TRISAETUM

Willamette Valley, Oregon

Fate and Good Fortune. Most good stories have a little of both, and our story is no exception.

It actually began fifty-five million years ago when Trisaetum’s estate vineyard was on the floor of the Pacific near an extensive line of submarine volcanoes and fate chose that one such volcano would erupt in that very location, spewing lava through the ocean floor, scattering glassy basalt nodules across the seascape, and leaving a unique mixture of volcanic and sedimentary soil that just so happens to be perfect for grapes. Unfortunately for grapes, the soil was at the bottom of the ocean.

In a few years, fortune followed fate when the coastal mountains of the Pacific Northwest squeezed their way through that same lava field placing half of it on the coastline at Cape Kiwanda…and the other half thirty-five miles inland on the east side of the Oregon coast range. This activity left it not only dry, but with the precise combination of soil, elevation, orientation, temperature, and micro-climate necessary to make something extraordinary from two of nature’s most site specific grapes—Pinot Noir and Riesling.

In 2003, Andrea and James Frey founded Trisaetum (tris-say-tum) in one of the few places where climate, soil, and entrepreneurial spirit combine to produce some of the world's best Pinot Noir & Riesling.  Today, the family owned and operated winery in the heart of Oregon's Ribbon Ridge AVA produces small lots of acclaimed Pinot Noir and Riesling from its three estate vineyards.  Trisaetum's first commercially available vintage was 2007.

Our Coast range estate is a 22-acre vineyard within the foothills of the Coast Range mountains outside the town of McMinnville and is the site of our family home.  The Coast Range vineyard marks the southwestern boundary of the Yamhill-Carlton AVA.  Our second estate is a 17-acre vineyard that surrounds our winery on Ribbon Ridge outside Newberg.  Our third and smallest estate is an 8-acre old vine vineyard in the Dundee Hills AVA named Wichmann Dundee.

Each vintage, Trisaetum releases up to 10 different Pinot Noirs and 6-10 different Rieslings from winemaker/owner James Frey.  In addition to his winemaking duties, James is also an accomplished artist with work sold and displayed throughout the world.  His paintings and photography fill the 1,500 square foot Trisaetum Gallery located at the winery outside Newberg, Oregon.

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