Connecting Pinot Noir and Persian Culture

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Any wine will get you high. Judge like a king, and choose the purest, the ones unadulterated with fear, or some urgency about “what’s needed.” —Rumi

Western culture may trace the spiritual origins of wine to Jewish and Christian rituals. However, Persia originated as one of the first recorded instances of wine used for sacred and ceremonial purposes circa 5400-5000 BCE. Even though winemaking has been banned in Iran since 1979 as a result of the Iranian Revolution, the documentary SOMM TV: Cup of Salvation depicts how the Persian spirit of winemaking continues in Iran and around the world—including in Oregon’s wine country.

As Iranian-born Moe Momtazi, owner of Momtazi Vineyards & Maysara Winery in McMinnville, Oregon, says, “The love of wine is so deeply rooted into people’s minds that it represented one of the things they couldn’t take away from us.” In Iran, his grandfather farmed grapes using sustainable farming practices, and his father made wine that he gifted to friends and family, especially during Nowruz.

Moe landed in Oregon’s Willamette Valley after fleeing Iran on a motorcycle with his pregnant wife Flora in tow during the Iranian Revolution. After escaping through the mountain ranges in Pakistan, they went to Spain and Italy before entering the United States through Mexico in 1983.

They moved to Oregon where Moe worked as a civil engineer, though his passion lay in winemaking. They found a 496-acre abandoned wheat farm in Oregon’s Willamette Valley that contained all the elements needed to grow Pinot Noir grapes. These included forests, hills, pastures and migratory birds like falcons and bald eagles who are attracted to the fish in the reservoirs they built.

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As he learned from a young age that the world’s climate was going to change, Moe deliberately chose a cooler area that he believed would still be able to produce Pinot Noir grapes despite expected warming. The vineyard’s high elevation allows the air to flow freely, thus preventing the disease pressure typical to lower elevations and wetter weather.

Since planting their first Pinot Noir grapevines in 1998, the Momtazi’s property has grown to 560 acres with 296 acres under vine. Currently, they sell grapes to 21 wineries, including Dobbes Family Estate. When asked why he purchases grapes from Momtazi Vineyards, winemaker Derek Einberger said, “Moe isn’t a grower; he’s more of a holistic land caregiver, not to mention the fact that he’s a lovely and energetic person to be around. Our relationships with vineyard owners and land managers are some of our most important, so I find that surrounding ourselves with nurturing people who both care for their little patch of earth and also the people around them is of the utmost importance.

Oregon proved to be a natural fit for the Momtazis to build a sustainability-focused winery, as this state produces only one percent of wine grown in the United States but is home to 52% of US-based certified biodynamic wineries. Given that Austrian scientist and philosopher Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) drew upon the ancient Persian philosopher and farmer Zoroaster’s teachings in developing his farming methodologies, the Momtazis viewed Demeter biodynamic certification as a natural fit; they were certified in 2004.

Zoroastrianism advanced the notion that the entire universe, including plants, are alive and in tune with the cosmos. Life, as Zoroaster defined it, is a struggle between the forces of light, goodness and creation (aša) and those of darkness and evil (druj). In Steiner’s interpretations of these teachings, mechanical farming practices, such as the use of chemical fertilizers, represented druj, as they led to the decline of both plant and animal health. Conversely, aša describes farming practices that connect nature and spirit by integrating crops, livestock and healthy plants into a fertile, self-sustaining biosphere.

Since moving to Oregon, the Momtazi family continues to honor the ancient Persian concept of wine as a living spirit that springs from the marriage of the sun and the earth. To celebrate their roots, they decorated Maysara Winery’s tasting room with tapestries and other artifacts reminiscent of Persian culture. (“Maysara” is an ancient Persian word that means “winery.”)

“I want to show people how it makes a difference in the wine that they drink by farming the right way,” says Momtazi. “I don’t manipulate our wines but try to work with whatever Mother Nature gives us.” And when it comes to evaluating wine, Momtazi explains, “Wine is either yuck or yum.” Instead of relying on wine rankings or tasting notes, Moe encourages people to trust their palate and experiences when tasting wine.

Carrying the Immigrant Experience Forward

In addition to farming in a manner that works with, not against, the natural environment, Momtazi wants to share the generosity his family received when they first immigrated to the U.S. with other immigrant families. They made over 500 cases of wine they named “Immigrant,” with a third of the proceeds going to help Lutheran Community Services Northwest (LCSNW)’s Safe Route Program. This venture seeks to provide affordable and empathetic guidance to those seeking refuge and pursuing legal immigration status in Portland, Beaverton, McMinnville and Salem, Oregon. Many of the immigrants in this area who are working at farms, restaurants, vineyards and other local businesses rely on LCSNW to help them access much-needed resources in the Pacific Northwest.

The Momtazis have even hosted meetings, immigration information sessions, donor happy hours and cooking classes for LCSNW, as well as sponsoring FIESTA!, an annual fundraising dinner and auction held at their winery that raises awareness and support for LCSNW’s programming. The next fundraiser is slated for May 18, 2024.

The Momtazis’ three daughters have now joined the family business. Tahmiene established herself as one of the top Pinot Noir winemakers in the United States, Naseem promotes Maysara’s wines as their national and international sales manager and Hanna oversees the winery’s events and the tasting room. Together, the Momtazis continue to welcome all with a resounding tee-noosh, a Persian toast that means “to your health” or “cheers to you.”