Winery History & Philosphy

Winery Philosophy

Our winemaking goals are to produce wines that are true to the variety and the source, show balance and complexity, and be enjoyable upon release. The core essence of our wines is ripe fruit, as expressed from the vineyard.

This single-minded focus shows a record of consistent, superior quality wines. Morgan's resources are allocated to top-notch growers, the finest French oak barrels, and modern equipment in the cellar.

Morgan delivers consistency from bottle to bottle and from vintage to vintage. Though everyone at Morgan is proud of our accomplishments, we feel that our best wines are yet to come.

From Dan & Donna's Dream to Today

Coming from a small town in the Central Valley of California, Dan Lee had prepared initially for the study of veterinary medicine. It was late in his career at the University of California at Davis that he discovered enology satisfied his interest in both science and agriculture. Immediately enrolling in the graduate enology program at Davis, Dan completed his studies and was hired at Jekel. After becoming winemaker, he sensed that Monterey County was ideal for the cultivation and production of world-class wines. It was at a meeting of the Monterey County Winegrowers Association that he shared his vision with a banker, Donna, who encouraged him to open his own winery. In addition to becoming his business advisor, that banker would also become Dan's wife.

Dan and Donna opened Morgan in their spare time in 1982, making their first Chardonnay while Dan was still making wine full time at Durney. For the next two years they operated the winery from their home until moving into a state-of-the-art facility in Salinas in 1984. In 1984 Sauvignon Blanc was added to the portfolio, and in 1988, Pinot Noir.

Traditional winemaking techniques, combined with modern cellar equipment, allow Morgan Winery to produce complex wines with integrity to the grape and the terroir. We like to think that accurate wines such as these are graceful accompaniments to special and everyday meals.

With the purchase of 65 acres in the prestigious Santa Lucia Highlands appellation, 38 acres have been planted on Morgan's Double L Vineyard with a variety of different clonal selections of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Considered to be the "Cote d'Or" of California, these Santa Lucia Highlands hillside vineyards are in a prime location for the production of cool weather varietals. Organic farming of Double L ensures the purest expression of terroir. Notable neighbors include Sleepy Hollow, Mer et Soleil, Rosella's and Garys' vineyards. The first Double L crop was harvested in the fall of 1999.