FULLERTON WINES ANNOUNCES WILLAMETTE VALLEY AVA SERIES
Explore the rich and varied AVAs of Oregon with Fullerton – intimate AVA wine tours, AVA wine classes, AVA wine packs, AVA flights, and AVA wine club
PORTLAND, Ore. (July 26, 2021) – Fullerton Wines invites wine enthusiasts to tour the rich and varied American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) of the Willamette Valley in its new Willamette Valley AVA Series. Winemaker Alex Fullerton highlights the diversity of styles revealed through soil, micro-climate, and vintage variations in each bottle of Fullerton’s Single Vineyard Designate Pinot Noirs from six hallmark nested AVAs. Feel immersed in the picturesque Oregon countryside and experience Fullerton’s dedicated approach to expressing the distinct personality of each vineyard and vintage in the bottle. Guests are welcomed to explore this variety via private vineyard tours, wine classes, tastings or wine club membership.
Fullerton is excited to offer unparalleled private tours of the Willamette Valley AVA, starting with the North Valley Tour, available every Saturday and Sunday, or by appointment Monday through Friday, for up to 10 people per tour. Meet directly with winemakers and vineyard managers featured in the single estate wines. Sample wines from each of the vineyards visited throughout the day, both from guest winemakers and Fullerton Wines, on an intimate tour. Winemaker Alex Fullerton and his father Eric Fullerton, founding family members of Fullerton Wines, along with Tasting Room Manager Casey Chamberlin, will alternate leading the private tours. Upon returning to the Portland Wine Bar and Tasting Room, enjoy a selection of Fullerton’s expansive lineup at a seated tasting.
The tour is $250 per person, all inclusive of lunch and wine tastings. Additional bottle purchases sold separately. All tour attendees will also receive Fullerton Cork Club member benefits for the day, which includes 15% off all bottle purchases.
Photo courtesy of Foundry 503
The North Valley tour will include stops at the following vineyards, starting and ending at the Fullerton Wine Bar & Tasting Room:
- Bella Vida Vineyard — Dundee Hills AVA
Explore the benefits of dry-farming and L.I.V.E. certification from the vantage point of this high-elevation Dundee Hills vineyard. Pinot Noir here grows in the storied Jory soils of the AVA. Taste Fullerton 2017 Bella Vida Vineyard Pinot Noir.
- ArborBrook Vineyard — Chehalem Mountains AVA
Learn how dry-farming as a viticultural practice combines with the Dupee sedimentary soils of this area. Enjoy a flight of ArborBrook wines, then taste Fullerton 2018 ArborBrook Vineyard Pinot Noir and 2018 Claudius Pinot Noir.
- Lichtenwalter Vineyard — Ribbon Ridge AVA + lunch
This L.I.V.E. certified vineyard resides in the smallest nested AVA in the Willamette Valley, the Ribbon Ridge. Discuss L.I.V.E. certification, which originated in Oregon, as well as the Willakenzie soils here, derived from ancient sedimentary seabed. Taste a flight of Michael Lichtenwalter’s wines and the 2017 Fullerton Lichtenwalter Pinot Noir.
- Fir Crest Vineyard — Yamhill-Carlton AVA
A dry-farmed and L.I.V.E. certified vineyard in the western hills of the Yamhill-Carlton AVA, walk through the 30+-year-old vines. Taste 2017 Fir Crest Vineyard Pinot Noir and 2018 Brutus Pinot Noir.
Taste a comparative flight from six Willamette Valley nested AVAs all produced by Fullerton Wines. The experience enables guests to explore the entirety of the valley through the lens of Alex Fullerton’s winemaking.
Photo courtesy of Foundry 503
For those not able to commit to a full-day excursion into Oregon Wine Country, Fullerton is also pouring AVA Flights for $40 per person at its Portland Wine Bar & Tasting Room. Tasting fee is waived with the purchase of $150 of wine or joining the wine club. The AVA 6 Bottle – Wine Pack, an ideal package for a tasting experience with friends or your personal wine collection, is also available to purchase for $359. Each featured sub-AVA has a distinct character explored by winemaker Alex Fullerton featured in the package:
- 2017 ArborBrook Vineyard Pinot Noir – Chehalem Mountains AVA
- 2017 Bella Vida Vineyard Pinot Noir – Dundee Hills AVA
- 2017 Bjornson Vineyard Pinot Noir – Eola-Amity Hills AVA
- 2017 Fir Crest Vineyard Pinot Noir – Yamhill-Carlton District AVA
- 2017 Lichtenwalter Vineyard Pinot Noir – Ribbon Ridge AVA
- 2017 Momtazi Vineyard Pinot Noir – McMinnville AVA
For the ultimate wine lover, the AVA Wine Club offers quarterly shipments of half or full case wines, pre-selected or customized to your taste. Wine club members also receive 20 to 25 percent off all bottle purchases, glass pours, and additional flights, as well as preferred access to pre-release and limited production wines.
Fullerton is also offering AVA Deep Dive, a wine course on October 27th to help wine novices and experienced tasters alike understand the complexity of Oregon’s varied AVAs. Alex Fullerton will lead participants through a tasting and discussion of the many terroirs of Willamette Valley. Topics include soil types, exposures, rainfall, temperature, and the winemaker’s role in highlighting AVA diversity. The course is from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. and tickets are $60.
Photo courtesy of Foundry 503
ABOUT FULLERTON WINES
Fullerton Wines explores the rich and varied AVAs of Oregon by expressing the distinct personality of each vineyard and vintage in the bottle. Founded in the Fullerton family garage in 2011, the winery is a deeply personal family collaboration. Winemaker Alex Fullerton first got into the industry when his father Eric suggested the career path while wine tasting in the Willamette Valley after Alex had just graduated from the University of Oregon in 2010. That conversation led to Alex having a harvest internship with Penner Ash Wine Cellars which started the very next day. When making their first vintage in 2011, Alex and Eric made a few barrels of Pinot Noir. Despite the challenging vintage, the wine impressed and Fullerton Wines was born.
The Fullerton Wine Bar & Tasting Room is authentically Pacific Northwest with a Scandanavian heart that brings a taste of Oregon wine country to Portland. Guests come for hygge hospitality, wines that explore Oregon’s AVAs, and abundantly creative dishes. Opened in 2017, the Fullerton Wine Bar & Tasting Room is a cozy and welcoming gathering place for wine lovers to experience the breadth of Fullerton Wines’ selection while enjoying Chef Jamie Cady’s menu for an appetizer or a meal. Guests of the tasting room have the option to sit indoors or outdoors under the heated, covered dining areas.
Website: fullertonwines.com Instagram: @fullertonwines Facebook: @fullertonwines Phone: 503-477-7848 Tasting Room Address: 1966 Northwest Pettygrove St Portland OR 97209, Hours of Operation: Mon-Thurs 2:00pm – 9:00pm, Fri-Sat 12:00pm – 10:00pm, Sun 12:00pm – 7:30pm