L. DONOVAN WINES
Small-batch, handcrafted wines from fine wine grapes grown and harvested in the warm, dry vineyards of Southern Oregon.
Our Wines
FOR THE ENJOYMENT OF LIFE
Welcome to L. Donovan Wines. Winemaker and proprietor Linda Donovan crafts around 900 cases a year of Mourvèdre, Sauvignon blanc, Grenache, Chardonnay, Tempranillo, or whatever else strikes her fancy – all from the finest Southern Oregon wine grapes.
Meet Linda Donovan
Winemaker
Call it guts, call it gumption. Whatever it takes to devote a career to winemaking in an emerging region, Linda Donovan’s got it. With an enology degree from UC Davis and several years of experience at top California wineries, Linda settled in Southern Oregon in 2000 to grow grapes and consult with many emerging wineries.
Now, she has her own in-demand boutique label, L. Donovan Wines, and is a partner in the large Medford custom crusher, Pallet Wine Company, where she oversees winemaking for 20+ different clients.
What’s Linda’s edge? An ability to craft distinctive yet well-balanced wines, and patience with every phase of winemaking from growing to bottling. The wines she’s proudest of are all made using natural methods without any manipulation. Each wine, as well as each vintage, is truly expressed in the glass.
“It is so important to know what is (or isn’t) in the food you eat and wine your drink. Being able to consistently make wines that are authentic, distinctive and made naturally is so satisfying”
Linda Donovan, Winemaker & Proprietor
WINEMAKING
MINIMAL INTERVENTION
My approach is "minimalist": No unnecessary processes, treatments or commercial yeast inoculations. Levels of sulfur dioxide are kept to a minimum by extending the "sur lie" period, during which the wine is protected naturally. I don’t want to use high-tech American chemicals or yeasts.
I do not fine nor "cold-stabilize" any of my wines, or filter any reds. Stabilization and clarification occur by natural sedimentation.