Recently I wrote a post about a nonprofit organization called ¡Salud!, whose mission is to provide access to health care for seasonal vineyard workers in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. ¡Salud! raises money by partnering with winemakers who create special wines and wine packages that are auctioned off over the course of one fantastic weekend in Newberg, Ore.
Seasonal workers are essential to the wine business. But how many of us consider their needs when we’re enjoying the product they work hard to help deliver? I decided I needed to shell out some dough for the cause—and get myself to the event. So, my friend Kathleen and I packed the car as if we were headed to a week’s worth of galas and off we went.
Action on the “big board” of Wines
Friday night’s event was a “big board auction” of special cuvées (i.e.: wines made exclusively for ¡Salud!) held at Ponzi Vineyards. Each of 45 winemakers had created five cases for the auction, which we all watched on a giant screen (the “big board”). While we had the opportunity to taste everything before bidding, unless you knew something about the winemakers it was hard to decide where to place your bets. So while I discovered a few wineries that I loved (Amalie Robert Estate, Raptor Ridge Winery and Brittan Vineyards to name a few) I was too stressed to actually bid on anything.
Later that evening we attended a dinner primarily for sponsors of the event (I guess my blog post about ¡Salud! had gone over well). I was squirming a bit because the dinner was held at Argyle Winery. As you might recall, we recently reviewed the Argyle Nuthouse Chardonnay and it was not a crowd pleaser. But that night I learned Argyle is better known for its sparkling wines. After having quaffed a few I am here to tell you that I am now a big fan.
Enjoy the Wine, Remember the Workers
The next night’s auction and dinner was held at the magnificent Allison Inn. As I was walking into the dining room, Joe Dobbes of Dobbes Family Estate handed me a bottle of his wine. Talk about being in the right place at the right time! An electrifying auctioneer combined sass and passion to get the bids going on the 20 big money wine packages, pausing partway through to invite Nancy Ponzi to the stage. Nancy helped form ¡Salud! back in the 1991. As the matriarch of Ponzi Vineyards, and apparently the whole Oregon wine scene, she had the heft to get buy-in from other winemakers to support health care for the folks who pick the grapes that have made the Williamette Valley famous.
¡Salud! now serves about 4,250 seasonal vineyard workers and their family members, who get access to federally funded health care clinics, a stipend for health care services and help with health education. The organization screens about 1,000 workers and family members for health issues such as high cholesterol and diabetes every summer and has two nurses available 24/7 to help out with health care needs.
The weekend was a huge success. First off, I learned a ton about Oregon wine. As you might know, I have not been a giant fan of Oregon’s much-praised Pinot Noirs, but mea culpa Oregon, I was wrong. I discovered the big unlock to Oregon wines, which I’ll be sharing in an upcoming post. And I made some funky new friends (and no, that wasn’t just because the wine was flowing).
More importantly, ¡Salud! raised just over $800,000. That good news is compounded by the organization’s estimate that, through the power of their partnerships with health care providers, every dollar they raise means $3 of health care for seasonal vineyard workers. It’s a great cause and I ask you to consider supporting ¡Salud! by donating directly. Or buy your next Pinot from one of the winemakers who support ¡Salud! I’ve included a list of them below.
What’s not to love? You get a great bottle of wine, you’re supporting forward-thinking winemakers and some of your support makes its way to the men and women who tend to the vines and wines. Cheers to that!
¡Salud! Vintners Circle:
Adelsheim Vineyard
Alexana Winery
Amalie Robert Estate
ArborBrook Vineyards
Archery Summit
Argyle
Ayres Vineyard
Ayoub
Bergström Wines
Bethel Heights Vineyard
Big Table Farm
Brittan Vineyards
Brooks Winery
Chapter 24
Chehalem
Cristom Vineyards
Dobbes Family Estate
Domaine Drouhin Oregon
Domaine Serene
Dukes Family Vineyards
Dusky Goose
Elk Cove Vineyards
Erath Winery
Evening Land
Seven Springs Estate
Gran Moraine
Hamacher Wines
Hyland Estates
Lange Estate Winery and Vineyards
Patricia Green Cellars
Patton Valley Vineyard
Penner-Ash Wine Cellars
Ponzi Vineyards
R. Stuart & Co.
Raptor Ridge Winery
Résonance
ROCO Winery
Scott Paul Wines
Shea Wine Cellars
Soter Vineyards
St. Innocent Winery
Stoller Family Estate
Trisaetum
WillaKenzie Estate
Winderlea Vineyard & Winery
Witness Tree Vineyard
Willamette Valley Vineyards (SB note: while not in the Vintners Circle, Willamette Valley Vintners is a special partner with Salud and supports multiple Salud programs)
