ghost hill cellars "The land was ours before we were the land's." -Â Robert Frost
THE LEGEND
In the early 1860s, Oregon was in the midst of a gold rush. An old military road that ran through what is now the Bayliss family farm stretched from southern Oregon to Portland. A miner that was traveling to Portland with his hard-earned “poke� of gold decided to camp for the night at the top of what is now known as Ghost Hill. During the night, someone snuck into his camp, killed the miner and his horse, and stole his gold. To this day, the miner is said to wander the hill looking for his stolen gold.
THE LAND
Excellent wine starts with an excellent vineyard. The beautiful rolling hills made up of sedimentary Willakenzie series soils are perfect for the propagation of the hard to grow, but very rewarding, Pinot Noir grapes. Our continued effort is to produce delicious and elegant wines from the grapes grown in our estate vineyard. The Bayliss-Bower Vineyard is part of the family's 234-acre section of land in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA. The first vines were planted in 1999. Currently, all 15 acres of vines are Pinot Noir of the following clones; Pommard, Wadenswil, and Dijon Clones 777, 114, and 115.
THE WINE 2010 ‘PROSPECTOR’S RESERVE’ PINOT NOIR The ‘Prospector's Reserve’, named in honor of the Miner whose legend provides the name for our estate, is a limited bottling of a four barrel blend. The wine shows incredible intensity in the aromatics with a slightly lifted tone.
2010 BAYLISS-BOWER PINOT NOIR We feel that this vintage truly shows a complete picture of the older vines of the vineyard as a whole. We continue to rely on Pommard to provide the foundation. The 2010 vintage is elegant and refined and will please those palates that are more familiar with Pinot Noirs of the old world.
2012 PINOT NOIR BLANC Made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes this wine is a "Blanc de Noir", made in the same fashion as Champagne, but minus the bubbles! The aromatics of this wine are intense and full of fruitiness.
2012 ‘SPIRIT OF PINOT NOIR’ ROSE In the process of producing our Pinot Noir Blanc, we produced a delightfully dry Rosé that hints at just the "spirit" of Pinot Noir. The palate is surprisingly rich with pomegranate and perfumed apricot.