A couple of mornings back, I was taking a walk just as the sun was rising. It was cold. There were a few patches of ice on the sidewalk. Christmas lights were up on houses. I was the only crazy person walking that hour of the morning in the cold. With no earbuds and no screens, I soaked it all up. There is something I enjoy so much when the day is opening up to all of the possibilities that lie ahead. Each and every day is a new start, a new beginning to enjoy what is right in front of us. What are you taking in today that warms your heart and puts a smile on your face?

I found this interesting, but maybe you won't. Jackson Family Wines Customer Transformation (CX) Makeover.

James Suckling's Top 100 US Wines. Congrats to Arterberry Maresh for grabbing the number 3 slot with their 2022 Chardonnay!

​Robb's Report for Thanksgiving didn't include any Oregon wines. How can we change this?

This has nothing to do with wine, but there are some incredible pictures from National Geographic's pictures of the year.

Samantha Cole-Johnson from Jancis Robinson reporting on Harvest 2024 in Oregon and California.

Did you hear Block 55 now integrates with Bottle 360? If all of that is foreign to you, it's ok.

Another Top 100 list from Wine Enthusiast. The top bottle is a 2013 Roco RMS Brut Delayed Disgorgement 10-Year Sparkling. I bought three bottles over the summer! Also, Sparkling kicked some tail this year! Aubaine was number 55 and there were so many others!

Another one that has nothing to do with wine, but it's a fun one. Do you remember the days when people did straight uploads for their phones to YouTube. This will take you back!

This is meant for Thanksgiving, but could also be used for Christmas Dinner.

Rose Rock was number 6 on Wine Spectator's Top 100.

Want to see where Oregon stacked up on all of the lists?

Big shout out to the wineries that made this years Slow Wine Guide.

There have been more than a handful of new wineries popping up that I haven’t gotten a chance to check out yet. Trust me, it isn’t for the lack of desire. I need another 10 hours in a day or the ability to not sleep. Early October, I came across an IG of an Industry open house at a new winery called Late Sky. I took a look at the calendar, and wowsers, there was no ballet for my daughter, and there was nothing else on the calendar.

I was excited not only because I was able to attend but also seeing the pictures of the tasting room on IG, it looked very boutique, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the vineyard nestled back into a great tree line.

Before the Industry event, I visited the website and was surprised to see Jared Etzel teaming up with Glenn and Karen Fischer. From the story on the website, Glenn and Karen first met in Napa. They were doing a tasting in 2009, but the winery was closed. Jared happened to be the assistant winemaker at the winery, let them in, and who knew 15 years later they would be opening a winery together in Oregon.

I tried to find out which winery the Fischer’s were visiting, but in my very little amount of research, I came up empty-handed. What I did find was a great little write-up The Prince of Pinot did on the Etzel brothers back in the day:

I wonder what unnamed winery Jared ended up with with Robert Roy? Hmmmm….

If you are thinking Jared is all over the place in the valley, you are correct. He is working on 9 projects currently, to include: Domaine Roy, Rodeo Hills, Coattails, Tekstura, Lenne, Jachter Family Wines, Sequitur, Beaux Frères, and 1 other I don’t think has been announced yet. All I know is that it involves sparkling!

In 2015, Jared purchased a plot of land off of Herring Lane, knowing its potential for a future vineyard. In 2016, he called up Glenn and Karen, asking if they would like to start a wine project with him. Here we are almost 9 years later with a vineyard, a tasting room, and an Industry night kicking everything off.

Do you know where Anderson Family Vineyard is? If you do, Late Sky is on the same road. If you’re unaware of the whereabouts of Anderson Family, maybe you are aware of ROCO. The two are maybe 3 minutes apart. If you look on a map, L’Angolo is also super close as the crow flies.

Driving up to the tasting room, it is a little confusing on where to park. With it being Industry night, there were quite a few people visiting and had to create a parking place. It looks like for a normal tasting, finding a place amongst the trees looks like the thing to do. You’ll understand when you visit.

It’s next to impossible to see from this picture, but this vineyard has its own little microclimate. The picture below isn’t at a good angle to show off how unique this vineyard is, plus Dusk was settling. It is a gorgeous setting, and trust me, more pictures are coming!

Walking into the tasting room, it is gorgeous. There are also quite a few people. My introverted self took in a deep breath, looked around for people I knew, checked out the amazing charcuterie board, and finally dove in.

Check out what is left of the charcuterie board?

I know I tasted a few or four of the wines, but with that many people there, there was no way I was going to be able to focus on the wines. Instead, I talked with Mark Royer, the staff from Jachter Family Wines, and Glenn Fischer.

This is the part of the newsletter where I would normally give you all sorts of little back stories about Glenn, but I wasn’t prepared. I should have remembered something, but I am failing you big time here. I do remember he is a very pleasant man who has worked hard to get this off the ground. It is a dream come true for him.

The whole family is involved in the operation. Everyone was helping out for Harvest, including Stephanie and Andy. Stephanie is Glenn and Karen’s daughter. Andy is Stephanie’s husband. They have a little one that was also there for the evening. Andy is also working side by side with Jared, helping make the wine. The couple moved to Oregon to be involved in Late Sky.

Leaving for the evening, I had to turn around, take in the view, and snap a picture.

Do you remember me saying more pictures were coming? Well, get ready! I really enjoyed the Industry event, but it only gave me a little sampling. I wanted to know more. So, a few weeks later, I set up a tasting and parked amongst the trees. This time, walking into the tasting, Stephanie was waiting for me along with Jared, which I wasn’t expecting at all. How in the world does he have time for all this? Maybe he has clones set up or something.

Seeing the tasting room during the day was breathtaking. I mean, take a look at this for yourself!

Here are some better pictures of the vineyard. Can you see how steep the slope is going down to the tree line? Can you also see what I mean by it's own microclimate? Jared brought us out here and told us it’s a little tricky running the tractor through the rows. He thought I should learn how to drive a tractor on this vineyard. I laughed a little, passed, and offered to learn at Rodeo Hills instead.

While out in the vineyard, I had to zoom in on a couple of other properties. Any ideas who they are?

I didn’t mention the Late Sky building has a tasting room, winery, and storage room. Jared gave us a tour of all of it. I really enjoyed the storage room. It is directly below the tasting room.

Finally getting to the wines, the lineup was:

• 2023 Late Sky Chardonnay - 165 cases
• 2021 Late Sky ‘Eclipse’ Chardonnay - 119 cases
• 2023 Late Sky Pinot Noir - 201 cases
• 2021 Late Sky ‘Eclipse’ Pinot Noir - 95 cases

This is normally where I would tell you about the wines, but I am failing big time today! I am not writing the newsletter at the house where my journal is, which means all of my notes are not here for me to refer to. There wasn’t a wine I didn’t enjoy. I mean, these are Jared’s wines, and how can you not enjoy them!

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When you are looking for a special place to go wine tasting to share with your friends, I highly recommend Late Sky! I am pretty sure they are taking one party at a time, which means you get all sorts of extra special attention, with an exceptional pairing with great wines. Go to Late Sky’s website, make a reservation, and when you see Stephanie, tell her, “A.J. sent me!” Also, wouldn’t it be nice if they were using Block 55 for reservations?

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With Gratitude,

A.J.

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PS - In case you weren't aware, Block 55 is the reservation platform I launched this year. It is designed only for wineries and is meant to be extremely easy to use while staying extremely affordable.