What does a gal do with a beautiful fallow field and a love of fine wines? Plant a vineyard of course!
Cathy Rodgers knew nothing about planting and tending a vineyard. She only knew that she loved wines. With her love of wine and friendships within the Applegate Valley, Cathy took her dream of planting a vineyard on the RiverCrest Ranch estate and ran with it.
Early on in the planning process, Cathy reached out to Mark and Mike Wisnovsky with Valley View Winery and they graciously offered to help her with rootstock that would flourish at the RiverCrest Ranch estate. They introduced Cathy to Herb Quady with Applegate Vineyard Management and Quady North, who was an expert at planting and sustainably maintaining eco-conscious vineyards.
In 2010, RiverCrest Ranch vineyard was planted and for the next 10 years, Quady North utilized RiverCrest Ranch’s to create some spectacular wines for locals and tourists to enjoy.
In 2021, RiverCrest Ranch and Quady North partnered to offer on-premise wine tasting along the Applegate River for guests to come out and enjoy. RiverCrest Ranch offered a relaxing 11-acre pristine park like setting with a wine bistro overlooking the 4-acre vineyard, lavender field and walking trails through historic mine tailings. RiverCrest Ranch also offered a variety of board and yard games, including bocce, horseshoe, croquet, life size chess, and badminton.
RiverCrest Ranch was awarded a USDA rural farm grant in the fall of 2021 and embarked on the journey to produce its own custom crush boutique wines featuring the three primary varietals grown at RiverCrest Ranch.
In the Summer 2023, the first of the 2021 custom crush is coming of age, being bottled and will be released in the Fall of 2023.
