I’m Kenton Erwin. I’ve been making wine since 1995. I handcraft Epona wines at our farm’s small winery near Woodland, WA. I chose the name “Epona” for my Celtic roots — Epona was the Celtic goddess of agriculture.
I make wine from both modern grape varieties and vinifera (European) grapes. I hope you will agree that the modern varieties wines have flavors that are fresh and exciting, and are similar enough to the flavors you expect from classic winegrapes, that you will like the taste.
I already know you will like the “green-ness” of these grapes. They are disease-resistant and require no spray, which means they also require less tractor fuel and labor. They also ripen earlier — in a normal year, that means getting good harvest parameters before the rains return in the Fall, and before the worst of the bird damage hits.
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Epona wines made from estate (self-grown) fruit include:
White — Cayuga
Red — Leon Millot and a blend of several varieties
Rose — blend of several red and white varieties
Pourt (TM) — (port-style dessert wine) blackberry, raspberry, apple, or grape
Apple and Pear Ciders
REVIEWS:
+ We tried the raspberry dessert wine after skiing this weekend. Tasty, and it has a bit of a kick behind it. Good stuff. Love it.
+ [Jennifer] We had your rose last eve and it was a truly amazing wine. Crisp and dry enough for me as I hate sweetness in any wine. I am impressed and loved it chilled…
+ Just tried the rose, and I really like it! The nose is beautiful and I like the complexity. I don’t find it to have that cloying sweetness that one often finds in the off-dry roses, so I would characterize it as a dry rose as far as my palate is concerned.
+ [This note is from Brian, a professional winemaker friend] Some friends and I just finished off a bottle of your rose. Great job! I really enjoyed it. Amazing bouquet and great fruit flavors — I picked up some strawberry and peach. One of your best wines. You have this rose way underpriced. It should be at least $15. Do you have any left?
+ [Bob:] We drank your 2017 Epona Cabernet Franc over the course of two nights this week: once on its own, and once with food (bone-in chicken thighs and a side salad). It has very pleasant aromas of cherry and bay leaf. For a brief moment, I caught a hint of honeysuckle. It has ample weight in the mouth but also plenty of acid to support not only the wine itself but also our dinner. Excellent balance here for food lovers. I taste raspberries — lovely! The finish is short but interesting, with notes of dark chocolate.
AWARDS:
+ Double Gold medal, Seattle Wine Awards of 2019, for Epona 2017 Yakima Valley Cabernet Franc
+ Silver medal, Seattle Wine Awards of 2019, for Epona 2018 Cayuga white wine
+ Silver medal, Seattle Wine Awards of 2019, for, 2018 Epona Rose wine
+ Silver and Bronze medals, Newport Food & Wine Winemaker’s Tournament
+ Best in Show for Raspberry Pourt Wine, Washington County Fair
+ Numerous Blue and Red ribbons, in various county fair competitions
Epona Wine 