About
“I try to tell the story of the sites I’m lucky to work with, capturing their unique character from vintage to vintage.”
Olive Louise Hamilton Russell
Olive Hamilton Russell is the founder, owner, and winemaker of OLIVE HAMILTON RUSSELL. A boutique producer dedicated to expressing the distinctive terroirs of the Willamette Valley’s carefully delineated sub-AVAs through single-vineyard Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays.
Raised on a cattle ranch near the Swaziland border in South Africa, which her family owned and ran for nearly two centuries, Olive developed a deep connection to land and agriculture. When she and her sister had to make the very difficult decision to sell the farm, Olive chose to honor her heritage by investing her share of the proceeds in a personal wine venture.
Before establishing her own label, Olive spent twenty years working in her former husband’s family wineries in South Africa, helping build their international reach, respect and success. Her time there shaped her commitment to terroir-driven, small-lot winemaking and provided a deep understanding of the growing and production of world class wines.
Olive majored in Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Stellenbosch and holds both the WSET Diploma and the Cape Wine Academy Diploma. She is the author of a Gourmand Award winning cookbook Entertaining at Hamilton Russell Vineyards and has appeared on numerous food and wine television programs.
She has served on international food and wine judging panels and participated in wine seminars in Oregon, Florida, Massachusetts and California. She is a Chevalier de la Société des Amis du Champagne. She currently serves on the Marketing Committee of the Eola-Amity Hills Winegrowers Association.
Her Wines
2023 is the maiden vintage of OLIVE HAMILTON RUSSELL.
Olive now lives in the Willamette Valley and is responsible for every aspect of the business - - vineyard partnerships to winemaking, management to marketing. She has secured long-term relationships with LIVE Certified growers across the Valley and makes her wines at the Northwest Wine Company in Dundee.
She believes in minimal intervention winemaking allowing each special site to tell its unique story year to year.
The Label
Before establishing her own label Olive spent twenty years working in her former husband’s family wineries in South Africa, founding Hamilton Russell Oregon in 2018. When the marriage came to an end, Olive relocated to the United States with the intention of building this nascent project into an independent wine business - - Olive Hamilton Russell.
Olive’s maiden name is Nel, and her family crest emblem is a phoenix. Given the circumstances surrounding her relocation to the U.S., she felt this mythical bird needed to be included in her eponymous label. Rather than rising from ashes, this phoenix rises from South Africa’s national flower, the King Protea (Protea cynaroides) honoring her South African heritage, and Oregon’s state flower, the Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium) celebrating her new life.
The Vineyards
-
The vineyard is nestled in the hills Southwest of Salem in Oregon's Willamette Valley. Originally part of a large Christmas tree farm, the property was planted to vines in 2014.
The vineyard lies on rolling slopes of ancient marine sedimentary soils deposited millions of years ago when much of the Willamette Valley lay beneath a shallow inland sea. These well-drained soils naturally limit vine vigor and encourage deep root systems, yielding fruit of concentration, purity, and striking mineral expression.
Maple Grove benefits from the Willamette Valley's long summer days and cool evenings. The moderate climate allows Chardonnay to ripen slowly and evenly, preserving the vibrant acidity and aromatic precision that define the world's finest examples of the variety.
For OLIVE HAMILTON RUSSELL, the fruit is sourced from blocks planted between 510 and 575 feet above sea level to Dijon clones 76 and 95. The combination of elevation, marine sedimentary soils, and meticulous farming consistently produce Chardonnay of remarkable tension and refinement.
-
Located in the Willamette Valley’s Eola-Amity Hills sub-AVA, Zena Crown Vineyard is regarded as one of the area's most celebrated Pinot Noir sites. Planted in 2004 and now encompassing approximately 115 acres divided into 48 distinct blocks, the vineyard occupies a dramatic landscape of rolling hills Northwest of Salem.
What distinguishes Zena Crown is its exposure to the cooling Pacific winds that funnel through the Van Duzer Corridor. These afternoon breezes moderate summer temperatures, slowing ripening and extending the growing season. The result is fruit that achieves full physiological maturity with aromatic complexity while retaining vibrant natural acidity.
The vineyard's varied topography contributes significantly to its character. Elevations range from approximately 350 to 620 feet, with a mosaic of slopes and exposures creating numerous unique micro-sites.
For OLIVE HAMILTON RUSSELL, fruit is sourced from blocks 10A and 10B planted to Dijon clone 115. These parcels of rocky, well-drained volcanic Nekia and weathered marine sedimentary soils which naturally restrict vine vigor, consistently produce Pinot Noir wines of concentration and finesse.