Our recent Southern Oregon roadtrip took us to Volcanic Winery in Klamath County, east of the Cascade Mountains. I came to explore volcanic wines. Volcanic wines, wines born in volcanic soils, have been on my radar for awhile. Volcanic wines became a hot topic for me after a recent visit to the Canary Islands peeked my interest. Volcanic Winery, a family-owned winery in Merrill, Oregon produces small batch estate wines from American Hybrid grapes grown in Klamath Basin's volcanic soil at high elevation.
Vineyard at Volcanic Winery, May 2026 © Spaswinefood
Introduction to Volcanic Wines
Volcanic Winery, about 20 minutes south of Klamath Falls, is located at 4,200 feet elevation. Its small-batch wines, showcase grape varieties that thrive in a high desert climate in Klamath Basin's volcanic soil.
Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
In recent years volcanic wines have built cult followings because of their unique flavor profiles. While volcanic wines depend on grape variety and region, they do tend to share a few common characteristics. Characteristics like 1) Minerality, although not everyone agrees on this, is nearly always present in volcanic wine, and 2) an earthy smokiness. Volcanic soils tend to be rich in nutrients and minerals, which can add a complexity and sophistication to the wines. In general volcanic wines are celebrated for their high acidity, structured tannins, and mineral or savory characteristics.
Volcanic wines regions around the world include Italy, France, Greece, Chile, Argentina, and the United States. In the US the Pacific West Coast and Hawaii is where ancient lava flows and volcanic ash have created volcanic soils. The Pacific Northwest and California regions come to mind, like the decomposed basaltic soils (Jory soils of Oregon's Willamette Valley), or ancient volcanic bedrock (California's Lake County) are most commonly cited. Klamath Basin, located east of the Cascade Mountains, is an outlier and niche high-desert sub-region. This region's climate is quite different from Oregon's mainstream, marine-moderated AVAs like the Willamette Valley. Given the basin's harsh, high-elevation alpine climate, Volcanic Winery instead relies primarily on resilient, experimental varietals rather than source its grapes from elsewhere.
Volcanic Winery Tasting Room, Merrill, Oregon © Spaswinefood
Volcanic Winery Tasting Room
Volcanic Winery's tasting room on Front Street (Highway 39) in Merrill offers a tasting of wines with a unique taste of volcanic terroir. This boutique tasting room specializes in grapes that thrive in high-elevation volcanic soil. Earlier this month while in the area we dropped by to checkout their wines.
Volcanic Winery Tasting Room © Spaswinefood
The tasting room offers curated wine experiences and food. They also host events, and vineyard weddings. They described themselves as: passionate about agritourism, sustainability, and creating unforgettable experiences that celebrate our land, our wines, and our people.
We were delighted to do a wine tasting at Volcanic Winery's tasting room.
Tasting at Volcanic Winery © Spaswinefood
During our visit we were delighted to further our knowledge of wines produced from hybrid grapes. Wine Enthusiast notes:
In North America, there’s a rich history of farming hybrids. Many were developed at Cornell University and the University of Minnesota. In places like Vermont, Michigan, Canada and the Finger Lakes region of New York, hybrid grapes like Chambourcin, Vidal Blanc or Marquette have been grown for decades.
My introduction to hybrid wines have been in British Columbia, Canada, and New York State in places like the Finger Lakes and Thousand Island wine regions.
Volcanic Winery White Wines © Spaswinefood
We began the tasting with two white wines.
1. Volcanic Winery, Ivory Crest La Crosse 2024
Volcanic Winery, Ivory Cress La Crosse 2024 © Spaswinefood
La Crosse, named after a city on the banks of the Mississippi river, is a light-skinned hybrid grape variety bred in Wisconsin.
2. Volcanic Winery, Lava Springs Frontenac Blanc, Klamath County, Oregon 2022
Frontenac gris, a white wine version of Frontenac was introduced in 2003. It started as a single bud mutation of Frontenac. Frontenac blanc was later introduced in 2012 from white fruited mutations found in both Frontenac and Frontenac gris vines in Minnesota and Canada.
Next, we tasted a number of red wines.
CHEERS! Volcanic Winery © Spaswinefood
1. Volcanic Winery, Eternal Embers Leon Millot, Klamath County, Oregon 2022
Volcanic Winery, Leon Millot © Spaswinefood
Volcanic Winery, Leon Millot © Spaswinefood
Volcanic Winery, Eternal Embers Leon Millot, Klamath County, Oregon 2022 © Spaswinefood
Léon Millot, a blue-skinned grape, is well suited for cultivation in cooler climates. It ripens early, has a vigorous growth, and a high resistance to fungal diseases. It is commonly produced as, a similar wine to a ripe Syrah, or a lighter wine similar to Pinot Noir. 2. Volcanic Winery, Crater Bloom Maréchal Foch, Klamath County, Oregon 2018
Volcanic Winery, Crater Bloom Maréchal Foch, Klamath County, Oregon 2018 © Spaswinefood
Maréchal Foch, an early-ripening, cold-hardy French-American hybrid red grape, produces deep purple, medium to full bodied wines. The wines typically have high acidity, mild tannins, and prominent dark fruit, earthy, and roasted coffee notes. Other than dry red wines, Maréchal Foch can be used to make rosés, and even dessert wines like ice wine. It does well in regions like the Pacific Northwest, Midwest, and Canada.
3. Volcanic Winery, Scarlet Veil Sabrevois, Klamath County 2022
Volcanic Winery, Scarlet Veil Sabrevois, Klamath County 2022 © Spaswinefood
Sabrevois, a French-American hybrid, a cold climate cultivar named after a small town in southern Quebec, Canada. Sabrevois produces red wines with aromas of fresh violet and sour cherry and flavors of burgundy notes and cherry, bold in flavor. With higher acidity and tannins and fruit flavors, it is soft on the front palette with a robust acidic finish.
We tasted two Frontenac red wines. Frontenac develop by University of Minnesota, can be used for the production of dry red wines, rose, and fortified port style wines.
4. Volcanic Winery, Mount Mazama Frontenac, Klamath County, Oregon 2021
5. Volcanic Winery, Lil Miss High & Mighty Frontenac, Klamath County, Oregon 2022
Volcanic Winery, Mount Mazama Frontenac, Klamath County, Oregon 2021 © Spaswinefood
Lil Miss High & Mighty Frontenac, Klamath County, Oregon 2022 © Spaswinefood
Frontenac is an interspecific hybrid grape resulting from research and crossbreeding (a crossing of the complex interspecific hybrid Landot 4511 and a very cold-hardy selection of Vitis riparia) at the University of Minnesota. It was released in 1996.
Frontenac gris, a white wine version of Frontenac, was introduced in 2003. Frontenac blanc was introduced in 2012 from white fruited mutations found in both Frontenac and Frontenac gris vines in Minnesota and Canada.
Volcanic Winery, Frontenac 2021 & 2022 © Spaswinefood
Overall, the cold-hardy grape varieties grown at Volcanic Winery that we tasted, I would describe as, having vibrant acidity and bold aromas.
Volcanic Winery, St Croix 2099 & 2021 Wines © Spaswinefood
There were other hybrid wines, like St. Croix that we did not taste. The St. Croix, a
dark-skinned American hybrid variety, is also renowned for its exceptional resistance to cold. It was developed by Wisconsin grape breeder Elmer Swenson through the University of Minnesota.
The winery also produces Albariño and Pinot Noir. My understanding is that these wines are produced grapes grown elsewhere in Oregon. There was no Albariño available for tasting but we did taste their Pinot Noir.
Volcanic Winery, Pinot Noir © Spaswinefood
The wines at Volcanic Winery are not only interesting because they are volcanic wines but also, because of the Klamath Basin's climate they produce wine from hybrid grapes. In this case the climate calls for cold-hardy grapes. Volcanic Winery, like other wineries that I have visited New York State and elsewhere use cold-hardy hybrid grape varieties developed by University of Minnesota and others.
Tasting Room, Volcanic Winery © Spaswinefood
Our visit to Volcanic Winery's Tasting Room was a delightful experience.
After the wine tasting we visited the vineyard. Even though it was early May we did manage to see bud break. A few buds were starting to break on the vines.
Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
A Closer Look: Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
Further along we did see some early spring buds on the vines.Checking of Bud Break, Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
Budding Grape Vines, Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
Checking for Budding, Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
The vineyard has a number of blocks that we walked looking for signs of early bud break. We were happy to discover the early signs that spring was arriving in the vineyard.
Signs of Spring at Volcanic Winery Vineyard, May 2026 © Spaswinefood
I am happy to report that the rugged climate has not deterred a handful of local vintners from planting vineyards in the high desert. Besides Volcanic Winery there a few other wineries, such as Faith Hope & Charity Vineyards in Terrebonne, about 30 miles north of Bend. There you can also taste Volcanic wines. If you travels take you to Southern Oregon's Klamath Basin then put Volcanic Winery on your list. It is well worth it to explore off the beaten wine country track. Join me in the sharing of wine adventures in Oregon and elsewhere at Wine Travels with Dr. Sharon and at Spaswinefood on Bluesky and Facebook.
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Cheers
Sharon
May 2026
Merrill, Oregon
© Spaswinefood
Harvest Host Site, Volcanic Winery, Oregon © Spaswinefood
Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
My fearless companion on our wine adventures is always happy to explore with me.
John, Volcanic Winery Vineyard © Spaswinefood
My recent posts (2025 & 2026) on Canary Islands volcanic wines has also reminded my earlier encounters with Volcanic Wines in the literature and at conferences.
1. Hot Topic: Canary Islands Volcanic Wines
Onboard Views, Santa Cruz de la Tenerife, March 2025 © Spaswinefood
Follow me on Bluesky and Facebook
Excerpt from earlier post on Volcanic Wines
John Szabo's Master Class on Volcanic Wines at the 2018 Rovinhud Wine Show in Timisoara, Romania was quite informative. Szabo, a Master Sommelier, has written a book entitled Volcanic Wines: Salt, Grit and Power. In his book volcanic soil is presented as a basis for understanding a wide range of grapes and wine regions. His Rovinhud presentation included wines from the volcanic regions of Greece, Italy, Sicily, and Hungary.
Greece
The Greek Islands Arc have been identified as being of volcanic origin. While most volcanoes are inactive the most famous active volcanoes in Greece are Santorini, Nisyros, Methana and Milos island. During the class I tasted two wines from Santorini. Moreover, I have written a number of articles on Santorini wines.
Italy My 2014 Spaswinefood travels to Sicily, Italy enabled me to explore the vineyards around Mount Etna's volcanic cone. The lower slopes of Mount Etna has fertile volcanic soil, which makes the area ideal for growing grapes. It was on this visit to Mount Etna that I had explored the area around the volcanic cone.
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| Mount Etna, Sicily 2014 © Spaswinefood |
We drove up to the volcano in the mid-morning. The parking area near the top had good visibility. However, by mid-day, as we drove down the slope of the volcano, it became quite cloudy. The weather did not deter us from exploring the area on the volcano's slopes.
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| November 2014 , Slopes of Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
The lower slopes of Mount Etna has fertile volcanic soil, which make it ideal for vineyards.
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| Countryside, Etna Area © Spaswinefood |
During Szabo's Rovinhud presentation I tasted three wines from Campania and two wines from Sicily.
Hungary The Hungarian wines shared came from regions where volcanic activity ceased long ago. The regions included a lakeside region (Badacsony), a volcanic mountain area (Somló-hegy, or Somló Hill area), and volcanic hills (Tokaj-Hegyáljs area).
Szabo's presentation provided insights into Volcanic Wines produced from grapes grown in volcanic soils. First, I must admit that the overall idea of a link between volcanic soils and wines makes sense. The Volcanic Wines Master Class was the perfect opportunity for me to get a more in-depth understanding of the diversity of volcanic wines from the various wine regions. I enjoyed getting to know wines from a volcanic wine perspective. Clearly, the exploration of Volcanic Wines adds a significant contribution to the overall understanding of terroir driven wines.
Without a doubt I learnt so much from Szabo's presentation, and the other Rovinhud master classes that I have attended.
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| Szövérdfi-Szép Zoltán, Rovinhud Wine Show, 2018 © Spaswinefood |
Special thanks to Szövérdfi-Szép Zoltán, Ceva de Spus Association, and the Rovinhud Wine Show for being such wonderful hosts during my Timisoara visit.
Sharon
November 2018
Timisoara, Romania
© Spaswinefood
