A Vineyard Story

Vintage 2025

  • More to come…

The Best of Times

  • It’s hard to imagine a more transitional/transformational set of geo-political events than we are ALL currently navigating.

    In this moment there are choices to make. Delmas | SJR Vineyard is committed to making the needed investments to deliver world-class wine positioning! As an estate operation in the Rocks District, we are fortunate. Global recognition is growing for this appellation and its wines. It is our belief that the best days are ahead for the Rocks District, Walla Walla Valley and globally distinctive fine wines!!

    To that end, we are launching a replanting program in 2025 over two (2) acres; Viognier, Grenache blanc, Bourboulenc, Cinsault, Grenache and Mourvedre will go in this year on three (3) different rootstocks. Spacing will be wider (9 x 6) to allow for the next 50+ years of plant growth, and in support of our mini-head-trained farming rigor (MHT).

    The diversity of Rhone varieties, clones and rootstocks @ SJR Vineyard will provide a more expansive toolbox from which Brooke can address each vintage; given on-going refinements/understandings of this singular PLACE.

    An additional acre has been removed this year and will remain fallow for a period prior to replanting it.

    We are offering wine tasting (for the first time) this year in Walla Walla and have plans for a small facility at the estate soon. Our range of small-lot wine offerings is currently at five; Viognier, Grenache, Syrah, the Peddler magnums, and B | D | R (red blend). B | D | R (white blend) will be arriving next.

    Finally, with Brooke completely in control of viticulture and winemaking, our Family vision for the estate (in its 19th leaf) has been realized. She is one of a very few that has this unique skill set… capable of delivering on the promise of SJR Vineyard fruit in bottle. Further, she has the hands-on experience at SJR Vineyard to capture each vintage’s gift… ensuring future dining-wine pleasure. It is indeed the “best of times”!

A Long Time Coming

  • Clearly, everything about the wine industry is time, and place, sensitive. And farming stands at its core!

    Fundamentally, wine grapes are tied to mother nature and seasonality. Fine wine farming is dependent on your ability to attend to the moment. A hands-on farming focus is critical to insure a vineyard’s potential capacity to express PLACE. To this end, and from the onset, we have poured our resources and physical efforts.

    Mother nature is relentlessly persistent and we, as stewards of the land, must learn to adapt to its always changing/complex rhythms…most of which are not understood. We become more comfortable each year by working the vine rows, being observant and respondent in-the-now, while reflecting on each vintage’s conditions. Ultimately, this rigor serves to shape each wines quality… of our wines for Delmas, as well as other respected vintners we have previously sold fruit to over these last 14 vintages.

    Through it all, SJR Vineyard has proven to be a PLACE of singular wine expression within the Rocks District. We could not be more excited for the future, as Delmas takes its inevitable step forward with Brooke Delmas Robertson, as winemaker.

    Celebrating her many contributions at SJR Vineyard as Viticulturist, Brooke began this new role with the 2023 vintage. A new chapter of wine expression begins, with hands-on farming of SJR Vineyard remaining the cornerstone of Delmas.

    A new wine (B | D | R) memorializes this long-planned, step forward for the Robertson Family.

    Brooke’s vision for the estate includes new Rhône-varieties and clones (red and white), all of which will be planted on various rootstocks with wider plant spacing beginning in 2024. The B | D | R program expands our toolbox to address vintage variation, climactic challenges - and will create the estates most complex blends.

2020… What a Year

  • As apocalypses go, I guess it could be a lot worse…

    This year has provided a great deal of challenges, but also an immense amount of ingenuity and new ideas to battle with the new reality we all face.

    SJR rode through this season with little to no major issues (knock on wood this continues), and the vines have progressed to a state of near perfect ripeness. We will be harvesting in the next few weeks, and will be playing with picking at two different times for our co-ferment in order to allow ourselves more blending options.

    With all of our wines being made solely from SJR fruit, it is time to expand our blending ability!

    For the first time Delmas will be taking back our Grenache, and making a Field Blend wine. It was important for Team Delmas to let the Grenache get to its optimum level of maturity before producing it for ourselves. The French (of course) would say that in it’s 14th leaf we are about 6 years too early! But we feel as though we have come to an understanding with our little “sumo wrestler” vines. We are very excited to be able to present you with our newest bottling (release 2022).

    The MHT is performing beautifully, and true to form has ripened the fruit evenly. The heat we began seeing in late June staggered out Veraison a bit, but no sunburn occurred on our fair little berries. Another miracle of the MHT!

    Viognier is first up on the Harvest docket… Watch out World! Delmas will be making 4 wines this year! Stepping into the big time.

Runnin’ Down a Dream

  • Harvest this year @ SJR Vineyard was completed by 9/14. Fermentation went well and we were pressed-off before the end of September. So far, so good! Time for a little reflection…. Our first harvest experiences in the 1980’s captured the “prospects of promise”.  A new food and wine culture was emerging in California; and the “boomers” were coming of age. Money was not the driving force behind fine wine brands at that time.

    The winemaking and viticulture talent pool was not very deep; experimentation, creativity and education were encouraged. Existing farming and wine making practices were being challenged, and respect for higher quality was being fostered. There was a willingness to work hard together to create wine brands and destinations with global impact. There was a collective DREAM in Northern California… a dream that went much further than individual financial success. I feel a very similar shift happening today in Walla Walla Valley. Allow me to refer to it as WW Valley, Version 3.0. The early pioneer WW Valley Dreamers initiated the WW Valley AVA in 1984. The second important group of WW Valley Dreamers arrived beginning in 2005; expanding the national reputation and the required/supportive infrastructure.

    Now, with the advent of, “The most distinctive AVA in the United States… making some of the best wines in America”(Wine Spectator on The Rocks District), our first international producer and new California vineyard/producer investment being felt; we arrive at the next important step forward in this Dreamscape.

    Surely, more investment in infrastructure will pay BIG dividends. A new vision for the future, built on WW Valley wine grapes and farming/cellar talent working closely together to raise all boats, will deliver a globally significant wine destination: the promise realized.

This Old Man

  • No, I am not about to launch into a litany of my personal aches and pains due to pruning the MHT this spring with Brooke!  Truth is I was not very much support…Brooke is the MHT Champion….and, youth is not to be trifled with in the vineyard!

    Finally, (insert drum roll), we can announce that vine age is definitely making its presence felt at SJR Vineyard.

    We have noticed heightened complexity in Delmas Syrah over these last three vintages. The 2016 is our finest wine yet (to be released this October) and the 2017 (still in barrel) is simply going to be a remarkable wine.

    This year SJR celebrates its 12th leaf. The winter was uneventful… with no bud damage whatsoever. In fact, the vines are quite fruitful this year!

    The red blocks (Syrah/Grenache) are quite happy with their new (as of 2017) MHT training form: the goblet architecture will likely take another year to establish the desired/perennial spur positions.

    YES, that’s right….perennial wood at SJR due to Brooke’s new training form; soon to be recognized as a farming feature within the Rocks District.

    Come see us…we would love to share the new MHT training form with you…the only perennial wood vineyard this side of the Cascades!

    Oh, and in case you did not know…our first Delmas harvest of Viognier will be this year!  Condrieu is our inspiration.