Seven Hills Winery: Pioneering Spirit With a Northwest Perspective
pharmaceutical studies at the University of Washington. It's where he met his wife and winery partner Vicky, who was majoring in art history and economics.
"Right after we were married, we moved to Davis (CA.) where Casey worked on his graduate degree in enology and viticulture," said Vicky, who was raised in Puyallup, WA. "When it came time to raising a family, we wanted to be in a rural community."
The McClellans moved back to the Northwest. They are currently raising three daughters, ages 11, 13 and 15. Being the lone male in the household is a far cry from McClellan's youth, when he was raised with eight brothers.
Seven Hills is producing around 8,500 cases of wine. The majority of the wine produced is Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. About 2,000 cases consist of Pinot Gris and Riesling. McClellan said he is careful not to overwhelm his wines with oak, or produce heavy fruit bombs.
"We allow for a warm, sweet, well-integrated oak in the wine," McClellan said. "Our goal is to make a whole wine-one where you can taste the personality of the vineyard-one that reflects a balance."
The future includes a little growth, perhaps by 2,000 cases more, and the possibility of a Bordeaux blend. McClellan says he is considering growing his own grapes, although he says he is pleased with the fruit grown by such vineyards as Klipsun and Ciel du Chaval.
The new winery is located in the historic district of Walla Walla, surrounded by a panoramic view of hills. Vicky McClellan said she often wondered about the Seven Hills name-and asked old-timers in the region to point out the Seven Hills.
Turns out, there really wasn't a story about hills or mountains. The vineyard took the name Seven Hills from the Seven Hills Road nearby. They winery adopted the vineyard name.
What Vicky learned is that at one time, the Seven Hills Road was the worst road I the county.
"I'd heard rumors about the name, but I finally learned that it was the name of a road," she said. "So, there really wasn't some mysterious story."
In recent years, Seven Hills wines have won numerous accolades and high scores from wine publications. The 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon, Walla Walla Valley bottling received a 90-point rating from Wine Spectator. The wine was described as dense, plush and generous with black cherry and currant flavors.
The New York Times rated with same wine with four stars, and rated the
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