Founded by winemaker Ken Wright in 1986—and then nurtured to success—Panther Creek Cellars was rescued from a bitter business dispute in 1994 by Iowan Ron Kaplan. A lover of Burgundy wine an. Panther Creek, one of Oregon's best producers of single-vineyard Pinot Noir, has a terrific location in an old power station, a fine pedigree, and a somewhat tumultuous history. It was started by Ken Wright, one of the region's top winemakers (see Ken Wright Cellars), and nearly vanished after just a few vintages when Wright's partnership dissolved. Ron Kaplan, who was practicing law in Des Moines, just happened to be looking for a new home and a new line of work at the time; he bought the winery and hired St. Innocent's Mark Vlossak as winemaker. Now, new winemaker Michael Stevenson carries out Wright's original vision, producing big, beautiful, complex wines in an unfiltered, somewhat raw style. The winery makes a graceful Celilo Chardonnay and is one of the few American producers of Melon, but most of Panther Creek's production is Pinot Noir, from the basic Willamette Valley blend (always a good value) to the top-of-the-line Shea, Bednarik, and Freedom Hill vineyard-designates. A new single-vineyard Pinot, Nysa, was released in 1999, along with a '93 extended-tirage sparkling wine.--James McQuillen…
