Hiyu Wine Farm Tzum Feis 2022

Hiyu Wine Farm Tzum Feis 2022

Hiyu Wine Farm
$80.00

Grape: Field Blend CS CF MT MB TA
Vintage: 2022
Type: Red

Produced under the Tzum label, this red wine is a field blend combining Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, and Tannat. Winemaker Nate Ready selects the fruit from a single acre of high-elevation volcanic soils in the Columbia Gorge. The grapes are hand-harvested and fermented whole-cluster using native wild vineyard yeasts inside neutral open-top wood vats. It ages in neutral French oak barrels to allow the structural components to settle without wood flavor dominance.

It pours a dark ruby color, opening with complex aromas of dark plum, wild blackberry, and tobacco leaf over a background of stone. On the palate, the medium-bodied, robust frame pairs concentrated fruit flavors with a firm, stem-driven tannin profile. Savory notes of cracked black pepper and crushed limestone develop as the wine breathes. A clean vein of natural acidity runs underneath, keeping the mouthfeel fresh and light. It finishes dry, leaving a lingering mineral trail.

Hiyu is a true mixed farm with pigs, cows, chickens, ducks and geese living among the vines during different parts of the year and helping to control the vegetation. Nate calls their vineyard management, which has been deeply influenced by Masanobu Fukuoka, “the wild side of permaculture”.

The property is divided into half-acre blocks, each planted to a field blend from a different place or moment in the genetic history of the grapevine, with up to 150 different varieties and clones in total.

The name “Hiyu” comes from Chinook Jargon, where it denotes “abundance”, “plenty” or “big party”. Nate Ready used to work as a sommelier in various fine establishments, including the lauded Thomas Keller’s French Laundry in Napa Valley. China Tresemer, the estate’s co-founder and agriculturalist, is also a talented illustrator who creates all the labels.

Manual harvest into small baskets, whole cluster macerations, foot-treading and basket press, slow fermentation with indigenous yeasts only. Aged in old neutral oak barrels of various sizes. No fining or filtration, no sulfur at bottling.