Stoller Vineyard and Winery

Do you think it’s possible to be too green when it comes to environmentally conscious winemaking? Probably not, but Stoller Vineyard and Winery comes close.

At Stoller, you discover Willamette Valley’s only solar power-driven, gravity-flow, and LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold–certified winery. Its nearby neighbor, Sokol Blosser, is LEED certified for its barrel room, whereas Stoller’s certification applies to its entire facility, hence the Gold level of certification. The winery integrates gravity flow, solar-powered electricity, and wastewater reclamation under one roof. In terms of sustainability, it sets the bar for other wineries.

Approaching Stoller Vineyard and Winery off McDougall Road, you see the prominent winery and the wide expanse of the 175-acre south-sloping vineyard. I found it hard to imagine that this used to be a turkey farm. When the turkey industry and the Stoller turkey business went south, Bill and Cathy Stoller saw the opportunity to turn the turkey farm into a premium vineyard. They understood that the south-facing slope, with its rocky soil and hardened Jory clay, is just the kind of terrain grape vines love. That was back in the mid-’90s, and today nearly half of the property is under production, primarily in pinot noir.

Pulling into the parking area, I saw the disc golf baskets nearby and regretted that I wouldn’t have time to play a round. In Italy, you find bocce courts; in Oregon, you find disc golf courses. I looked around for the winery pugs, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but didn’t see them. As I walked toward the tasting room, I recalled that in 2001, the Stollers began reserving part of the grape harvest for their own label. Other wineries — including Adelsheim, Argyle, and Domaine Drouhin— had purchased Stoller Vineyard fruit in the past, so the Stollers knew their grapes delivered.

In the tasting room, visitors experience an assortment of full-flavored pinot noirs and chardonnays, plus a delightful pinot noir rosé (perfect for pairing with turkey perhaps?). Winemaker Melissa Burr has crafted marvelous wines; Wine Press Northwest certainly thinks so. In its Spring 2008 issue, the wine magazine noted of the 2006 Stoller JV Pinot Noir, “It opens with inviting aromas of cherries, red peppercorns and blackberries, followed by richly structured flavors that reminded us of a freshly baked cherry pie.” Cherry pie? I’m all over it!