A viticulturist since 1980, Holstein decided it was time to venture into winemaking after 20-plus years in the industry. The 1999 Pinot Noir and the 2000 Pinot Gris are available in specialty shops, restaurants and online.
"At a certain point, you marry the two jobs," Holstein said of his position as a viticulturist and new winemaker. "I've never been a personality type to be out front, so it is a little uncomfortable for me. But it was time to make my own wine."
The Holsteins were on the ground floor during Oregon's wine growth phenomenon. The Holstein Vineyard, one of Yamhill County's oldest vineyards, is located in the Red Hills of Dundee. Many of the vines were planted in 1972, providing a maturity that shows in the intensity of the wine.
Rolin Soles, winemaker for Argyle Winery, said the Holstein vines are what make Granville's wines noticeable.
"We used to buy all his fruit before he started his own label," Soles said. "The main difference between his wine and ours is the source of the fruit. We are very similar in our styles of winemaking."
Holstein agrees,
"Rolin and I are joined at the hip," Holstein said. "We work together. Granville wine is made at Argyle. We share similar ideas about viticulture."
Besides the difference in the source of fruit, Holstein says he uses a little less oak on his Pinots than other producers of Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris. He said some winemakers have so much oak and wood flavors in their wines that it is sometimes difficult to taste the flavor of the grapes.
"My goal is to get silk-good Pinots should have a silky consistency," Holstein said. "Oak will get a wine noticed and perhaps makes it flashier. But I want to taste the Pinot Noir grape. It is what makes my wine different from other Pinots."
In a blind tasting of Argyle's recent reserve Pinot Noir and Granville's 1999 Pinot Noir, participants agreed that both wines were very good and somewhat similar. Comments about Granville included the fact that the wine had less oak, therefore more of the Pinot Noir taste.
Granville is producing about 300 cases of Pinot Noir and 300 cases of Pinot Gris. Holstein said he will likely increase his production to 500 cases each in the next year or two. Because he has a full-time day job managing vineyards, and Sally is a part-time dental hygienist and full-time mom to 10-year-old son, Jackson, the couple decided to keep Granville on a scale they could manage themselves.
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