Jessica Cortell

An Oregon native, Jessica holds a B.S in Horticulture, M.S in Horticulture, and a Ph.D in Food Science and Technology, all from Oregon State University. Prior to joining Evening Land Vineyards, Jessica was the vineyard management instructor at Chemeketa Community College from 2009 to 2016. After working for several years as the Oregon/Washington viticulturist for Premier Pacific Vineyards, she founded Vitis Terra Vineyard Services in 2010, which focuses on integrating multiple farming approaches to sites to work closely with the environment as possible, with a goal of producing high-quality fruit for premium wines. Today, Jessica farms a number of vineyard sites around the valley, including Carlile’s Crest Vineyard, which she owns. Jessica is passionate for organic and regenerative agriculture, and believes strongly in utilizing Kune kune grazing pigs to help manage the vineyard floor. Her biggest curiosity lies in understanding the relationships between soil, vine, fruit, and wine, as well as exploring the seasonal variations of vintages and how weather patterns play into vine response and terroir, and in turn, the fruit that specific vineyard plots produce.