Kendall Mix of Cadaretta and Buried Cane Wineries
The foundation of Cadaretta Winery and the beautiful tasting room in Walla Walla is the timber industry. Beginning in the 1920s and 30s, the Middleton family shipped lumber around the West Coast in a family schooner named “Cadaretta”. Spotted Owl preservation initiatives and declining timber harvests led the family to diversify into grapes in the 1980s and 90s, first table grapes in California and then wine grapes in both California and Washington. Today the family owns two wineres in Washington –Cadaretta and Buried Cane – and two in the Paso Robles area of California. The Southwind estate vineyard planted in 2008 is near Milton Freewater in the Oregon part of the Walla Walla AVA.
Originally from Alberta, Canada, Kendall Mix found his way to the University of CA Davis to study viticulture and enology, before coming to Washington in 1993. For the past two years, he has worked closely with growers at Southwind and other vineyards to produce mostly blended wines for both the Cadaretta and Buried Cane labels. Listen to this interview to find out about the virtues of blending, burying canes, using upright oak fermenters, and combining science and soul in every bottle.
Listen to the Interview: