Granville Wine Co.
Handcrafted | Soulful | Authentic Wines
Granville Wine Co. is a small family-owned vineyard and winery located in the Dundee Hills of the Willamette Valley. Led by second-generation wine growers Ayla & Jackson Holstein, Granville produces Pinot Noir & Chardonnay from their family’s Holstein Estate Vineyard and small sustainably-farmed sites across the Willamette Valley.
As the site of Jackson’s childhood home, the vineyard, tasting room and winery remain a family affair. At any given time during the growing season, you might find three generations of Holsteins running around the vineyard, climbing on tractors, picking produce from the garden, checking weather forecasts, grilling burgers, sampling barrels, and hosting private tastings.
If you visit Granville on a hot afternoon in July, you might want to bring your bathing suit and plan to cancel you next appointment. The dunk tank is cold, the views incredible, the wines outstanding and the experience unparalleled.
Granville “Holstein Vineyard” Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, 2018
Grown on the family farm’s warm hilltop vineyard during the hottest vintage on record, the 2018 Holstein Vineyard Pinot Noir is a lush, generous wine full of ripe red fruits and deep floral aromas. Flavors of dark Luxardo cherry and candied violets are layered with dried cranberry, fresh strawberry and wet rose. The rich texture of the wine brings a persistent finish with subtle flavors of plum skin, brown sugar and ferrous earth. Despite the heat of the vintage and ripeness of fruit, this medium-bodied Pinot Noir is nicely balanced with juicy acidity and soft tannins.
Though a versatile wine that pairs well with a broad range of complex dishes, I recommend tossing a filet mignon on the grill with sweet red peppers and onions, roasted herbs, and plenty of olive oil and sea salt.
Granville “Spirit Hill Vineyard” Chardonnay, Eola-Amity Hills – Willamette Valley, 2019
Spirit Hill is a very cool place to grow Chardonnay, which is exactly why Jackson loves working with this site. Planted in volcanic Jory soils atop the Eola-Amity Hills between 700 and 800 feet of elevation, consistent winds from the Van Duzer corridor deliver maritime influences that slowdown ripening and preserve natural acidity in the grapes. Eventually, when the grapes do achieve their optimal ripeness, they are perfectly suited for bottling sparkling wine or high-acid Chardonnay.
Initially, the aromatics of this wine are restrained, showing notes of lemon custard, white flowers, lavender pollen, and an elusive minerality. The palate is citrus-driven, crisp and refreshing. After a few minutes in the glass, a complexity reminiscent of premier cru Chablis begins to show with tart pineapple, lemon zest, pie crust and wet clay.
As the wine unfurls, that elusive minerality begins to step forward alongside the pronounced citrus notes with wet granite and salinity. Contemplating this wine on a hot summer day in McMinnville, a found myself drifting back to an amazing swimming whole on the Swift River in New Hampshire where pristine mountain water flows over old granite, picking up the soft golden hues of iron in the rock and coarse sand. And if I am standing there in the sun, knee-deep in that river, drinking this wine not too far from the ocean, wondering what I should eat for lunch, it could only be one thing.