Accommodation New Zealand introduces
One American winemaking family believes exceptional wine doesn't require shortcuts.
After decades of quiet persistence in their trade, global recognition recently arrived for Maysara Winery, located in the rolling hills of Oregon wine country. It currently ranks as the No. 23 vineyard worldwide.
"We were informed we were chosen [to be among] the top 50 vineyards in the world," founder Moe Momtazi told Fox News Digital in an interview.
NASHVILLE'S HIDDEN 'WINE COUNTRY' PROVIDES TASTE OF TENNESSEE IN WHISKEY BARRELS
His middle daughter, Naseem Momtazi, president of sales, said, "You can have beautiful American-made, quality-made wines coming from an actual family, an actual farm and an actual story."
The winery has partnered with the Fox News Wine Shop on a 2017 pinot noir.
Even so, when Moe Momtazi talks about his life, he starts not in Oregon - but in the turmoil of post-revolution Iran. His story of escape, new life in America and, ultimately, a winemaking philosophy rooted in heritage and health, became the foundation for Maysara Winery.
Though he came to the U.S. in 1971 to study engineering, his life took a dramatic spin after he returned to Iran in the late 1970s. "Things got pretty ugly" amid the 1979 revolution, he said.
TEXAS WINERY BEATS NAPA ELITES WITH SMALL-TOWN SAVVY AND TOP-NOTCH TASTE
"So, in 1982, myself, with my wife - she was eight months pregnant - we escaped from Iran," Momtazi continued, recalling his "difficult journey" to the U.S. by way of Pakistan, Spain, Italy and Mexico.
The new parents finally arrived in 1983 and initially settled in Texas, where Momtazi applied for political asylum and returned to civil engineering. But farming was his long-term dream.
Middle daughter Naseem recalled her father's interest in farming.
"I remember as a kid, he would just buy small parcels when he could, because they didn't have much when they came to the United States," she told Fox News Digital. "With whatever he could save, he would buy land."
In 1990, Momtazi left engineering and moved his family to Oregon. Seven years later, the family purchased an abandoned wheat farm that would become their winery's home.
Today, the property spans roughly 563 acres of "amazing elevation," daughter Naseem said.
Momtazi's wife and all three daughters work at the winery.
From the beginning, Momtazi envisioned a farm built on biodynamic agriculture.
NAVY VET-TURNED-WINEMAKER INFUSES MILITARY GRIT INTO POWERHOUSE POURS
"It was my mission to farm holistically and just not to use any kind of material from outside," he said.
The method, grounded in the early 20th-century teachings of Rudolf Steiner, emphasizes natural cycles and soil vitality.
One such unconventional method involves filling cow horns with manure and burying them in the ground.
Naseem Momtazi summed it up as "the most natural, holistic way to produce wine."
'MY WHOLE LIFE WAS A LIE': FORMER VEGAN CHEF SINKS HER TEETH INTO CATTLE RANCHING
She added, "We do need to produce and consume better as people," tying the winery's methods to broader concerns about modern food production.
Moe Momtazi is even more uncompromising about how wine should be made.
"We absolutely do not manipulate our wine… no use of commercial yeast or enzymes or adjusting acidity or adding sugar," he said.
TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ
Some customers have told them that their "wine is medicine," Naseem said, reflecting the differences between Maysara wines and heavily processed wines.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
"If you drink too much, you're going to get drunk," she added. "But if you consume a moderate amount of our wine, I truly do say that you're not going to get the same effects.… So much wine is manipulated."
A defining trait of Maysara wines is that they're aged far longer than most American wines, the family said.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIES
"We truly believe in holding back the wines and releasing [them] when ready," Naseem Momtazi said - noting that Maysara wines aren't released chronologically.
"That is not a natural concept for American wine," she said.
Learn more about the Fox News Wine Shop here.
