By Jules Polonetsky
California makes nearly 80% of U.S. wine and is followed by Washington, Pennsylvania, New York and, finally, Oregon. Oregon, at around 3% of U.S. sales, is small by comparison, yet its reputation rests on Pinot Noir that seeks to rival Burgundy.
For kosher wine drinkers, Oregon was once a blank slate. That began to change with Pacifica, the first all-kosher winery in the Pacific Northwest, and has accelerated with collaborations like Twin Suns/Eola Hills and the arrival of Hajdu’s Van Duzer Corridor Pinot Noir.
Oregon’s Willamette Valley, stretching from Portland to Eugene, is the state’s wine heartland, with more than 900 wineries. It’s often compared to Burgundy because of its cool climate, volcanic and marine-sediment soils, and Pinot Noir focus.
However, Burgundy wines often need years of aging to be ready to drink, while fruitier New World-style Oregon Pinots are usually drink-now productions.
The valley’s sub-regions — Dundee Hills, Chehalem Mountains, Ribbon Ridge, McMinnville and Eola-Amity Hills — each produce subtle stylistic shifts, but the through line is brightness, acidity and balance.
The Van Duzer Corridor AVA, established in 2019, is particularly distinctive, with Pacific winds cooling afternoons and thickening grape skins, adding structure and color.
Pacifica, launched in 2010 through a partnership between Royal Wine Corp. and Oregon vintner Philip Jones, was the first fully kosher brand in the Pacific Northwest. Jones planted 25 acres on Underwood Mountain in Washington and also sourced Pinot Noir and other grapes from Oregon’s Umpqua Valley.
From the start, Pacifica aimed to fill a gap: premium kosher wines from a region long known for quality. Its Oregon Pinot Noir remains a benchmark — nonmevushal, fruit-driven, and expressive of cool-climate terroir.
Although not Jewish himself, Jones is a long-time kosher pioneer who was also the first to produce a kosher New Zealand wine when he launched Goose Bay in 2003, a brand that sells well in the kosher and nonkosher markets.
The next leap in kosher Oregon wines came with Twin Suns, owned by Ami and Larissa Nahari of The River Wine, in a venture with winemakers Shimon and Gabriel Weiss of Shirah Wines.
In 2016, they released a one-off Dundee Hills Pinot Noir that became a sensation and led to many successful vintages.
Another key figure in Oregon winemaking is veteran winemaker Steve Anderson of Eola Hills, a major producer of wines throughout the state who makes kosher Pinot Noir under Eola Hills’ “custom crush” program. Anderson also makes wines for the Twin Suns label.
Anderson notes that Oregon Pinot differs from California: cooler nights preserve acidity, producing wines with fresh, bright fruit rather than jammy, cooked flavors.
The most recent addition is Jonathan Hajdu’s Oregon Pinot Noir 2024, sourced from the Van Duzer Corridor. As Dr. Kenneth Friedman of Kosher Wine Tastings observed, the corridor’s winds thicken grape skins, heighten pigment and tannin, and reduce the need for sprays, supporting sustainable farming.
His tasting note highlights “intense bristling acid and fine tannins, with bright tart red fruits and vanilla,” even after five days open — evidence of real aging potential.
At $60, 13.5% ABV, and nonmevushal, it’s the first kosher bottling to proudly carry the Van Duzer AVA designation. Hajdu is a winemaker at California’s Covenant but also produces an eclectic collection of wines for connoisseurs under his own name.
For kosher consumers used to California Cabernet or Israeli Mediterranean reds, Oregon Pinot Noir is something different: elegant, food-friendly and nuanced. Chardonnay and Pinot Gris add further variety, often leaner and more mineral than California equivalents.
And Oregon’s emphasis on sustainability with many organic and biodynamic certified vineyards aligns with growing demand for ethical, environmentally sound wine.
Looking Ahead
Pacifica blazed the trail, proving that kosher Oregon wine could exist. Twin Suns and Eola Hills are making it consistent and accessible. Hajdu’s Van Duzer release adds precision and prestige.
Together, they’ve put Oregon firmly on the kosher wine map, offering styles long missing from the market and proving that even in one of America’s most artisanal wine regions, kosher winemaking can stand shoulder to shoulder with the best.
L’Chaim!
Jules Polonetsky is a Wine and Spirits Education Trust Level 3 Certified wine expert who writes for the Wine and Whiskey Globe when not occupied with his day job as CEO of a tech policy think tank. He is a former consumer affairs commissioner of the city of New York.
