At the pinnacle of her career, Merry Edwards has launched Meredith Vineyard Estate, Inc., a business venture allowing her to develop a Pinot Noir vineyard in the Russian River Valley, focusing her winemaking on this seductive varietal. Merry makes elegant wines from the ground up - and the ground in the Russian River Valley produces the finest Pinot Noir in America.

Located on the southern border of the Russian River Valley appellation, the vineyard is a southeast-facing 8-12 percent slope, previously the site of an old, overgrown fruit orchard. Under Merry Edwards' direction, workers cleared the land in the summer of 1997 and arborists removed and transplanted 38 mature, native oak trees. Preparation included tilling, soil amendment and the sowing of a nitrogen-rich cover crop prior to planting Pinot Noir green grafts in June, 1998. "Today we are benefitting from 20 years of clonal research. As a result, an exciting new array of Burgundian materials is now obtainable in the USA," says Merry.

"Looking back at my winemaking career, I see many cyclical trends," notes Merry. "Today the very clones I saw in Burgundy over 20 years ago are available in California nurseries. We now have a host of incredible plant material to work with, and we have the opportunity to raise Pinot Noir to a new level. These are exciting years for Pinot Noir, particularly in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County."

Merry Edwards Wines / 8032 Speer Ranch Road / Forestville, CA 95436 / 1-888-388-9050

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