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Roots Wine Company 2011 Art Brut Outsider Cuvée
The roots run deep for wine & family
For Chris Berg, winemaking is really all about family.
Growing up in Wisconsin, he didn’t really know what he wanted to be when he grew up. But when his parents moved to Oregon to run a manufacturing plant, he followed and helped them with their other dream – making wine.
Together they found a piece of land in Yamhill-Carlton and planted seven acres of Pinot Noir on their twenty-acre property. And Roots Wine Company was born.
Fast forward to today, Chris and his wife Hilary and their son live on the vineyard. They opened a small but gorgeous tasting room last year and a full winery is coming soon.
Chris has earned a a reputation as one of the premier bubbly producers in Oregon, with five sparkling wines in his lineup — and assisting other winemakers with their sparkling wines!
Chris’s mom still helps out and can be found in the Roots tasting room most days, graciously welcoming guests, dogs, and kids who are enthralled by the old school Pac-Man machine in the corner (no quarters required!)
Cellar 503 Tasting Notes
Roots Wine Company, Yamhill, Oregon
2011 Art Brut Outsider Cuvée
This sparkling comes from the Red Hill Douglas County AVA — our first wine from this small region near Roseburg. (Not to be confused with either the Red Hills near Dundee in the Willamette Valley, nor the Red Hills Lake County AVA in California!)
The Art Brut Outsider Cuvée is made in the traditional Méthode Champenoise production style that’s been used in the Champagne region for over 200 years: Start by making still wine, blend it together (60% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir), and then add sugar and yeast to the bottle for secondary fermentation. After aging, the labor-intensive riddling process occurs – shaking and turning the bottles every day for several weeks, in order to move the yeast sediment (the lees) to the top of the upside-down bottle. Once the yeast plug has developed, the bottle is opened, the yeast removed, and corked for further aging.
Roots has dedicated a portion of all profits from the Art Brut line to the American Art Therapy Association. The 2011 Outsider Cuvée is a great pairing with shellfish, foie gras, and a wide range of cheeses.
A Cellar 503 selection in February 2016, Wines to Warm Your Heart Red Hill Douglas County | Chardonnay, Pinot Noir
