When Paul Kermoyan and his wife Vicki purchased the 2.5-acre parcel in Coyote Valley that would become the P&V Winery estate vineyard, they really were just looking to make wine for themselves.

Kermoyan grew up in Fresno, the son of Armenian parents, and has always enjoyed tinkering with food and drink. During college he got into brewing and he’s long been passionate about cooking, but it wasn’t until later in life that he tried his hand at making wine.

The community development director for the City of Campbell took a shine to it right away. “I can do this!” Kermoyan remembers thinking. He started hanging out with winemakers Steve Peterson at Emmalily and Larry Schaadt at Regale, learning the ropes and honing his palate.

Soon after the Kermoyans acquired their 50-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel vineyard they realized that they would be producing far more wine than they could ever hope to drink or give to friends.

“We knew right away that we should probably just sell the wine,” Kermoyan says. “One thing led to another, and the next thing you know…”

Paul and Vicki are now producing an estate Cab and Zin as well as a Chardonnay sourced from an organic vineyard in Brentwood, and a Pinot Noir from the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Recently, Kermoyan planted Petite Verdot and Merlot—along with some more Cab—at the estate. He has also taken over management of a small Syrah vineyard in San Martin and the property owner let him harvest those grapes; he plans to use them to produce a Syrah or perhaps a blend, which should be ready by 2021.

He chuckles as he recalls the time he won back-to-back first-place ribbons in a guacamole-making contest. It was back when he was living in Ventura in the early 2000s. He had an avocado tree in his backyard and his coworkers loved his guac. It just so happens that the second year he entered the contest, The Food Network was in town filming for a show called All-American Festivals.

“People always ask me, ‘What’s the secret?’” he says. “And I ask them, ‘Do you like cooking?’ Cooking is a lot like wine making. You try different spices, different techniques to bring out a superior dish. It is an art. It really is.”

As with home brewing and home cooking, Kermoyan knows what flavor profile he is looking for in his wines. He keeps things light. “I don’t over-oak,” he explains. “Too much oak is like too much rosemary: it overpowers a dish.”

P&V Winery
10155 Dougherty Ave, Morgan Hill.
pandvwinery.com