Den Hoed Family Sells Wallula Vineyard

Wallula Vineyard

Tri-Cities, Wash. -- The Den Hoed grapegrowing family of Washington has sold its Wallula Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA to long-time vintners Allen Shoup, Augustin Huneeus, Sr., and other members of a small investor group called Premier Vineyard Estates, LLC. Brothers Bill and Andy Den Hoed and father Andy Den Hoed, Sr., of Grandview, Wash., have planted 650 acres on the property overlooking the Columbia River, since they bought it in 1997.

Shoup, founder of Long Shadows Vintners, first visited Wallula with the Den Hoeds while president and CEO of Chateau Ste. Michelle/Stimson Lane, and signed long-term grape contracts for existing and future vineyards on the property. "I've said for years, as good as the Columbia Valley vineyards are now, I believe we've yet to discover Washington's best site, but with Wallula we may have arrived," he said.

The property lies 15 miles south of the Tri-Cities, and runs for about five miles along the famous Wallula Gap. The purchase price was not disclosed, but it is believed to be the highest price ever paid for a contiguous vineyard in Washington state.

It's the first vineyard property for Shoup's Long Shadows consortium of famed vintners and winemakers. Chateau Ste Michelle purchases the majority of the fruit under contract, along with several boutique wineries. Shoup's Long Shadows has sourced grapes including Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from Wallula since its first vintage.

The Den Hoeds recently planted 145 Biodynamically farmed acres here-- primarily Riesling--for Randall Grahm's Pacific Rim Winemakers. The relationship will continue; the new ownership will continue to Biodynamically farm this section of the vineyard and will expand Biodynamic farming to other tracts as well.

Shoup said, however, that there is room for at least 500 more acres of grapes on the property. He admits that it's been in the back of his mind to develop other brands, and this gives him the opportunity. "We're developing a master plan right now," he told Wines & Vines.

He also said, "People want to build wineries on the property, too. It has huge stone cliffs ideal for caves, too, rare in Washington." He added that other investors are developing plans for guest facilities including a luxury dude ranch.

The Den Hoeds were attracted to the site because of the virgin soils as well as the diverse microclimates resulting from the property's dramatic climb from the edge of the Columbia River to 1,350 feet above sea level.

The Den Hoeds will remain minority partners in Wallula and continue to manage the property for Shoup's investor group. "The sale of the vineyard will provide additional capital to develop some of the steeper, more challenging sections of the vineyard and other areas of the site with limited access," Andy Den Hoed said. The Den Hoed family has farmed winegrapes in Washington since 1978.

"Washington's Horse Heaven Hills is growing some of the world's most exciting wines," said Huneeus, who is also a Long Shadows partner with Shoup and Philippe Melka in Pirouette, an acclaimed Long Shadows red wine. "I have visited vineyards around the globe, and Wallula is one of most varied and extraordinarily beautiful sites I have ever seen," Huneeus said. He said the vineyard's potential for world-class reds is what attracted him to the location. Seventy-three percent of the vineyard is planted with red varieties.

The vineyard is on a steep, south-facing slope, up to 30% grade in several sections. From its highest point, Wallula drops more than 1,000 feet down to the shore of the Columbia River, which crests at 300 feet above sea level. The water acts as a massive insulator, and heat accumulates quickly. The bottom reaches of Wallula vineyard average more than 3,200 heat units annually, ideal for ultra-premium reds planted on the lower slopes. The upper sections of the vineyard, where high quality white wines are grown, average 2,800 degree days annually.

Wallula's beauty as well as its suitability to winegrapes is due in part to the huge Missoula floods that raced down the Columbia River during the last ice age. The surging waters deposited Shano silt loam soils on the site, and carved the steep, basalt-rimmed canyon walls atop which the vineyards are planted.

Other investors in Premier Vineyard Estates, LLC include Yakima businessman and philanthropist Al DeAtley; Seattle entrepreneur Arnie Prentice; and Long Shadows CEO Mike Williamson. Shoup will serve as managing director for Premier Vineyard Estates.

Shoup is widely recognized as one of the founding fathers of the Washington wine industry. He began building Chateau Ste. Michelle and its affiliate wineries on his arrival in 1980, serving as the company's CEO for his last 17 years there before retiring in 2000 and founding Long Shadows Vintners in 2002.

Long Shadows is a collection of wineries comprised of internationally respected winemakers from the major wine regions of the world. Each is an owner/partner in the single wine they create. The seven wines produced at Long Shadows' new facility in Walla Walla each represent a separate partnership. Winemaker Gilles Nicault oversees daily production.