Columbia Valley Vineyard Workers. Linoleum print. Edition of 30.
“Vineyard workers are essential to the Washington state wine industry and their contributions often go unsung. Crafted with donated grapes from Stillwater Creek Vineyard, proceeds from the sale of this wine benefit Columbia Valley vineyard workers through a donation to the Othello clinic of the Columbia Basin Health Association.” -Orr wines
To order the wine, please visit Orr Wines.
“2020 Royal Slope Red Wine
92% Merlot 8% Cabernet Sauvignon from Stillwater Creek vineyard
Only 130 cases produced of a rich and balanced red wine created exclusively for the Vineyard Worker Project.
If you want to learn more about this project and purchase any wine please visit Orr Wines, and if you want to purchase a limited edition linoleum print please visit my shop.
Stillwater Creek Vineyard, Royal Slope, Washington. 2021.
2020 Royal Slope Red Wine-Orr Wines
In the summer of 2021, Erica Orr from Orr Wines reached out to me for a potential label collaboration. I met her at a relief printmaking demonstration I was giving at Boxx Gallery in Tieton, WA, during one of my exhibitions, and she invited me to visit the vineyards in Royal Slope, Washington. She expressed her interest in not only wanting to craft a wine that recognized vineyard workers and their contributions to Washington’s wine industry, but also create a wine where the proceeds of each bottle sold could benefit Columbia Valley vineyard workers.
So, we chatted and she sent me photos of the previous harvest, and I later accompanied her to visit Stillwater Creek Vineyard to converse with some of the workers and get a feel for this bucolic place.
Late summer 2021, chatting with a vineyard worker. Photo courtesy of Erica Orr.
So, I worked from the photographs provided, carved the imagery, and Erica and her team harvested the grapes and she worked her science in crafting this timely wine.
“On September 15, 2020, a ton and a half of Merlot grapes donated from Stillwater Creek Vineyard were carefully handpicked in the vineyard and then trucked to the winery where we destemmed and literally hand sorted the fruit to minimize any “green” character from stems in the fermenter. Twice daily punchdowns throughout the 14-day fermentation until we pressed off. The free run and press wines were blended in tank to settle overnight. The next day we filled five neutral French oak barrels for malolactic and 18 months of barrel aging. I used Cabernet Sauvignon to top up the barrels. We bottled without fining or filtration in April 2022”.- Orr Wines
This print and wine serves as a tribute to all of la gente who tend to the vineyards day-in and day-out. Washington would not be the second-largest wine producing state in the US, without your expertise. Gracias. Y, muchas gracias to Erica Orr Wines for inviting me to be a part of this collaboration!
Gracias y salud!
Columbia Valley Vineyard Workers, Linoleum Block Print. 2021.
If you are interested in purchasing one of these limited edition prints please visit my shop.