LaVelle Vineyards

Fifteen miles west of Eugene in the small town of Elmira is the LaVelle Vineyards property. Crossing the Hannavan Creek at LaVelle Vineyards, your journey takes you to a spacious parking lot. The winery’s tasting room is visible on the hill, past terraced gardens and a patio that invites visitors to kick back and relax. However, at the tasting room’s doors is the name Forgeron Vineyards permanently carved on the door. I entered wondering if I had had a senior moment and arrived at the wrong winery, but was relieved to hear, “Welcome to LaVelle Vineyards, would you like to taste some wines?”

Turns out that prior to becoming LaVelle Vineyards, the winery’s name was Forgeron Vineyards. That was back before 1994, when retired GTE executive Doug LaVelle fulfilled a dream by buying the defunct Forgeron Vineyards winery, with its 16 acres of neglected grapes. Thus ensued considerable effort to bring the winemaking equipment up to modern standards, redo the crush pad, renovate the tasting room, and rehab the vineyard. Eventually, Doug’s son Matthew became part of the mix as director of operations. Today, LaVelle Vineyards “gently crushes” 300 tons of harvest fruit per year, including a combination of wines destined for the LaVelle Vineyards winery and custom-crushed wines.

Tasting-room visitors will give their arms a workout, with all the swirling to be done, what with so many wines to sample — riesling, pinot gris, chardonnay, viognier, gamay noir, merlot, pinot noir, rosé, and a sparkling wine made using the traditional méthode champenoise process. Using fruit from its estate vineyard, local grape growers and Washington’s Columbia Valley, LaVelle Vineyards crafts a robust line-up of premium wines.

If, for some reason, you can’t make it to LaVelle Vineyards winery in rural Elmira, I have good news. At Eugene’s popular 5th Street Market, visitors can relax in the intimate confines of the LaVelle Wine Bar & Bistro. Open seven days a week, the wine bar offers WineTrails trekkers the same line-up of wines they would taste at the winery. And if you time your visit during weekend evenings, there’s a good chance that your wine tasting will be accompanied by piano music inside the bar or a local band outside on the patio. The establishment is intimate and fun, and the perfect place to relax with friends and a glass of LaVelle Vineyards Vintage Select Gamay Noir, all the while wondering why this delightful wine isn’t found throughout Oregon.