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At Quivira, we believe the greatest wines are first grown in the vineyard and then expressed in the winemaking. For this reason we have tied vineyard management directly to the winemaking process. Our winemaker is also our vineyard manager, and thus has the direct responsibility for managing the quality of the grapes that will ultimately determine the quality of the wine.
Proprietor Pete Kight has focused on creating a balance in the Estate that is capable of creating genuinely world class wines. Pete has always loved to challenge conventional wisdom with a willingness to take risks and innovate. While common in France, having winemaker Steven Canter also have full responsibility for vineyard management is uncommon in California. So is Biodynamic farming in the Dry Creek Valley. So is bottling Grenache as a varietal and doubling its vineyard acreage. But we think these steps are crucial to enabling Quivira to create great wine.
Pete's phrase for the underlying objective of our winemaking is "the true characterisitcs of the varietal from our Estate, with extraction and depth in balance." Steven has honed the philosophy down to its most succint core: Extraction Without Weight. Everything we do, from mid-winter drainage remediation through spring pruning and minimal mid-summer watering, is designed to accentuate the characteristics of the grape while maintaining its balance as a wine. We operate in the belief it is too easy today to get caught up in the extraction of the fruit and end up creating a wine good for a few sips and a high initial critic rating, but one that collapses on the palate under its own weight over time. In Quivira wines, we seek the full character available in a varietal by growing and then gaining the right balance of extraction in our winemaking.
At our Estate, we believe that inherent in being a property owner is the responsibility of land stewardship. This is especially true when your property sits in the heart of the beautiful Dry Creek Valley, and at the confluence of two natural Steelhead and Salmon spawning streams: Wine Creek and Dry Creek.
Since the Wendts first took control of the vineyards in 1981, the Quivira Estate has been farmed with an emphasis on sustainability and minimal impact. The Kights have expanded this commitment to include a partnership with Trout Unlimited and the Department of Fish and Game to complete the full restoration of Wine Creek, and to expand the commitment for organic farming. The quality of our wines are reflected through the preserving of the natural macrobiotic health and balance found within the vineyard environment as a whole. Through the dedicated and disciplined practice of the founding Biodynamic principles of Sustainability, Commitment, Regulating, and Attention, Quivira continues its long tradition of investing first in the vineyards in order to create truly great wines.
More about Eco-Practices
More about Biodynamics
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