tHE wINERY & tHE WINEMAKER
Stick Figurine Wine was founded on a whim in a Portland home on a cold winter night when one possibly inebriated Jess decided maybe, just maybe, the wine she was drinking that had been made by her own two hands was not just good enough to sell, but damn delicious. While Jess has worked in wine as a sommelier & wine director for 10 years, she never set out to become a winemaker. She got her start in winemaking when she purchased a home in Portland, Oregon that had a roughly eighty vines of pinot noir planted in the backyard. She never intended to make anything for the public and in fact the grapes from her yard are pretty much crap. But, after quietly experimenting for four years with fruit from proper vineyards around Oregon it was clear her wines needed drinkers.
This project wouldn’t exist without Jess’ lifelong obsession with DIY projects and her parents teaching that you can learn anything you set your mind to (thank you homeschooling). It also wouldn’t exist without Jess’ love for natural wine. Before natural wine was gracing the pages of Vogue magazine and being paraded for display by Instafluencers, Jess described natural wine to her staff as the punk rock approach to wine. Amidst a sea of Oregon Pinot she was extoling the virtues of Cheverny rouge and amphora wines. Punk rock or Vogue magazine, to her natural wine represents not just the most honest expression of wine, but also as an invitation to participate and create. Natural wine is filled with people taking chances, respecting the earth, and breaking from the mold. It is a community of individuals - winemakers, sommeliers, distributors, sales people, and consumers - supporting and encouraging each other all the while making something unique, expressive, and *hopefully* delicious.
While Jess wholly believes in natural wine, she does not believe in dogma. Nothing is added or taken from her wines, save a very small dose of (natural) sulfur before bottling to ensure the wine stays delicious.
Fruit Sourcing
Fruit comes from a variety of vineyards from Oregon and Washington. However, my primary focus is on fruit sourced from the Snake River Valley AVA along the Idaho/Oregon border. The Snake River vineyards I work with are near Richland Oregon, quite a bit east of Baker City and not far from the Idaho border and Snake River itself. There’s a hidden treasure trove of vineyards out there planted by Travis Cook who has a pioneering spirit and belief that Baker County can produce stunning fruit (and wine) at elevations pretty much unheard of for us Western Oregon folk. He is the only commercial grower on the Oregon side of the Snake River AVA and until now, the only commercial wine maker as well. To say I feel fortunate to have my path cross his and be able to work with his fruit is an understatement. This is just the beginning of what will become an even deeper connection to this place in Oregon I love most.
In the future I hope to work with Grenache and Chenin Blanc, and want to focus on Eastern Oregon fruit from the Columbia Gorge & Snake River Valley. I’m always curious to discover vineyards off the beaten path as well. If you know growers willing to sell in tiny quantities, send ‘em my way! One day, I will have a vineyard in Wallowa County, just wait for it!
All fruit is sustainably farmed with minimal to no use of herbicides.
