Springtime Brings Flowers and Sheep to King Estate Winery
With springtime comes new growth throughout the King Estate property. Our apple and plum trees have begun to flower, and the mustard and grass in the vineyard have been growing quickly. That’s where the sheep come in. King Estate uses sheep as natural lawn mowers. They enjoy munching on fresh shoots of grass and weeds, and we enjoy the fact that we don’t have to run tractors through the vines to trim the unwanted growth. In the process, the sheep also naturally fertilize the vines and help us reduce our carbon footprint.
VIDEO: Support the Restaurant at King Estate & Local Farmers
Sign our petition and join our efforts to protect the restaurant at King Estate and the local farmers that we support, or click here to learn more about the issue.
VIDEO: King Estate Sponsors FOOD for Lane County's 2011 Chefs' Night Out Benefit
FOOD for Lane County’s annual Chefs’ Night Out fundraiser took place at the Hult Center in downtown Eugene on April 5, 2011. King Estate Winery has been the Title Sponsor of the event for the last three years.
The best restaurants, wineries, and breweries in Eugene donated their time and products to create a memorable evening full of delicious food and drink. All money earned from ticket sales to the event went directly to FOOD for Lane County.
Oregon Breaks New Ground in Wine & Spirits List of Best Selling Restaurant Wines
Led by King Estate Winery, Oregon makes breakthrough in Wine & Spirits Magazine’s Annual Restaurant Poll:
Each year Wine & Spirits Magazine surveys sommeliers and beverage managers at America’s top Zagat-rated restaurants. The survey asks them to examine 4th quarter sales and list their best selling overall brands and products by category. The survey shows the top performing brands in America’s top restaurants, a key slice of data that reveals much about the strength of a brand in one of the most competitive environments for wine sales.
Last year Oregon set a new record for the state with three wineries in the Top 50 Brands and this year did one better with a total of four. Those wineries are:
12. King Estate
32. Elk Cove
43. Domaine Drouhin
49. Argyle
King Estate Wine Country 5K Run
Join us at King Estate on Saturday, April 23rd, one week before the Eugene Marathon, for a scenic 5K run through the rolling hills of our certified organic vineyards. We have partnered with Eugene Marathon to ensure a quality event. Registration is free for Tower Club members and runners registered for any 2011 Eugene Marathon Event.
Course Map
Click to Enlarge
VIDEO: King Estate Crab Fest An Oregon Tradition
The King Estate Crab Fest has become a very popular tradition at our winery in Eugene, Oregon. Held annually in late January at the height of Oregon’s Dungeness Crab season, the event showcases our Oregon Pinot Gris alongside succulent steamed crab. The all you can eat buffet features crab with all kinds of side dishes and an array of flavored butters and aiolis. We serve several different bottlings of Pinot Gris and an amazing selection of desserts from our estate bakery. This year the popularity of our event reached new heights as we hosted nearly 600 guests across 7 seatings.
Everyone Likes Our Domaine Pinot Noir
Our Domaine Pinot Noir is our finest red wine made from our best estate fruit. We vinify each organically farmed estate lot separately and then our winemakers arduously evaluate them lot by lot, and select the handful that will make about 1,000 cases of wine for the vintage.
Some wine lovers live by scores alone, some don’t have much regard for them at all, but most agree, when all the critics see it the same way, it says something undeniable about the wine – that it probably tastes pretty good.
Helping Oregon Environmental Council Protect Children from Toxics
In September 2010, King Estate made a matching pledge to Oregon Environmental Council in an effort to raise money to support their work protecting Oregonian’s from environmental toxics. Our $10,000 challenge helped OEC raise an additional $20,000 in contributions.
These combined donations make up $30,000 that will help fund OEC’s efforts to ban BPA from children’s products and fund other initiatives. We at King Estate hope it might help the critical efforts to raise awareness of toxic chemicals in our environment, and inspire others to take action.
Click here to learn how you can support OEC.
The following interview is taken from Oregon Environmental Council’s community profiles. You can view it on OEC’s website at this link.
It’s Your Oregon: Ed King
“ ‘It’s Your Oregon’ means ‘It’s Your Responsibility,’” says Ed King, CEO and founder of King Estate Winery. Ed believes that every Oregonian has a responsibility to be a steward of Oregon’s environment.
“There have been people who have come before us who have protected our quality of life here, and there are people who will come after us,” says Ed. “Oregon belongs to each and every one of us, and we have a responsibility to protect the ecology and the environment to the best of our abilities.”
BCS Championship Ticket Donation Raises $12,400 to Fight Hunger
Leading up to the BCS National Championship game between the Auburn Tigers and the Oregon Ducks, King Estate donated a pair of tickets to FOOD for Lane County. The tickets were for two prime seats located in Section 108, Row 6 directly on the 50 yard line just behind the Oregon sideline.
“Ed King and King Estate Winery provide FOOD for Lane County with a great deal of support and are always looking for creative ways to help the organization alleviate hunger in Lane County. The donation of these two BCS Championship tickets should raise significant funds to help distribute food to those in need. We are grateful for King Estate’s ongoing support and their many generous donations.”
- Beverlee Hughes, Executive Director, FOOD for Lane County
FOOD for Lane County put the donated tickets with a face value of $690 up for auction on eBay where frenzied bidding took the price to over $5,000 within a matter of minutes. The auction ended just a couple of days before the game with a closing bid of $11,400. Representatives from King Estate were on hand at FOOD for Lane County to help facilitate payment and congratulate the winning bidder, Mr. David Stevanovski. When Mr. Stevanovski learned of all the good his money would do to alleviate hunger in our community, he generously upped the ante and donated another $1,000 above and beyond his $11,400 bid.
Happy Holidays: The Gingerbread Winery
The pastry chefs down the hill at the King Estate bakery have been hard at work on this gingerbread winery. The structure is inspired by the architectural features of King Estate Winery and our Visitor Center, including the two towers. Created by Rebecca Maglangque of the King Estate Bakery. The entire gingerbread winery is edible, except the lights and base boards of course.