Evesham Wood
Founded in 1986 and owned since 2010 by Erin Nuccio, who makes the wine. The estate vineyard, Le Puits Sec, was certified organic in 2000 and has never been irrigated — Evesham Wood helped found the coalition that argues for dry farming.
Hours shift with the season and the two listings disagree. Their own site shows winter walk-ins Friday–Sunday 12–4; their Tock page says Thursday–Monday. Call 503.371.8478 before driving out.
Dry farming means no irrigation, ever — the vine finds water or it does not. It makes for smaller crops and more work, and almost nobody does it. Evesham Wood has done it since the beginning and helped start the Deep Roots Coalition to make the argument for it.
The wine
Ask for the Le Puits Sec Pinot Noir, from the estate vineyard. The 2023 is the current release, around $56. The name is the site; the label drops the word “vineyard”.
Cuvée J is the one they call their most age-worthy. Beyond the estate they work with Illahe, Mahonia, Sojeau, Temperance Hill and the newly acquired Torres Hill. Haden Fig, the second label, is made in the same place from Cancilla, Croft and Freedom Hill fruit.
Who it is for
Clear storytelling about these wines and this winemaker, an organic focus that predates everyone else’s, and a real focus on quality over everything. You come away knowing more than you did, and the wine is better for it.
There is beauty in the simple here. The attention is on the grapes, and somehow that is what makes the wine itself feel like more.
Who would find it wrong: anyone not looking for a deep story, or not especially interested in organics and the tale of the vineyard. If you want a view and a glass without the context, this will feel like more than you asked for.
What to expect
One of the few places on this list where you can walk in. The Terroir flight is $30 and the Estate flight $40; a private tour is $60 a head and the vineyard picnic $50, capped at eight. Salem is about forty-five minutes south of the Dundee cluster, so this is a day of its own rather than a stop between others.
Beauty in the simple. The focus is on the grapes, and you gain the beauty of the wine itself.
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