SOUTHERN OREGON WINEFall Winter 2019 SCENE LIVING BETWEEN THE VINES 6 / VINTAGE ENTERTAINING Get to know Platon Mantheakis, who’s spent a lifetime dedicated to hospitality and family, and learn why he’s a Southern Oregon culinary and cultural ambassador. 8 / YEAR IN THE LIFE In the fall, it’s all about the grape harvest— discover how area winemakers Linda Donovan and Chris Graves manage the chaos to produce winning vintages. 10 / AT THE WHEEL Stand-up comedian turned cheesemonger Tom Van Voorhees is an east coast transplant whose focus on “place” has become a hallmark of the famed Rogue Creamery. 28 / DE-VINE COUPLE Rob & Jolee Wallace value hard work and teamwork…learn how this couple manages one of the largest wineries and keeps it all moving forward. 42 / PAINT YOUR BARREL After taking a barrel painting class, Paula Guzzo’s FENCES Winery artistic creativity became a way to capture her love of the landscape and give back to the Oregon Wine Experience. CONTENTS / FALL WINTER 2019 Harvest a cornucopia of memories while tasting something unexpected and delicious at 54 / TERRIFIC TRIO The success of the Oregon Wine Experience Southern Oregon’s family-owned wineries. thrives on a spirit of community and a dedication to teamwork, organized by outstanding leaders who are giving it their all. REGIONAL MAPS WINERY DIRECTORIES Southern Oregon .................4 Rogue Valley .........................16-27 Rogue Valley ................14-15 Upper Rogue .........................30-31 58 / GRAPE IN YOUR GLASS Upper Rogue .....................29 Jacksonville ...........................34-41 Jacksonville .......................32 Applegate Valley ...................46-52 When Belle Fiore winemaker Rob Folin saved Applegate Valley ..........44-45 two barrels of Petit Verdot from going into a blended wine, he made a case for this varietal 12 / WINE TERMS 57 / WINERIES to stand on its own! GLOSSARY & PAIRINGS INDEX SOUTHERN OREGON WINE SCENE / FALL WINTER 2019 3 To Florence To Eugene Cottage 101 Grove To Bend Oakridge N Reedsport 38 L ANE EDITOR'S LETTER / READING BETWEEN38 THE VINES SOUTHERN OREGON58 WINE SCENE Um pqu PUBLISHED BY A a Elkton Another Southern Oregon culinary star is Tom Van Voorhees of Rogue Creamery. In our piece, “The Big Jacksonville Publishing LLC Cheese,” you’ll discover what makes Tom tick and why PUBLISHER & EDITOR you need to meet the most engaging and enthusiastic Whitman Parker E cheesemonger5 UMPQUA in the valley. Tom knows his cheeses… and 97 how to pair them with local wines! DESIGN & PRODUCTION 138 Yes...it’s about the people and why you must read our Andrea Di Muzio Yancey other articles including De-Vine Couple Coos , where you’ll get MAPS to knowVALLEY Rob & Jolee Wallace of Del Rio Vineyards. This C Bay R Benchmark Maps ive down-to-earth power couple operates one of the most r diversifiedSutherlin and successful businesses in the region. And CONTACT US / TO ADVERTISE In case you’ve ever wondered, “What’s the best thing about when it comes to successful artists, nobody is1 having38 more [email protected] publishing a wine magazine?” I’ll sum up my answer in two fun than winery ownerU Paula Guzzo, who discovered the [email protected] words—amazing people! For five years now, it’s been an mpqua Riv O Narto ofrt hbarrel painting and is sharing her new-found passioner 541-899-9500 office 42 honor to produce this publication and shine a light on the with the wine world. And when it comes to making an 541-601-1878 mobile Coquilleeclectic list of characters making our wine scene unique. impact on the region, the Asante Foundation deserves a One of those players is rock star winemaker Rob Folin, of medal for Best in Show. Led by an amazing team we call the OFFICE Belle Fiore Winery…pictured on our cover. We were instantly 220 E California Street Bandon 42S Roseburg“Terrific Trio,” this year’s Oregon Wine Experience raised Diamond drawn to this image as emblematic of what happensWinston behind an estimated $1.7 million to benefit the Children’s Miracle Historic Downtown LakeJacksonville theMyrtle scenes at our local wineries. Rob is the focus of Grape in er MAILING Network and other healthcare programs. Riv YourPoint Glass, where we explore Petit Verdot, a grape as complex I’d like to express a heartfelt “thanks” to the exceptional PO Box 1114 as the man himself. peopleMyrtle in Southern Oregon and say Cheers to Living Jacksonville OR 97530 138 101 Undoubtedly, one of the most interesting and humble people a 42 Between the Vines! u sowinescene.com230 on the planet is Platon Mantheakis of the Jacksonville Inn. During Creek q p facebook/southernoregonwinescene Crater the photo shoot at Platon’s home, we loved that he poked fun at Crater Lake S Um Lake his Greek heritage by picking up a bottle of Windex…something outh Cover Image: WinemakerNational Rob Folin at we’re told he treasures as much as his meat thermometer. Belle Fiore Winery by Steven Addington CanyonvilleWhitman Parker Park 227 Union DISCOVER THE SOUTHERN OREGON WINE SCENE WITH OUR REGIONAL MAPS Creek 97 62 Port Rive Lost Orford ue r Creek og 62 Prospect R Lake Shady Cove ROGUE Butte Chiloquin 5 Falls Eagle Gold VALLEY Point UPPER ROGUE Beach MAP ON PAGE 29 Grants APPLEGATE VALLEY Pass Central 140 MAP ON PAGES 44-45 Point 238 Medford Jacksonville 199 ROGUE VALLEY To Lakeview JACKSONVILLE Phoenix MAP ON PAGES 14-15 MAP ON PAGE 32 Cave Junction Cascade–Siskiyou 101 Talent Klamath 140 National Falls 46 Ashland Monument Oregon Caves 66 National Monument 139 Brookings O R E G O N Merrill C A L I F O R N I A Klamath ©Jacksonville Publishing LLC 2019 National SOUTHERN OREGON WINE SCENE / FALL WINTER 2019 4 199 Wildlife Refuge C Redwoods Lava Beds 97 National I National Monument Crescent City 96 Yreka Park F 101 5 I 3 C 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Miles Weed 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Kilometers A Mt Shasta P 89 To Eureka/Arcata To Redding LOVE IS NOW BIGGER THAN EVER Test drive the new 3-row, 8-passenger Ascent today! 3103 Biddle Road • Medford, OR • 541-245-2000 VINTAGE ENTERTAINING Platon and Janet Mantheakis "Celebrate the fall bounty" in their home garden 6 SOUTHERN OREGON WINE SCENE / FALL WINTER 2019 CHEFMaster PLATON MANTHEAKIS ofby SARAH LEMON Hospitality Immersed since childhood in eating, cooking and the both establishments, Mantheakis gained a reputation There’s still plenty of room for new trends aimed art of hospitality, Platon Mantheakis claimed homes for handling the most difficult customers. The ones at new audiences, he says, from wines blended with on three continents before serendipitously settling in who made all the other servers curse and even cry, herbs, botanicals and even cannabis, to sipping half- Southern Oregon. Influenced by East Africa, Australia Mantheakis eagerly took upon himself. bottles from straws. and Britain, Mantheakis’ unique Greek style pairs “I managed to turn every one of those people around.” “I’ve seen it all,” says Mantheakis. “I think people with the region’s wines in ways as adventurous as this At the insistence of a Poppi’s customer, who are really starting to relax about wine.” globe-trotting chef. also frequented the Jacksonville Inn, owner Jerry To that end, he works to dispel wine myths among “Surprise the person who is coming to dinner,” Evans hired Mantheakis to wait tables. Thirty-two customers. Rosé isn’t low-brow. Sweet wines can be says Mantheakis, adding that his unconventional years later, Mantheakis manages the Inn on a more enjoyed throughout a meal, not just with appetizers wine picks for food come with the caveat that “snobs” favorable schedule than Evans himself, who still or dessert. Try chilling an off-dry red wine in should drop the attitude. works evenings and weekends at the icon he’s owned the summer and warming one in the winter with “Tuna with tempranillo,” says Mantheakis of his for 43 years. cinnamon sticks and peppercorns. favorite foil for Oregon’s fresh albacore. The wine’s “He’s a multi-talented guy,” says Evans, adding that Celebrate the fall bounty, he says, with a simple dish spiciness is heightened with whole coriander and Europeans consider hospitality a noble profession, of roasted vegetables, whole garlic cloves, crusty bread black sesame seeds crusted onto the fish, lightly one that can be their life’s work. and lots of olive oil for dipping. Savor it with Del Rio’s seared in olive oil. Over the past few years, Mantheakis has spent less Rose Jolee or Irvine & Roberts pinot noir. A specialty Valley View’s varietal is his first choice among “all time in the Inn’s dining room and more behind the of Greek grandmothers, he says, the meal stands on the big names” with whom Mantheakis has worked. scenes, orchestrating catering obligations and special its own without a morsel of meat in sight. The Jacksonville estate, where he bottled wine, was events. His “artistic” sensibilities, Evans says, are “Make that your entrée, or my grandmother is one of the first to employ him when he arrived in the evident in Mantheakis’ catering arrays. going to give you the stick!” Rogue Valley in 1985. “Other people would take the exact same food, and “I have seen Oregon grow up.” it looks like a pile of stuff.” Born and raised in Tanzania, Mantheakis has deep As an advocate for letting food “speak for itself,” Platon with the essentials: a glass of wine, roots on the Greek isle of Crete, where his family’s Mantheakis says he works “like a surgeon” in the Windex and his meat thermometer.