By Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/OregonLive

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Jesus Guillen banner hanging in the hall at Portland Mercado. (Michael Alberty)

I was drinking coffee at Portland Mercado when I suddenly felt like I was being watched. Then I noticed the giant picture of my winemaker friend Jesús Guillén smiling down on me from the rafters.

When I sent Jesús a picture he texted, “I love that place, they have the proper amount of reverence for me.” I nearly blew coffee out my nose as I imagined him uttering that line with his deadpan delivery.

I thought about that moment when I discovered cancer had taken Jesús from his friends and family on Nov. 5.

Jesús’ improbable journey took him from studying computer systems engineering in Mexico to becoming Oregon’s first-ever Latino head winemaker. Jesús was 38 when he died and in the midst of a brilliant career spent at two wineries: White Rose Estate in Dayton and his own Guillén Family Wines in Newberg.

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Jesus Guillen at White Rose Estate, Dayton. (Stuart Mullenberg)

Jesús first arrived in Oregon in 2001 after graduating from the Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua. His father, Jesús Guillén Sr., was managing a vineyard here and Jesús planned to spend time with him and take an English-language class before returning to Mexico. When the class ended, a celebratory wine tour changed Jesús’ plans.

Willamette Valley tasting rooms were offering pinot noirs from the superb 1999 vintage, and Jesús was taken by their beauty. He decided to stay in Oregon to make pinot noir. That bit of vintage kismet led Jesús to winemaking classes at Chemeketa Community College in Salem.

Jesús was in a hurry, so after a few classes he bought all the textbooks he needed and proceeded to teach himself. During this time, he was also working long days in local vineyards for $6 to $7 an hour. Eventually, he ended up working for his father in the White Rose Vineyard.

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Jesus Guillen interview with Linfield College for their "Beyond the Vines" project. (Linfield College Center for the Northwest)

Greg Sanders, White Rose’s owner, was impressed with Jesús’ eagerness to learn and in 2004 promoted him to assistant winemaker. Jesús had many questions for Sanders and his consultants, Mark Vlossak of St. Innocent Winery in Salem and the late Gary Andrus of Archery Summit Winery in Dayton. Jesús likened their conversations to “getting a doctoral degree in winemaking for free.”

Guillén became White Rose’s head winemaker in 2008, and three of his inaugural pinot noirs earned scores of 91 to 94 points, on a 100-point scale, from Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate, considered one of the world’s most influential authorities. Jesús jokingly asked Sanders for a raise.

“I told him, ‘If you get 96 or higher I’ll send you to Hawaii on vacation.’ I figured that wouldn’t happen for a decade or so,” Sanders says. The next year a 2009 White Rose pinot noir received 96 points, and Jesús was Maui-bound.

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Chris Shimamoto and Jesus Guillen prepare for a wine tasting at Barrio, Portland. (photograph courtesy of Chris Shimamoto)

I first met Jesús in 2009 as he was launching his Guillén Family Wines label. I loved those wines almost as much as his story, and over the years I came to realize they were made by one of the finest people I have ever known.

Jesús’ generosity knew no bounds. His success was fueled by mentorship, and because of that, he was never too busy to pay it back. In 2017 Jesús was making his wines at Day Wines in Dundee, and whenever I bumped into him, he was almost always helping the younger winemakers who made their wines there.

Jesús also had a strong sense of social justice. His early vineyard experiences motivated him to smooth the path for Latinos following in his footsteps. He was working with Miguel Lopez of Domaine Roy & Fils in Newberg and Sofía Torres McKay of Cramoisi Vineyard in Dundee to offer Latinos a comprehensive program, from English-language classes to cellar training, to improve their opportunities in the Oregon wine industry.

Lopez says the non-profit program now has a name, ¡Ahi Voy!. Jesús’ friends regret not getting the project up and running while he was alive, but Torres McKay says, “We are going to move faster and with more passion in the next few months to honor Jesús’ name.”

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Jesus Guillen in the barrel room at White Rose Estate. (Motoya Nakamura/2013)

I share their sense of regret. Jesús and I had plans to work on a magazine article and a scholarship for future Latino winemakers. Summer got away from us, and we agreed there would be plenty of time after harvest. The scholarship will happen, but it will be bittersweet without Jesús there to propose the first toast in celebration.

When Jesús first entered the hospital, he sent me a message explaining his condition. He didn’t want pity; he instead wanted me to know how thankful he was for all the support he was receiving. He particularly praised his father and brother, Dagoberto, for jumping in to take over his winemaking tasks.

He also mentioned a small group of winemakers who were volunteering in the middle of their own harvests to shepherd his wines across the finish line. The last words I ever received from Jesús were, “I am impressed that people are willing to give us a hand during such a busy time. Oregon is amazing.”

In addition to his father and brother, survivors include his mother, Rosario; wife, Yuliana; son, Adrian; and sister, Dalia. A private funeral has been held.

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Dagoberto and Jesus Guillen, Portland Mercado. (Michael Alberty)

How to help

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the Guillén family with medical expenses.

Winter's Hill Estate plans a special tasting and sale of Guillén Family Wines from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 24, at 6451 N.E. Hilltop Lane, Dayton. 503-864-4592 or oregonwine.org.

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Michael Alberty writes about wine for The Oregonian/OregonLive. He can be reached at malberty0@gmail.com. To read more of his coverage, go to oregonlive.com/wine.