Shea Wine Cellars

Dick and Deirdre Shea were New Yorkers who got a recommendation at their local wine shop in the late 1980s and were floored by what came out of the bottle. Dick had grown up in Queens, done two years in the Army including a year in Vietnam, earned an MBA at Wharton, and worked as a trader on Wall Street for an investment bank whose owners had bought Château Haut-Brion in 1935 — his introduction to fine wine. In 1989, with two East Coast partners, they bought 100 acres in the hills of Yamhill County.

It was a genuinely risky bet. The Yamhill-Carlton area was largely untested, and its WillaKenzie sedimentary soils were considered inferior to the Jory soils of the Dundee Hills. One of the first vintages made from Shea fruit received one of Oregon’s highest scores to date and put the region on the map.

The vineyard now runs roughly 155 planted acres across three sections. East Hill holds some of the oldest vines and produces wines with notable acidity and balance. West Hill faces south and gives richer, more structured fruit. Third Hill, added in 2013, faces east on rocky basalt. Elevations run 400 to 600 feet, the site is non-irrigated, and farming is LIVE certified and Salmon Safe.

About 80 percent of the fruit is sold — to Ken Wright, Beaux Frères, St. Innocent, Sine Qua Non, and a long list of others. The remaining 20 percent becomes Shea Wine Cellars, founded in 1996 to bottle the family’s favorite blocks. The 2004 Estate earned 95 points and a place on Wine Spectator’s Top 100.

Peter Shea, the second generation, was born the same month planting began and has worked here nearly thirty years. Vineyard manager Jesus Marin has been with the operation almost as long, rising from field worker to running a crew of fourteen. Tastings are private, seated, and hosted at the winery on the vineyard itself, often with a walk through the property.

Peter Shea, the second generation, was born the same month planting began and has worked here nearly thirty years. Vineyard manager Jesus Marin has been with the operation almost as long, rising from field worker to running a crew of fourteen. Tastings are private, seated, and hosted at the winery on the vineyard itself, often with a walk through the property.