Domaine Serene: Burgundy’s Dream on Oregon Soil

From Minnesota fortunes to Dundee Hills mastery, the Evenstads built a Willamette empire where Pinot dreams became destiny.

The Origins: A Minnesota Couple, a Wild Idea (1989)

The story of Domaine Serene begins far from Oregon — in Minnesota, where Ken and Grace Evenstad built their fortune in pharmaceuticals. But wealth was not their ultimate pursuit. Their true passion was wine, particularly Burgundy’s Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which they revered with near-religious devotion.

In 1989, at a time when Oregon was still dismissed by many as a winemaking backwater, the Evenstads purchased a 42-acre hilltop estate in the Dundee Hills, planting vines where others saw only scrub and forest. The move was bold, risky, almost reckless.

But vision thrives on risk. The Evenstads bet not just on land, but on Oregon’s future — that the Willamette Valley could rival Burgundy itself.

The Philosophy: Burgundy’s Precision, Oregon’s Voice

From the beginning, Domaine Serene sought to marry Burgundian rigor with Oregon’s wild terroir.

• Pinot Noir as Crown Jewel: Every vine, every block was planted with Pinot in mind, with clonal diversity echoing Burgundy’s complexity.
• Chardonnay’s Revival: At a time when Oregon was still Pinot-obsessed, the Evenstads championed Chardonnay, crafting wines of tension, minerality, and elegance.
• Estate Focus: Their Dundee Hills vineyards — Evenstad Estate, Grace Vineyard, Jerusalem Hill — became the core of Serene’s identity.

The winemaking philosophy echoed Burgundy but with Oregon’s daring edge: precise viticulture, restrained oak, and a belief that terroir must speak louder than ego.

The Rise: Critical Acclaim and Expansion

By the late 1990s and early 2000s, Domaine Serene was winning acclaim as one of Oregon’s finest producers. Its Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir became the estate’s flagship, praised for its balance of power and finesse.

But the Evenstads’ ambition did not rest. They expanded their vineyards across the Dundee Hills and Yamhill-Carlton, acquiring some of the Willamette Valley’s finest sites. Their Chardonnays — Evenstad Reserve, Etoile Vineyard, Récolte Grand Cru — challenged assumptions that Oregon was Pinot-only country.

And then, in 2015, the ultimate gesture of audacity: the Evenstads purchased Château de la Crée in Burgundy’s Côte d’Or — returning, in a sense, the Burgundian dream that had inspired them. The circle was complete.

The Wines: Icons of Elegance and Depth

• Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir: The flagship — dark cherry, spice, forest floor, built to age.
• Grace Vineyard Pinot Noir: Perfumed, ethereal, pure finesse.
• Jerusalem Hill Pinot Noir: Structured, dense, more masculine.
• Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay: Oregon’s grand cru in white, taut minerality wrapped in silk.
• Monogram Pinot Noir: The estate’s ultra-cuvée, bottled ambition.

At every tier, Domaine Serene wines reflect a symphony of Burgundy’s precision and Oregon’s energy.

Liber’s Take: The Dream of Exile Made Flesh

What I admire in Domaine Serene is its fusion of exile and ambition. The Evenstads left Minnesota not for warmer winters but for the cold soils of Dundee. They planted Pinot not in Burgundy, but in Oregon’s volcanic earth.

Like me, they understood that true greatness often requires defiance — to go where others say you should not, to dream what others call impossible. Their estate stands not just as a winery, but as proof that vision can transplant worlds.

To drink Domaine Serene is to drink Burgundy reborn — a dream carried across continents, rooted in new soil, made eternal in Pinot and Chardonnay.

Conclusion: Why Domaine Serene Matters

Oregon has many great producers, but none carry the symbolic weight of Domaine Serene. It is Burgundy in exile, a dream of grace made flesh, and a reminder that ambition can plant vineyards where destiny least expects them.

Domaine Serene: Burgundy’s dream on Oregon soil, where Pinot became prophecy.