Producer Description
The story of Chehalem is rooted in a deep and abiding reverence for the land. From the vineyards we nurture and harvest to the wine we blend and age – we handle every step with respect to our fruit and an unwavering standard of sustainable practices. We consider ourselves a vineyard winery. We aim to reflect what the vineyard has produced, purely, with minimal processing and without compromising great fruit.Founder, Harry Peterson-Nedry, pioneered grape growing in the prestigious soils of Ribbon Ridge in the early 1980s when he purchased land and planted Ridgecrest Vineyards.In 1990, Chehalem Winery was founded and released its first bottle of wine, Ridgecrest Pinot Noir.Bill Stoller joined Harry in the winery operation in 1993 and subsequently planted a vineyard on his family farmlands at the southern tip of the Dundee Hills.Chehalem purchased Corral Creek, the vineyard surrounding the winery, in 1995. It became the third estate vineyard sourced for Chehalem wines.In early 2018, Bill Stoller purchased Harry’s share of equity in the business. In July, Chehalem became the sixth Oregon winery to achieve B Corp status- which assesses companies to ensure they meet the highest standard of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability.