Harry Peterson-Nedry

The Path

Founder is the right label for the start of Ridgecrest Vineyards / Chehalem in 1980, and winemaker is the work that still defines Harry Peterson-Nedry at Chehalem. The significance is in the continuity: the ground was established, the winery was built around it, and the practice has stayed with the same place over time. In that sense, Harry Peterson-Nedry’s role is less about a single appointment than a long-held position inside the same working landscape.

The Work Today

Pinot Noir and white wines sit at the center of the winery’s output, with balance, elegance and texture named as the guiding aims rather than sheer power or size. The emphasis is on shape and feel, not force. The language around the wines stays plain, and the plainness is useful. “Chehalem Reserve is a barrel selection, almost exclusively from Ridgecrest.” The statement ties selection to site without widening beyond what the work already contains: vineyard, barrel, finished wine. “It's focused on an elegant, feminine style as much as the vintage will allow.” Here the intention is stated without decoration, and the vintage is left to do its part.

Signature

The signature wines — Ridgecrest Vineyard, Chehalem Reserve, Chehalem Ridgecrest Vineyard, and Riesling Reserve Corral Creek 1998 — keep the work anchored in named sites and a specific vintage. Ridgecrest, in particular, reads as more than a reference point; it is the through-line that organizes the portfolio.

In Their Words “It's focused on an elegant, feminine style as much as the vintage will allow.” “Chehalem Reserve is a barrel selection, almost exclusively from Ridgecrest.”

Acclaim

Ridgecrest Vineyards being the first vineyard in what would become the Ribbon Ridge AVA is the key recognition attached to this work. That place-marker gives the history its structure. Through Chehalem Wines and Ridgecrest Vineyards, Harry Peterson-Nedry’s name remains tied to that beginning as both founder and winemaker.