He's also considering a Portuguese-style blended port, called a solera, but will continue to craft a vintage port. Bernie's grapes come from up and down the Gorge. Rusty and Bernie since have planted more and are considering another site around Mosier. And if he wasn't busy enough altering the traditional grape-growing landscape in the Gorge, Bernie also has taken the lead in creating a Columbia Gorge Appellation. The Hood River area has a geographical arrangement similar to Oregon's Umpqua with its multiple canyons feeding into the Columbia River.
Many potential sites are ideal for planting grapes on the slopes of canyon walls.
He believes the Hood River area alone can support 10 wineries and has a history of plantings going back to the 1800s. That's the rationale for using Columbia Gorge for the appellation name. One of the requirements is the name has to have nationwide recognition, and the Columbia Gorge certainly has that. The proposed appellation would run along both sides of the Columbia River from near his winery in the west to include Mosier and The Dalles in the east. Historically, there has been a competitive air in the Gorge, but Bernie sees that changing because wineries see the power of working together to promote the region.