October 27, 2023 11:50 a.m.
Legendary winemaker Calvin Scott Henry III passed away Thursday at age 86.
Better known as Scott, Henry was one of the pioneers in the Umpqua Valley wine industry. Henry planted the first part of his vineyard in Umpqua in 1972. Henry Estate Winery opened up in 1978.
Henry grew up on a ranch in the hills of Umpqua. He was educated at Umpqua School, then a one-room school house, through eighth grade, and graduated from Roseburg High School.
Growing up he had planned to be a farmer or rancher. That changed during his freshmen orientation at Oregon State College, now known as Oregon State University. Deans from the various schools were sharing with students the different areas of study available to them. The engineering school caught his attention. By 1959, Henry had earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering with an aeronautical emphasis. Next, he moved to Sacramento, California and joined Aerojet, a company that made rockets and missiles. This was as the Space Race was heating up.
Henry headed up a mechanical design team that ended up working on components for rocket missiles. Eventually the company began to bid on aspects of NASA’s plans to land astronauts on the moon. In a 2019 interview with granddaughter and television journalist Brandi Smith, Henry said, “We bid on the engine to land them on the moon and to bring them back. We called it the “Moon Lander”.
They got a test run in 1969 when Apollo 10 launched and the crew successfully returned to the earth after orbiting the moon. Henry then worked on the Apollo 11 mission as well and saw his efforts contribute to the first man walking on the surface of the moon. He also worked on the Apollo 13 mission.
As the industry shrunk back, Henry returned home and decided to try his hand at growing wine grapes. He planted 12 acres in 1972 but wasn’t pleased with the results. The grapes were prone to rot, due to the region’s gray skies and rain. A decade later he came up with a solution. Henry found a way to split the canopy and expose the fruit to more sunlight and produce better quality fruit. The Scott Henry Trellis System, is now a popular method of growing grapes, that is used worldwide.
Leading Henry Estate Winery for decades kept him busy after that. In 2012, he was inducted to OSU’s Engineering Hall of Fame.
In his family life, Henry married Sylvia Martin with whom he had three children: Scotty Syndi and Shari. Eventually he became a grandfather and great-father. His family called him “The Great One”.
Henry passed away in Woodburn, where he had been receiving care for a few months, surrounded by family members. A celebration of life is in the planning stages.