Dry Hollow Vineyards Grand Opening - upd May 2005

With a decade of fine grapes, three mature years in the bottle,
the Tasting Room opened Memorial Day weekend.
Fine wines with a Columbia River Gorge panorama to match.

Eric Nisley, co-owner in front of Tasting Room

In a world intent on proving bigger is better, Eric Nisley and Brad Gearhart of Dry Hollow Vineyards intend to move against the flow, remain small, intimate and dedicated to a simpler standard of quality more common a century ago. Three years after the first retained crush, Dry Hollow Vineyards will open their new tasting room this Memorial Day weekend. On the crest of the hill overlooking the vines, with a panorama across and down the eastern slopes of the Columbia River Gorge, the Tasting Room views perfectly compliment the fine wines of their small family vineyard.

As you leave The Dalles, winding up Dry Hollow Road, the forced trappings of the city fall away one by one. First the houses pass. Then you leave the last packinghouse. Finally as the road narrows, seemingly at the top of the hill, a small paved spur heads off and up to the right. A directional sign moves you on. “Tasting Room.” The Tasting Room sits at the top of the hill. Nestled in a mixed grove of ponderosa pine and oak, the Tasting Room instinctively fits.

Inside the two-story building, the walls of windows bring the views immediately to hand. A wood-burning fireplace sits in one corner reminding not all days are dry and hot summer days. A winter day with a glass of wine seems be a reasonable alternative. A loft is set up for kids play. Picnic tables surround the building offering families an alternative time together.

The overall feeling is one of a casual family affair. A well thought out family affair.

When asked how he decided to become involved in building a vineyard and winery, Eric Nisley commented, “I love wine. I love my family. I love my friends. This gave me the opportunity to enjoy them all tat he same time.”

His desire to gather those groups is evident in the effort designing a wine tasting comfortable venue.

Much of the building fell to Brad Gearhart, the other partner in Dry Hollow Vineyards. His motivation parallels Eric’s. “We were college room mates. I always liked wine and when the opportunity came up to join Dry Hollow, I jumped at it.” His long time experience as a high-end builder shows in the attention to detail in the building. Natural wood siding. Iron and wood railings. Cork floors. Everything detail fits, blends, grows together, creating a comfortable and casual environment. And environment fitting the same way a wine glass fits in the hand.

Planted in the early 90’s, the vineyard spreads across an elevated portion of the Hi-Valley Cherry Orchard just below the Tasting Room. The rocky, rolling south facing hills evoke the hills of Tuscany and produce a flavorful crisp tasting grape ideal for Merlots, Syrahs and, robust table reds. Routinely, the growing season begins with a wet spring and early summer, jump-starting the grapes. The following long hot dry summers of the eastern Columbia River Gorge allow the grapes ample time to mature right up to the day of the harvest. The vineyard microclimate is such, that even in the harshest weeks of the last few winters, our vines did not freeze.

View of Hi Valley Orchard from Tasting Room

For the first years, Dry Hollow Vineyards harvested grapes to be sold to other regional wineries. Inspired by repeated comments on the high quality of the grapes year to year, three presses ago, Dry Hollow Vineyards began their own label with a Cabernet Sauvignon and a blend called Ft. Dales Red. Two harvests ago the vineyard retained John Haw, the Maryhill Vineyards winemaker, to press, develop and cask the special flavorful harvest from the Dry Hollow Vineyards. Each year since, the vineyard produced only a few hundred cases of fine wines.

The wines are reasonably priced, ranging from $13 to $20, but have the taste and body of much more expensive wines. The Merlot, the Syrah, the Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Ft. Dalles Red each carry a distinctive bouquet and with a sip, you know this is a great wine. Brad and Eric stress they intend to stay small and accessible (read as not expensive). They want people to drink their wines, not stash them in a cellar.

With that thought in mind, the Dry Hollow Vineyards distribution system is simple. At the vineyard, winemaker to wine drinker. Nothing simpler. Nothing more direct. With three years of production, the Dry Hollow Vineyards decided the vineyard matured and developed sufficiently to present the wines publicly in our Tasting room.

For more information:

Eric Nisley
Phone 541 296-2953
eric@dryhollowvinyards.com

www.dryhollowvineyards.com
for printable map