Piper Underbrink & Ben Stalker: Oral History Interview

This interview is with Piper Underbrink and Ben Stalker of Sealionne. In this interview, Piper and Ben talk about meeting in 2019, moving to Oregon, and starting their own wine label.Ben talks about going to school for design and architecture in Durango, Colorado before moving to Salt Lake City, where he met Piper. They moved to Oregon in 2020 so Ben could go to University of Oregon for their architecture program and Piper could make wine.Piper speaks about taking over the Privé brand in 2020 with oversight from the original owners. She emphasizes their focus on “old school Oregon winemaking” as the philosophy behind the brand, as well as putting her own influence on it.Ben and Piper talk about finding the West Wind Vineyard which they purchased in 2021, and from which they started their own brand: Sealionne. They started pouring their wines for the public out of an Airstream trailer - remodeled by Ben - and their labels are designed each year by Ben’s sister. They strive to keep this label, fresh, bright, and acidic.This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Privé Vineyard in Newberg on November 20, 2025.