The People
Phelps Creek Vineyards, a limited production, boutique winery located in Hood River, Oregon (Columbia Gorge AVA) embraces certified sustainable agricultural practices while crafting Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling and Gewürztraminer.
Like his father, Founder Robert (Bob) Morus flew in the US Air Force and eventually become an airline pilot. In 1989, Bob searched for a place to move west and raise his family with the ambitious dream of planting a small vineyard. Seeking perfect land near his flying base of Portland, Robert envisioned juggling a flying schedule and working in the vineyards—life in balance. Afraid of Oregon’s reputed dampness, the Morus’ explored east of Portland, in the scenically stunning Columbia River Gorge. At that time, four wineries spread throughout the area, joined by several other independent vineyards. The county of Hood River impressed the couple the most. There they located a 30 ha site, perfect for grapevines on steep south and east slopes, holding volcanic soil and a magnificent view of Mt. Hood blazed.
In 2007 Phelps Creek initiated a relationship with Alexandrine Roy, a fourth generation winemaker from Gevrey-Chambertin. Alexandrine contributes her Burgundian techniques to the grapes of Phelps Creek. The collaboration brings journalistic acclaim across both sides of the Atlantic for over 15 years. Today, Bob’s wife Lynette acts as General Manager, and together they control an operation distributed across the US and in multiple export markets.
The Vineyards
The wineries name derives from a tributary of the Columbia River, flowing just below the estate vineyards. The creek is named after George Phelps, a pioneer period cooper, who constructed dry-good barrels, using a small mill along the lower portion of the creek.
The estate vineyards consist of 12 hectares of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with the Pinot Noir vines dating to 1990 and Dijon clone Chardonnay from 1992. From the initial 2.8ha, planting has increased, and today there are 10ha of Pinot Noir (Pommard, Dijon 777 and 115), 1.8ha of Chardonnay (mostly Dijon 75 and 76 and 200 plants from cuttings of Celilo Vineyard’s Wente clone), and 0.2ha of Pinot Gris. Elevation ranges from 290m to 360m and soils are ancient volcanic called Oak Grove Loam. A second vineyard called Pioneer also lies along Phelps Creek, three miles downstream and shortly before the waters tumble into the Columbia River over Wah Gwin Gwin Falls. This 0.6ha site grows Riesling on flat and rocky soil of the Wind River series.
The Wines
Sustainability
Since 2021, Phelps Creek became LIVE certified for sustainable wine-growing.
LIVE has independently certified the sustainable practices of winegrowers in the Pacific Northwest, using the latest in university research and internationally accredited standards.
A LIVE certification seal is your assurance that the wine in the bottle was made in conformance with the most advanced standards for sustainable grape growing and winemaking.