Ted Lemon: Oral History Interview

This interview is with Ted Lemon of Littorai Wines. Ted describes his wine journey, beginning in 1981 in France at the Université de Dijon where he studied enology. He talks about his experience working for a Burgundian estate and goes on to explain why he later moved to California. Even though Ted currently resides at his Sonoma Coast winery, he consults for wineries across California, Oregon, and even New Zealand. In fact, he was the original consulting winemaker for Gary Andrus at Archery Summit, and has also worked with Weber Vineyard and Fuqua Vineyard. Ted compares the French, Californian, and Oregonian wine communities and also goes over what it is like running his own winery. Later, Ted talks about his winemaking philosophy and his passion for biodynamic viticulture. He also speaks about generative agriculture and his vineyard management style when it comes to growing his own Pinot Noir and Chardonnay varieties. At the end, Ted talks about the future of Littorai Wines and what plans are in the works. This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt over Zoom on June 6th, 2022.