Taylor Pfaff is the CEO and a member of the family ownership of Left Coast Estate in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. He began working in the vineyards at age 15 and has literally grown up in the wine industry, learning from the ground up. From mowing grass between vine rows to leading the estate’s future. After earning his MBA in Wine and Spirits from Kedge Business School in Bordeaux, Taylor became CEO in 2016, focusing on next-generation leadership that balances innovation with deep respect for the land. Under his stewardship, Left Coast earned LIVE’s 2024 Award for Excellence in Sustainability, formalizing a commitment to sustainable farming and conserving over 100 acres of endangered oak savanna habitat on the estate.
Media Inquiries: Taylor@leftcoastwine.com | https://leftcoastwine.com/
What’s the ONE THING most unique, authentic, & memorable about your brand?
Left Coast is one of the few wineries where wine production and conservation are inseparable.
We farm 460+ acres as a single ecosystem: 142 acres of estate vineyards alongside more than 100 acres of protected oak savanna—one of North America’s most endangered habitats. Less than 5% of the Willamette Valley’s original oak savanna remains. We actively restore ours by removing invasive species and planting native grasses and wildflowers to support wildlife corridors.
This isn’t a marketing angle—it’s how we operate. Our all-estate model gives us full control from pruning to bottling, with decisions made in the context of the entire landscape. Biodiversity in our wild spaces supports the vineyards through natural pest control and healthier soils. Healthy land makes better wine.
We farm with a long view. My children will be the third generation here, and our choices reflect that—from LIVE certification and regenerative practices to remaining all-estate and investing in conservation partnerships. Every bottle supports not just Pinot Noir, but 460 acres of active stewardship.
Describe how and what you’d do with your winemaking career or winery business if you were not constrained.
It’s a tough moment for the wine industry, and it’s forcing reflection. Those inside it understand the work, skill, and unpredictability behind every bottle—a constant tension between planning, luck, and nature. That story hasn’t translated well to younger consumers, who often see wine as expensive, formal, or unapproachable.
We need to reposition wine as social and inclusive. At its best, wine brings people together. The industry should focus less on image and more on building a global, accessible community.
That starts with people. We need structured, multi-year apprenticeship programs that go beyond harvest labor—training in farming, winemaking, hospitality, and business. Right now, there’s a succession problem on both sides: the workforce is aging, and younger consumers feel priced out and under-informed.
There’s also a disconnect between the message and reality. We say “wine is made in the vineyard,” yet much of the experience lives online. Wineries should be part of their local communities—open, physical spaces where people feel welcome.
My goal is to grow Left Coast into that kind of place: a gathering space first, a winery second. People might come for wine, or for the landscape, or to be together. The point is connection—to each other, to the land, and to something tangible in an increasingly digital world.
What is the One Wine most emblematic of your brand and/or winemaking style? Tell us its story.
Our 2025 White Pinot Noir is the perfect embodiment of Left Coast’s spirit: adaptable, innovative, and unafraid to make something beautiful from unexpected circumstances.
This wine began as creative problem-solving during a challenging vintage. With the cool 2011 vintage showing underripe characteristics in certain blocks, we pivoted and made white wine from red grapes rather than compromising quality. White Pinot Noir allows us to showcase the diversity of the estate by farming specific sections of the vineyards that are best suited to white wine and sparkling production, then slow-fermented it in stainless steel with extended lees contact.
The result? A white wine with vivid aromatics, striking minerality, and the cool-climate elegance our estate is known for, but in an entirely unexpected package. Sommeliers and locals have embraced it enthusiastically because it’s approachable yet intellectually engaging, showing how skin contact and winemaking choices shape a wine’s character.
White Pinot Noir represents everything we believe: respect the vintage, trust the fruit, take calculated risks, and never sacrifice quality. A snapshot of Left Coast in a bottle: serious about farming, playful in execution, and always evolving. Read my review of the White Pinot Noir.
Bonus Question: Why Winemaking?
Joining my family’s winery wasn’t inevitable for me, it was a choice, and one I’m grateful I made.
From 2007 to 2015, I was snowboarding professionally. I loved it, but the reality of that career is brutal: one bad injury can end everything, and you’re constantly aware of that fragility. When I worked my first harvest in 2011, something clicked. The wine industry offered what I loved about snowboarding: dedication, craftsmanship, chasing excellence, but with longevity I could build on.
What hooked me was the lifelong learning. In wine, you’re continuously meeting incredibly talented people who’ve spent decades mastering one specific skill. Viticulture, winemaking, hospitality, conservation, sales. You could never learn it all, and there’s always something new. That constant evolution keeps me engaged.
But honestly? It’s bigger than the wine industry itself. I love this property, the ancient oaks, the marine sediment soils, the Van Duzer winds shaping everything. I love the people: Arturo and his family, who’ve been with us for over 20 years; our winemaking and hospitality teams; the guests who visit and connect with this place. Being able to provide meaningful employment for our dedicated crew, and to create a space where people can slow down, connect, and be with nature. That is the real privilege of this work.
The wine industry chose me as much as I chose it. And I can’t imagine doing anything else.