Ohio recently welcomed a new wine with a patriotic spirit: Eagle & Plow BLOCK 93, created to support and benefit servicemen and women who have been impacted by the war on terrorism, and those who continue to serve and protect.
Mercer Wine Estates launched the inaugural vintage of Eagle & Plow BLOCK 93 Cabernet Sauvignon in September, 2014. It was a heartwarming success, enabling the winery to donate all proceeds – nearly $12,000 – to charities such as Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation, Camp Patriot, Friends of Flight 93 and the New England Center for Homeless Veterans.
For the Mercers, Eagle & Plow is personal: the winery’s VP Vineyard Operations, John Derrick, lost his best friend, Richard Guadagno, when United Airlines Flight 93 went down in Pennsylvania on September 11, 2001. “The name `Eagle & Plow’ exemplifies hard work and patriotism – qualities that are important threads in the Mercer family fabric,” says Rob Mercer, president of Mercer Wine Estates and former US Marine Corps Captain. “With this label, we want to create a lasting benefit for servicemen and women and their families.” Mercer first served in the 1990s and reactivated his service after the September 11 attack. He served additional tours of duty in Iraq from 2007 to 2008.
The Mercer family were the first to plant vinifera in Washington State’s Horse Heaven Hills (HHH) region in 1972. The 2013 Eagle & Plow BLOCK 93 Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced from a 1-acre block on the family’s Cavalie vineyard. BLOCK 93 contains 911 vines, 40 of which were hand-planted by Derrick’s vineyard team to represent the 40 innocent victims of Flight 93. “Because it’s dominated by south-facing slopes and excellent cold air drainage, the HHH is one of Washington’s warmer AVAs,” Derrick says, making it an ideal site for bolder reds such as Malbec, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. “The HHH typically gets only six to eight inches of rainfall per year, allowing us to control growth and vigor of the vines in our deep silty loam soils.”
Suggested retail price of BLOCK 93 is $100. For purchasing information or to make a donation, contact Mercer Estates (509.786.2097 or info@mercerestates.com).
