Fall at Folly of Man vineyard.
When Tracy and Aaron Kendall purchased their vineyard in 2023, they did so with characteristic humility and a healthy dose of disbelief. They hadn’t set out to start their own winery. As accomplished winemakers already deeply embedded in Oregon’s Willamette Valley community —Tracy formerly as associate winemaker at Nicolas-Jay, and Aaron as assistant winemaker at Beaux Frères and now winemaker at Compris—their work spoke for itself. But when the right piece of land came along, it was impossible to resist.
Tracy and Aaron Kendall.
“It was never the plan,” Tracy laughs, reflecting on that whirlwind year. “We didn’t go into this thinking, ‘we’re ready for this’. We approached it from a place of knowing we’d never stop learning. Seeing it come to life and finding success beyond what we imagined has been phenomenally encouraging.”
They called it Folly of Man—a name that embraces the unpredictable nature of farming and winemaking, and the wonder that underpins both.
I had the privilege of experiencing my first harvest with Tracy and Aaron in 2024 where I witnessed firsthand the tireless work, curiosity, and respect they brought to every cluster, every ferment, and every decision.
A relationship to the land in the making.
Even then, amid the chaos and exhaustion, it was clear this was more than a vineyard purchase; it was a relationship in the making.
Now, three vintages in, the Kendalls are beginning to feel that delicate shift from simply farming their site to truly knowing it.
“When you first have a baby, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s a creature!’ but you don’t know it yet,” Tracy says. “And then all of a sudden, it comes to life. That’s how we feel about the vineyard now—we’re starting to interact with it, not just absorb what it’s throwing at us.”
The vineyard just after Harvest.
The property, a gently rolling “bowl” nestled in the Eola-Amity Hills, offers an intricate patchwork of soil types and exposures. Its south-facing slopes catch the famed Van Duzer winds—those cool Pacific gusts that slow ripening, reduce disease pressure, and lend the wines their trademark freshness. Yet its saddle position in the AVA also exposes it to east winds, creating a dynamic microclimate that shapes both vine health and fruit character.
“It’s really a wind-driven site,” Tracy explains. “How much wind each block gets and from which direction affects everything: ripening, soil moisture, vine resilience. Those are the factors that make up our terroir.”
Each harvest has brought its own revelations.
Barrel tasting the inaugural release.
The 2023 vintage, just weeks after the Kendalls closed on the property, was both a blur and a blessing. They were allotted two blocks, one Pinot Noir and one Chardonnay, from which to make their inaugural Folly of Man wines. “We hadn’t farmed them, didn’t know them,” Tracy says. “But they turned out to be our favuorites.” Those blocks are now the core of their single-vineyard program.
Then came 2024, a year many are calling one of the greatest Oregon vintages ever. Long, cool, and steady, it offered winemakers the rare luxury of patience. For me, as part of the harvest crew, it was exhilarating to see how the Kendalls navigated that precision picking window, striving to capture the purity of the site without losing its natural tension.
Aaron and Chris exploring the vineyard.
This year, 2025, flipped the script again. A dry, hot summer pushed sugars quickly, forcing tough decisions. “For us, trying to make lower-alcohol, low-intervention wines meant picking earlier than usual,” Tracy says. “We ended up with beautifully balanced, slightly lower-alcohol Pinot Noir—exactly what we hoped for, even if it was stressful getting there.”
If Tracy’s voice lights up when she speaks about winemaking, Aaron’s does when he talks about soil.
Aaron showing us his homemade bio-char.
A self-confessed “vineyard nerd,” Aaron spends most of his time among the rows, quietly obsessed with what’s happening below the surface. His latest pride and joy? A 70-yard compost pile that could make any regenerative farmer grin.
“We’ve got organic cow manure, wheat straw, biochar—all aerated with pipes for airflow,” he explains. “It gets up to about 145°F inside, hot enough to kill pathogens and weed seeds. Once it breaks down, we’ll use it to feed the soil next fall.”
For Aaron, composting isn’t just about nutrients, it’s about life. “Synthetic fertilizers are like junk food for plants,” he says. “They bypass the microbes that make soil alive. What we’re doing is feeding the microbial community so the vines can form symbiotic relationships with the soil. It’s a living system.”
His experiments extend to bio-reactor composting, a technique that creates a fungal-dominant compost rich in beneficial microorganisms. Once ready, Aaron makes a microbial extract—not a “tea” per se, but a concentrated rinse of life-giving biology—that he sprays across the vineyard to inoculate the soil.
“It’s all about diversity,” he says. “Less monoculture, more balance. That’s what keeps the vineyard resilient.”
No ‘folly’ at all.
The Kendalls’ approach is a study in patience and respect—two virtues that feel increasingly rare in modern winemaking. Their journey at Folly of Man isn’t about scaling up or chasing trends. It’s about listening closely to the wind, the soil, the vines, and the lessons each vintage brings.
As Tracy puts it, “It’s aggregate learning. You never know what’s coming next year, but each season gives you another hook to hang your knowledge on.”
For those who’ve had the chance to see it firsthand, it’s clear Folly of Man is no folly at all. It reflects the Kendalls’ thoughtful, hands-on approach to both farming and winemaking. It’s a story of dedication, discovery, and the quiet satisfaction that comes from truly connecting with a place and letting it reveal its rhythm over time.
Tasting Notes
2021 Folly of Man Spirit Hill Vineyard Blanc de Blancs
Another great sparkling wine from Oregon and no surprise as it was done in collaboration with the people at Argyle. It’s really great to see this region getting into the game, and this wine shows just what the Willamette Valley is capable of. Crisp and dry with citrus notes, lemon zest and apple, this is a complex wine built on a medium+ body with bright acidity and a lovely mineral streak.
2023 Folly of Man Colleen Chardonnay.
The dosage at 5.5 grams per litre is well judged and lets the fruit shine through while adding a bit of texture. Excellent
2023 Folly of Man Colleen Vineyard Chardonnay
This is a beautifully detailed Chardonnay that shows green apple, citrus, almond paste and wet stones. The emphasis is on elegance but there is a great intensity to the flavours. Medium+ acidity and medium body, there is terrific balance to this wine. On its way up, this will develop for the next several years. Excellent
2023 Folly of Man Estate Pinot Noir.
2023 Folly of Man Estate Pinot Noir
There is always something special about being able to taste a wine right in the vineyard that it came from! Medium to dark red in colour. This is a restrained Pinot that has a quiet confidence and feels no need to shout to get your attention. But get your attention it does with its elegance and its finesse. Red cherry and raspberry flavours are delivered on a medium/light body with moderate tannin and acidity. There is earthy note that come out with a bit of air. Elegance and finesse! Excellent
2023 Folly of Man Momtazi Pinot Noir.
2023 Folly of Man Momtazi Pinot Noir
Momtazi is Moe Momtazi’s completely biodynamically farmed vineyard which makes some of the most distinctive fruit in the valley. It produces darkly coloured wines with power and long aging potential. Pair the power of Momtazi fruit with the elegance of the Kendalls’ winemaking hand and you have a winning combination. Black cherry, plum raspberry and earthy notes take turns coming to the fore and receding. Delicious now, but based on other Pinots from this vineyard, this wine will only get better with time in your cellar. Excellent+
Folly of Man Winery & Estate Vineyard
9100 SE Amity Road
Amity, OR 97101
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