Granville Brings the Spirit of Grower Champagne to Willamette Valley!
Months after delivering to us one of the highest-scoring Chardonnays in Vin Chicago history, Jackson and Ayla Holstein have absolutely slayed it with their painstakingly crafted Champagne-method sparklers.
“Among my top picks for American sparkling wines.”
- Decanter Magazine, April 2025
With production of only 300 cases combined between the two bottlings, you're not going to find these wines anywhere else within a thousand miles of here!
This ascendent power couple are farmers first, with Jackson being a second-generation grape grower. Their home vineyard (appropriately on Jory Lane) is where he grew up. Their philosophical approach to sparkling wine reminds us very much of our favorite young grower Champagne houses.
Read on for the details, including the 94- and 96-Point reviews from Decanter Magazine, and for the brand new release of their Basalt Pinot Noir, then click down on the Big Green Button to get in on these Vin Chicago exclusives!
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2022 Granville "Basalt" Brut Nature
Willamette Valley, Oregon
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The Willamette Valley is among the best cool-climate zones in the New World for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Is it any surprise that the vineyards are capable of harnessing these “Champagne Varieties” into world-class bubbly?
"The Granville Basalt, Traditional Method Sparkling wine is a case in over delivering.”
- Decanter Magazine, April 2025
Offering a precise mouthfeel with wonderful inner density, this vibrant sparkling wine is far more about terroir than the yeast-dominant winemaking that influences some of the bigger-name Champagnes. Aged on the lees for 24 months, it captures a tensile high-energy style, revealing notes of pear tart, yellow plum skin, chamomile, almond blossom, expressed tangerine peel and river stone. Awarding 94 points, Decanter Magazine writes...
"The Granville Basalt, Traditional Method Sparkling wine is a case in over delivering. A blend of 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir sourced from volcanic soil based vineyard sites throughout the Willamette Valley. Fruity aromatics driven by ripe yellow apples, cut pears and a blend of dried white florals. The palate is crisp, yet the two years spent en tirage has really rounded out the mouthfeel and given a depth of ripe pomme fruits buoyed by a saline mineral finish. There's just a partial maloactic fermentation which gives the wines a degree of lift, this wine is made Brut Nature. Jackson really believes in the Brut Nature and non dosage wines from the Willamette, because the phenolic ripeness is there he picks for non dosage, which means he may allow for a bit more ripeness and keeping an eye on the acidity. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2038."
- 94 Points, Decanter (4/28/2025)
Jackson and Ayla produced just 200 cases. With the winery now sold out, you'll find this artisan sparkling wine nowhere but at Vin Chicago!
Vin Chicago Price: 42.99
2020 Granville Brut Nature Blanc de Noirs
Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon
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The Holsteins crafted a mere 100 cases of this premium 48-months-on-the-lees sparkler. Tasting earlier this year in Oregon, it absolutely blew our minds. We were able to pry 24 bottles from the winery and are very excited to bring them to you today.
Awarding 96 points, Decanter Magazine goes deep with these spot-on tasting notes...
"This Blanc de Noirs remains among my top picks for American sparkling wines. Granville has been making traditional method bubbles since 2017, from the east side of the Holstein Estate, picked ten days before the still wines and in the smoke vintage of 2020, two days before the smoke arrived. En tirage was 48 months. Picked just two days before the smoke that ruined the 2020 red wines arrived, this wine is comprised of 777 clone Pinot Noir, with a touch of 115 in there. There's just a partial maloactic fermentation which gives the wines a degree of lift, this wine is made Brut Nature. Jackson really believes in the Brut Nature and non dosage wines from the Willamette, because the phenolic ripeness is there he picks for non dosage, which means he may allow for a bit more ripeness and keeping an eye on the acidity. It's so beguiling aromatically, with rich lemon cream and baked brioche and hints of lemon verbena. The palate offers a great creaminess, dazzling bright Meyer lemon pulp, rich yeasty character with hints of biscuit and meringue. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2037."
- 96 Points, Decanter (4/28/2025)
Winery price is $95. The only other listing we could find is $90 at an Oregon retailer. With only two cases available, don't blink if you want this one!
Vin Chicago Price: 81.99
Plus the 2024 Vintage of Granville's Deep, Vivacious and Weightless Basalt Pinot Noir!
Boasting a spectacular showcase of seemingly weightless intensity, this is the Holstein's best-priced red, and it is a no-brainer entry into their hot-yet-barely-known Oregon winery!
2024 Granville "Basalt" Pinot Noir
Willamette Valley, Oregon
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Oh, hell yeah! Do we love Willamette Pinot? Yes we do.
This young red deserves a decanter, and all your attention. It is gorgeous, with layers of lifting cranberry, flint, Chinese five spice, bergamot peel, volcanic ash, macerated strawberry and dried violet petals that give a dark tint throughout the hauntingly beautiful, resonant finish.
The texture of this wine is awesome, with a real fine-boned tannic finish that keeps you engaged and instinctively reaching for another pour. It can dress up and hang with the finest of fine dining, covering a heady range of mains from salmon to filet. Drop this in as a ringer at your stuffiest friend’s Burgundy blind tasting and you might hurt some feelings!
On our conservative Vin Chicago scale, this is an easy 93+ points. It really struts its stuff after a double-decanting. The few merchants that have any vintage of Basalt Pinot sell it for $43 to $50, Thanks to Vin Chicago magic, our price is lower than the rest. We can’t recommend this enough.
Vin Chicago Price: 39.99
