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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (May 5, 2016)
R R UNCORKED K R I S T I A N F E R R Y AT A B B E L O N E V I N E YA R D New Wine on the Block Pinot noir grapes abound at Abbelone Vineyard STO RY BY R ACHAEL C AR N E S • PH OTOS BY TR AS K B EDO RTHA “O ur property used to be Chris- tensen Brothers Ranch, a work- ing rodeo stock ranch for horses,” says Abbelone Vineyard co-own- er Angela Ferry. In the routine operations of running the winery, “we find lots of remnants from those days, like horse bits and fencing,” she says. Ferry, a financial recruiter, and her husband, Kristian Ferry, a surgical oncologist, bought their 34-acre property in 2002. “We planted our first vines that spring,” Ferry says. Now, 6 acres of the Abbelone site is planted with vines of pinot noir. Abbelone Vineyard takes its name from Kristian Ferry’s mother: “It’s a Danish name, and she passed away the year that they bought the land,” explains general manager Heather Jackson. “She was such an inspiring woman that they named their vineyard after her.” Nestled on the backside of Spencer Butte (across from the Cascade Raptor Center), Abbelone sits “in a bit of a valley,” Ferry says, “and we think this is why our site is unusually hot.” When it comes to pinot, a little heat is a good thing. Though considered around the world to be among the finest wines, pinot grapes are also some of the trickiest fruit to grow, as their densely compact clusters make the grapes particularly vulnerable to several kinds of rot. A couple of years ago, for example, many wineries in Yamhill County, renown for its pinot, lost a great percentage of their yields to persistently cold and rainy 1.50 2 OFF $ NOBLE ESTATE URBAN NOW OPEN Pints of Shock Top $ The Only Cambodian Restaurant In Lane County! Any Entree per order with this ad • exp 6/30/16 limit one coupon per customer Thursday, Friday & Saturday evenings with new urban oasis patio. 560 Commercial Street, West Eugene www.nobleestatewinery.com 4 EUGENE WEEKLY’S UNCORKED 1810 Chambers St, Eugene | 541-343-0485 - Take Out Happy Hour 3-6pm | facebook.com/Angkor WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM
