Long Shadows Vintners

Allen Chester Shoup served as president and CEO of Stimson Lane Vineyards and Estates (the parent company of Chateau Ste. Michelle and its affiliate wineries) from 1983 through 2000, building Ste. Michelle from a Pacific Northwest regional producer into one of the largest premium wine companies in the United States. Under his leadership Ste. Michelle expanded its Washington brand portfolio and established two landmark international winemaker joint ventures: Col Solare with Piero Antinori of Tuscany, and Eroica Riesling with Ernst Loosen of Dr. Loosen in the Mosel (launched 1999). Both ventures previewed the collaborative model that Shoup would later build out at full scale. After retiring from Ste. Michelle in 2000, Shoup spent two years developing the Long Shadows concept and announced the producer's formation in 2003, with first wines released in 2004. The premise was straightforward: assemble a group of internationally renowned winemakers, give each one a single wine to make from premium Washington fruit, and have them take co-ownership of their wine rather than work as paid consultants. Shoup died on November 7, 2022 at age 79; the producer has continued as an independent ultra-premium house, with Gilles Nicault, director of winemaking and viticulture since 2002, making every Long Shadows wine.

• Allen Shoup served as president and CEO of Stimson Lane Vineyards and Estates (parent of Chateau Ste. Michelle) from 1983 through 2000
• Under Shoup, Ste. Michelle launched two precedent-setting collaborations: Col Solare with Piero Antinori (Tuscany) and Eroica Riesling with Ernst Loosen of Dr. Loosen (Mosel, 1999)
• Retired from Ste. Michelle 2000; spent two years developing Long Shadows concept; producer formation announced 2003; first wines released 2004
• Founding premise: each winemaker partner takes co-ownership of their wine rather than working as a paid consultant; Shoup died November 7, 2022 at age 79

Long Shadows assigns each wine in its core lineup to a single globally recognized winemaker partner, with each partner directing the style, vineyard selection, and blending of their wine. Poet's Leap Riesling is the project of Armin Diel of Schlossgut Diel, the family estate in Burg Layen in the Nahe region of Germany that has been in the Diel family since 1802; Diel directed Poet's Leap from the producer's 2003 founding through 2016, when he transitioned full winemaking responsibility to Gilles Nicault while remaining an inspirational figure for the wine's house style. Sequel Syrah is made by John Duval, who served as chief winemaker of Penfolds in South Australia from 1986 to 2003 across a 29-year Penfolds career and was the architect of Penfolds Grange across 16 vintages; Sequel applies Duval's Australian Shiraz sensibility to Walla Walla fruit. Pedestal Merlot was created by Michel Rolland, the consulting winemaker from Pomerol whose client roster has spanned the global fine wine industry. Pirouette, a Cabernet Sauvignon-led Bordeaux-style red blend, is co-directed by Agustin Huneeus (founder of Quintessa in Napa Valley) and Philippe Melka (the Bordeaux-trained Napa consulting winemaker whose client list has included Dalla Valle, Bryant Family, Hundred Acre, and many others). Saggi, a Tuscan-style blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah, is made by Ambrogio Folonari and his son Giovanni Folonari of Tenute Ambrogio e Giovanni Folonari in Tuscany. Feather Cabernet Sauvignon is the project of Randy Dunn, the Howell Mountain Cabernet specialist whose Dunn Vineyards bottlings established a long-aging Napa Valley structural Cabernet reference; Feather applies that house style to Columbia Valley fruit.

• Poet's Leap (Riesling): Armin Diel of Schlossgut Diel in Burg Layen, Nahe, Germany (family estate since 1802); Diel directed from 2003 through 2016 before transitioning to Gilles Nicault
• Sequel (Syrah): John Duval, chief winemaker of Penfolds 1986 to 2003 (29-year Penfolds career) and architect of Grange across 16 vintages; Pedestal (Merlot): Michel Rolland, consulting winemaker from Pomerol
• Pirouette (Bordeaux blend): Agustin Huneeus (founder of Quintessa, Napa Valley) and Philippe Melka (Bordeaux-trained Napa consulting winemaker); Cabernet Sauvignon-led
• Saggi (Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah Tuscan-style blend): Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari of Tenute Folonari, Tuscany; Feather (Cabernet Sauvignon): Randy Dunn of Dunn Vineyards, Howell Mountain

Gilles Nicault is Long Shadows' director of winemaking and viticulture and the operational anchor of every wine the producer makes. French-born and trained, Nicault brought experience from Burgundy and Bordeaux as well as Walla Walla (he previously worked at Woodward Canyon) to Long Shadows when he joined at the founding. He works collaboratively with each winemaker partner on vineyard selection, fermentation, and blending across the seven core wines, and he directs the in-house Chester-Kidder bottling himself. Chester-Kidder is a New World blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Petit Verdot (typical recent compositions run roughly 60 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 30 percent Syrah, and 10 percent Petit Verdot, with year-to-year variation), named in honor of Allen Shoup's grandparents Charles Chester and Maggie Kidder. The wine is conceived as the house's own statement, drawing on the multi-perspective influences Nicault has absorbed from the visiting winemaker partners across the broader lineup. In 2016 Nicault assumed full winemaking responsibility for Poet's Leap after Armin Diel found the trans-Atlantic travel increasingly difficult; the wine's style continues to reflect Diel's original direction. Nine Hats, the second-label red blend, draws from declassified lots across the Long Shadows portfolio and is also made by Nicault.

• Gilles Nicault: director of winemaking and viticulture since the producer's founding; French-born and trained (Burgundy and Bordeaux), with prior Walla Walla experience at Woodward Canyon
• Works collaboratively with each winemaker partner on vineyard selection, fermentation, and blending across all seven core wines
• Chester-Kidder: in-house Nicault wine; New World blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Petit Verdot (roughly 60/30/10 in recent vintages, year-to-year variation); named for Allen Shoup's grandparents Charles Chester and Maggie Kidder
• Assumed full winemaking responsibility for Poet's Leap in 2016 after Armin Diel stepped back from trans-Atlantic travel; also makes Nine Hats from declassified lots

Long Shadows sources fruit from premium Walla Walla Valley, Horse Heaven Hills, and broader Columbia Valley vineyards through long-term grower partnerships rather than relying on estate-vineyard ownership alone. The featured vineyard sources for the red wine program include The Benches at Wallula in Horse Heaven Hills, Sagemoor in the Columbia Valley, Boushey in Yakima Valley, StoneTree in the Columbia Valley, and Tapteil on Red Mountain. Horse Heaven Hills supplies additional fruit for the red wines, with The Benches at Wallula (the Den Hoed family vineyard, from which Gilles Nicault has sourced fruit since 2003) supplying material to Feather. The Poet's Leap Riesling program draws on cool-climate sites in the Columbia Valley, with significant fruit from the Wallula biodynamic blocks and broader Columbia Valley vineyards selected for the Riesling's aromatic clarity. The grower-partnership model gives Long Shadows access to a wider range of premier vineyard sources than a single-estate operation could maintain, while the in-house cellar in Walla Walla provides the centralized winemaking facility where Nicault and the visiting partner winemakers collaborate on each wine.

• Fruit sourcing model: long-term grower partnerships across Walla Walla Valley, Horse Heaven Hills, and broader Columbia Valley AVAs rather than estate-vineyard-only ownership
• Walla Walla Valley and Columbia Valley vineyard sources supply the Cabernet, Merlot, and Syrah lineup
• Featured sources include The Benches at Wallula (Den Hoed family, Horse Heaven Hills), Sagemoor, Boushey, StoneTree, and Tapteil (Red Mountain); Wallula has supplied Feather
• Poet's Leap Riesling draws on cool-climate Columbia Valley sites including Wallula biodynamic blocks; centralized in-house cellar in Walla Walla anchors the collaborative production

Long Shadows occupies a distinctive position in the Washington wine industry as the most fully developed expression of the international winemaker collaboration model that Allen Shoup had previewed at Chateau Ste. Michelle with Col Solare and Eroica. Where Ste. Michelle's joint ventures paired one international partner with one wine within a much larger company portfolio, Long Shadows put seven internationally renowned winemakers under a single roof, with each producing a flagship-tier wine and taking co-ownership in their bottling. The model has produced one of Washington's most internationally validated producer portfolios, with consistent critical reception across all seven wines and Feather Cabernet in particular widely cited as a Washington Cabernet benchmark. The price tier positioning runs from accessible (Nine Hats and Poet's Leap at moderate price) through premium (Pedestal, Sequel, Chester-Kidder) to flagship luxury (Pirouette and Feather among the higher-priced Washington reds). The producer's continued operations under Gilles Nicault's winemaking direction since Allen Shoup's death in 2022 reflect the depth of the operational infrastructure Shoup built; the founding international vintners are no longer directly involved in production, with each winemaker's signature style now carried forward by Gilles Nicault; the wines continue to be released annually, and the Walla Walla cellar continues to anchor one of the more unusual collaborative producer structures in the global premium wine industry.

• Most fully developed expression of the international winemaker collaboration model previewed at Chateau Ste. Michelle with Col Solare (Antinori) and Eroica (Loosen) under Allen Shoup's leadership
• Seven internationally renowned winemakers under a single roof, each producing a flagship-tier wine with co-ownership; one of Washington's most internationally validated producer portfolios
• Price tier positioning runs from accessible (Nine Hats, Poet's Leap) through premium (Pedestal, Sequel, Chester-Kidder) to flagship luxury (Pirouette, Feather)
• Continued operations under Gilles Nicault since Allen Shoup's 2022 death; founding international vintners no longer directly involved in production, their signature styles carried forward by Gilles Nicault; Walla Walla cellar anchors one of the more unusual collaborative producer structures in global premium wine