Inspired by their love of Burgundy (a 1980 Echezeaux to be exact!), Paul and Eileen Gerrie had a vision to produce wines of similar elegance and complexity and found themselves moving from Pennsylvania to the Willamette Valley of Oregon in 1992 to pursue their dream. That year was the first harvest for the newly founded Cristom Vineyards, named after their children (Christine and Tom). Cristom has since gained recognition as one of the top producers from the region and continues to be family owned and operated for over 30 years now.
Nestled in the heart of the Eola-Amity Hills region of the Willamette Valley, their 240-acre estate is planted to 90 acres of vines, mostly Pinot Noir with small amounts of Chardonnay, Viognier and Syrah. A mere 36 miles from the Pacific Ocean, Cristom Vineyards is heavily influenced by the cool winds blowing from the ocean through the Van Duzer Corridor, which acts as a wind tunnel and is what makes the Eola-Amity Hills truly unique, adding to the vibrant acidity of the wines.
The Cristom single-vineyard wines are all unique expressions of the ever-changing volcanic soils throughout the estate and are all named after members of the Gerrie family. From the dramatically steep parcel of Jessie’s vineyard to Marjorie, which is the estate’s oldest vines planted in 1982, the five single vineyard bottlings are snapshots in a bottle of the uniquely diverse terroir of Cristom Vineyards.
In addition to crafting world class wines, the team at Cristom are stewards of the land, with a focus on being wine growers, not makers, and view the entire estate as a farm. Employing organic and biodynamic farming principles, from sheep, cows and chickens grazing the property, to building their own compost as fertiliser for the vineyards, their mission is to grow biodiversity across the entire farm to promote a healthier ecosystem for all living organisms. In the estate’s own words, “Site expression is not merely from the geology in which the vines grow – it is also from the living organisms in the soil.”
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