As we embark on Womens History Month, I think of how fortunate I am to have had so many encounters with such amazing women over this past year alone.
We are honored that we have two separate wineries, created and run by women who use the grapes from our vineyard to make their amazing wines. Melaney Schmidt and Malia Myers of Landmass Wines and Pam Walden at Willful Wine Company, whose creative energy and tenacity is inspiring. To watch Malia during our harvest and her ability to work through the challenges of getting the bins loaded and on the flatbed, with the most illuminating smile, makes not only me smile, but all those around her. The wine these women create is exciting and fun. We attended one of Pam’s wine blending seminars and decided our time is better spent on the farm. We are are much better at drinking wine, than making it.
The ever changing weather patterns threw at us not only a record ice storm, but an unprecedented heat wave, but the farm persevered. As they say, the the harder the conditions, the more the vine will rise to the occasion and produce amazing grapes.
While the Covid-19 pandemic continued to dominate our professional lives, we are delighted to say that with the help of vaccinations adoption by the world and ongoing safe practices, we were able to resume some semblance of normalcy. We went to Seattle right after spring time pruning, which was right after mass release of Covid-19 vaccinations, so mask rules were still in effect outdoors.
We were able to connect with several old friends and share with them the beauty of the Willamette Valley. Classmates of mine from Holland Hall created a mini reunion here on the vineyard. We walked, talked, ate and drank, together, such a long awaited luxury, one we won’t take for granted again.
We were also able to do more local exploring that we couldn’t do last year which we highly recommend. Oregon flower festivals pop with bright colors everywhere: tulips, peonies, irises, dahlias, lavender, rhododendrons, roses and more. Lucky for us, there’s a festival for nearly every bloom. We were able to enjoy with our own families which made the festivals that much more memorable. We recommend you plan your visit so you can immerse yourself in the natural beauty of these blossoms.
We want others to know how special the many women are who have touched our lives these past months and years. We look forward to our 4th growing season here at Aeolus Vineyards. We hope that time has helped us to be better educated and experienced, so that we can anticipate some challenges. We readily acknowledge that obstacles are placed in paths to learn to rely on others for wisdom, guidance and strength. We feel fortunate that we have so many strong wonderful women surrounding us to help us continue to move forward ‘Living our Best Lives‘ (open up on Pandora, it will make you smile).
