After many years of amateur winemaking, Jill and Ken Peck took the plunge into the world of commercial winemaking by forming Dakota Creek Winery in the summer of 2005.
Our philosophy is to select only the finest quality grapes from Washington's premium grape growing regions, hand-make wines using gentle fermenting and cellaring techniques to bring out the 'terroir" of the vineyard, and market superlative wines at affordable prices. We embrace sustainable and environmentally sound practices both in the vineyard and at the winery.
The process of making wine at Dakota Creek begins early in the year by negotiating grape contracts with select vineyards whose viticultural practices meet the demanding requirements for our wines. As fall approaches, we keep in close communication with the growers to monitor each variety for pH, sugar and total acidity. As physiological ripeness approaches, we start
tasting the grapes for "organoleptic" properties. When we determine the grapes are at their optimum flavors they are hand-picked and we immediately transport them to the winery to be in making Dakota Creek Wines. Fermentation is conducted in small batches and meticulously monitored through extensive laboratory analysis. For wine varietals that benefit from oak
exposure, aging is conducted in American or French oak, as appropriate. Our environmentally friendly cellaring cave is a metal arch building covered with soil and bark to maintain a perfect 47-64 degrees without ANY heating or air-conditioning.
