur-
day. On Sunday, learn to felt an
alpaca gift. Phone 503-348-6954
to reserve a spot. $25-$75 cov-
ers your materials and instruc-
tion. Hand-spinners, knitters and
other fiber artists will find fleece
and yarn. Visitors can chat with
four long-time livestock breeders
who’ve raised llamas, horses,
sheep and goats. www.easygo-
farm.net/AOOMemDay
Wednesday-Friday
May 31-June 2
2017 Oregon Cattlemen Mid-
year Meeting, Wildhorse Casino,
46510 Wildhorse Blvd., Pendleton,
Ore. The annual 2 1/2-day midyear
event is where Oregon cattlemen
and women gather to get updates
on the latest news in Oregon agricul-
ture, hear from top industry speakers
and reconnect with fellow ranchers.
http://orcattle.com/
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Index
Dairy .................................... 12
Idaho ...................................... 9
Livestock ............................. 12
Markets ............................... 13
Opinion .................................. 6
Oregon ................................ 10
Washington ..........................11
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