In 1996 Merry purchased this twenty-four acre site, an abandoned apple orchard southwest of the Sebastopol city limits.  Two years later, she and her husband, Ken Coopersmith, converted the entire parcel to Pinot Noir.  Meredith Estate vineyard grows in an area known locally as the Sebastopol Hills.  On this cool southern edge of Russian River Valley, summer fog shrouds the area, typically until mid-day.

Ken and Merry carefully monitor vine growth, guiding a dedicated vineyard staff to position shoots and thin the crop three to four times each growing season.  They determine irrigation requirements by measuring precisely the moisture content of the grape leaves.  Stewardship of the land includes the use of sustainable, renewable farming practices.  A cover crop perennially reseeds itself between the vine rows, reducing erosion of the steep, sloping terrain and supporting beneficial insect populations.  Natural amendments, including grape pomace and mushroom compost, replenish the soil with valuable micronutrients.  Merry and Ken installed owl boxes and hawk perches to encourage natural control of rodents and other pests.  The irrigation pond, stocked with turtles, trout and catfish, is home to the resident green heron and blue egrets.

Acres:                         24 total; 20 planted

Exposure:                   South/southeast; 8-12% slope

Soil type:                    Goldridge Sandy Loam

Rootstocks:                10114 and Schwarzmann

Scion wood clones:     Dijon clones 115, 667 and 777
                                    Field selection:  Joseph Swan Vineyard
                                    Merry’s selection from Mount Eden
                                    Vineyards, aka UCD 37

Vine spacing:              5 x 8 feet; vertical trellis