The Flood

A skin-contact blend of vineyards in OR and WA, named after the Missoula Floods that shaped the Columbia Gorge and Willamette Valley ten thousand years ago.

Grapes and vineyards:

33% Chardonnay, Finnigan Hill Vineyard Chehalem Mountains AVA, Certified organic
33% Gewurztraminer, Lacewing Vineyard Columbia Gorge AVA, practicing organic 
22% Pinot Gris, Finnigan Hill Vineyard, Chehalem Mountains AVA, Certified organic 
8% Auxerrois, Zenith Vineyard, Eola-Amity Hills AVA, Sustainable
4% Riesling, High Pass Vineyard, Lower Long Tom AVA, Sustainable

Making of: the grapes are vinified separately. All of them undergo 30 days of skin contact, are aged in neutral French oak barrels for 6 months and then blended. Unfined and unfiltered, a small amount of SO2 at bottling.

Personality: aromatic, vivid, joyous! “Might be one of the best blends we’ve assembled. Maybe?” Joe says.

JOSEPH SWICK

WINEMAKER/PROPRIETOR

"Our philosophy is to make our wines as naked and raw as we possibly can while having them be fun and delicious. We work with organically farmed vineyards in the colder regions of Oregon and Washington State.  We love wines with acid and freshness.  We make the wine that we love to drink.  No conventional additives. Just grapes and (sometimes) a very small amount of SO2 to keep the wine stable in bottle.  Wine is a fermented beverage that should not be a trophy or a status symbol.  Wines made in this fashion are artisanal products that reflect their artist and terroir with no maquillage."

A native of Oregon, Joe returned to his home state in 2013 after a decade of working harvests and making wine across the globe. Joe’s ethos is rooted in showcasing the unique cold climate terroirs of the Pacific Northwest using a hands off approach. Swick partners exclusively with organic and biodynamic growers to develop wines that he himself would like to drink -- fresh, lively acidity, with no conventional additives, only adding modest amounts of SO2 on select wines when absolutely necessary.

Swick Wines integrate themselves into a movement looking to rewrite the history of West Coast winemaking. Joe uses a number of minimal intervention techniques from experimentation in skin-contact to field blends to Pét-Nats. Swick works with historically farmed regional varieties such as Pinot Noir, Chenin Blanc and Grenache and experiments with non-native grapes such as Verdelho, Melon de Bourgogne and Touriga Nacional. What ends up in the glass are energetic, vins de soif with a freshness and balanced acidity that reflect their artist, terroir, and space in time -- each year bringing new wines and a new approach. You never know what surprises you might find with Swick.

https://swickwines.com/pages/about