As a tyke, I used to spend a fair amount of time at Grandma and Grandpa’s farm up north in the little rural town of Everson, in the heart of scenic Nooksack Valley. I remember cows, pigs, chickens and all the other usual trappings of a traditional farm, but I also recall what seemed like a sea of raspberry fields spreading out as far as I could see in parts of the valley. Ironically that moment in history also produced a hit song by the Beatles titled “Strawberry Fields Forever,” and I remember thinking, “If those guys with funny haircuts could see all these raspberries, they’d rename that song.”
What does all this have to do with wine? Well, on a recent excursion up to the “northern territory” with hopes of rekindling the past and locating the little farm that played a role in my evolution, I stumbled across a new and interesting winery.
With “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” serenading us on the CD player, we were barreling down the back roads between Lynden and Everson when a sign appeared indicating a winery and tasting room was just ahead. Not being one to pass up such an opportunity, and never one to dispute the natural power of magnetic wine attraction, I pulled into Samson Estates Winery.
It was a pleasant surprise to find such a beautifully reconstructed old dairy barn out in what has to be the epitome of the boonies. Fastidious attention to detail was obvious throughout the property, from the manicured grounds to the well-appointed tasting room with a dramatic viewing window into their pristine winery. At the tasting bar we were greeted by Niki Dhaliwal, little sister to Rob and Dhar Dhaliwal, co-owners and sons of the farm’s patriarch, Sam Dhaliwal. Niki’s infectiously warm charm was a delight as she explained how their winery came to be.
Here’s where raspberries come into play, because the family owns 230 acres of raspberry and blueberry fields just west of Everson. The fruit that they’ve been producing here since the mid-1980s has been used in Ocean Spray juices, Smucker’s jams and now in wine.
The name of the winery is short for Sam &Sons, the name of the family’s farm, and as Rob and Dhar felt, a fitting tribute to their father, who played a pivotal role in helping the brothers get started. They split the duties equally, with Rob overseeing the winemaking and Dahr dealing with accounting and marketing.
The brothers saw winemaking as an opportunity to diversify their agricultural products in a fun and interesting way. They also saw that there was a niche in the market for a drier style of fruit wine in addition to the ever-popular dessert fruit wines. As a result, their winery is producing more than 10 varieties of fruit and grape wines as well as a hazelnut wine.
“The raspberry wines, both dessert and table wine, have been our most popular,” Niki told us. “But, I think the loganberry wine was the best of all, and so did most of the people who tried it, because it sold out in no time from our tasting room.”
Along with the fruit from the family farm, Rob accesses fruit from many other sources as well as grapes from vineyards in the Yakima Valley. With assistance from local winemaker Ron Taylor, Rob is taking a “zero oak” policy with all their wines. “We just want the pure fruit to do all the talking,” Niki said.
Fruit wines are in no way new. Many wineries in lower British Columbia and Washington are actively making fruit wines, often with great success. I’ve touched on Mount Baker Winery’s foray into nonviniferous wines in a past column, and my friends at Pasek Cellars in Mount Vernon are enjoying incredible growth and increased market share, particularly with their cranberry wine.
Samson Estates Winery was a delightful diversion from my quest to retrace some old paths, and in an indefinable “Dr. Phil” kind of way, seemed an appropriate merging of the past and the present.
Unfortunately the wines of Samson Estates Winery are not distributed outside Whatcom County. However, if you would like to give these wines a try, contact them by phone, 360-966-7787, or log on to their Web site, www.samsonestates.com, where they have a shopping cart for your convenience. Still, the best way to experience Samson Estates is through a country drive past raspberries, cows and cornfields, and, in my case, memories of a distant youth.
Jeff Wicklund, wine consultant and writer, is the proprietor of Colby Hospitality in Everett. He can be reached at 425-317-9858, or wick@colbyhospitality.com.
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