letting the land make the wine
 
6905 Spring Valley Road NW
Salem, OR  97304
Phone:  503-375-3068     FAX:  503-391-7057

Email:  winery@cristomwines.com     Home Page:  www.cristomwines.com
 

General Information

Winemaker:   Steve Doerner
Proprietors:  Paul & Eileen Gerrie
Vineyard Acreage, Eola Hills:  65
 
Average Annual Production: 
12,500 cases per year
 
Products and Ordering:
Pinot noir, Syrah, Pinot gris,
Chardonnay and Viognier
 
Tasting Room Hours: 
Open: April - Thanksgiving
Tues - Sun, 11 - 5
December - March
By appointment
Special events Wine bottle

Picnic Area   Wine bottle
with vineyard views     

Gift Shop  Wine bottle

Large Tasting Room  Wine bottle
Cellar Club Wine bottle
 
VISA  Wine bottle    Master Card  Wine bottle

Tasting Fee: $5 per person
Refundable with a purchase of wine
Nonrefundable for groups larger than eight
Groups are welcome with advance notice.


Depth, power and finesse...
the three-part harmony of Cristom wines
     If Cristom's winemaking were music, harvest would be the trumpet fanfare, crush would be a symphony, and the final wines would be an ode to joy.  Gracefully conducting the music at Cristom Vineyards is world-acclaimed winemaker Steve Doerner whose intuitive style hallmarks his wines with harmony.

      Using natural methods, native yeast and minimal handling, Doerner uses new-world technology with old-world traditions to produce some of the Willamette Valley's finest wines... pinot noir, chardonnay, pinot gris and viognier.  He became familiar with these techniques and traditions during 14 years of fashioning fine wines in California before he came to Cristom in the early 90s.  Today, he is known internationally as a master of the world's most challenging and most rewarding grape... pinot noir.
      "Only Pinot Noir can give you a silky finesse that also has depth and power," Steve claims. "You can't achieve that harmony with other grape varieties."

       It was the promise of great wines that first drew Paul and Eileen Gerrie to Oregon and the hills of that would be Cristom's home.  They conceived of a place where the succulent pinot noir fruit could achieve full expression, a place where  hand-crafted, complex wines would be bold, yet balanced... both powerful and elegant. 

      The abundance of soil types and sloping land in their chosen location supported the Gerries vision of world-class pinot noir.  The warm winds of summer also held promise for rich chardonnay, and the cool, sunny autumns foretold success for tart pinot gris.

    Paul and Eileen Gerrie assembled a team, and named their winemaking vision Cristom Vineyards – for their children, Christine and Tom. 


      Cristom Vineyards is located between Salem and McMinnville in the beautiful Eola Hills of the North Willamette Valley's prime wine country.  Visitors are invited to the tasting room April 1 through Thanksgiving weekend.  A gift shop is located on the premises. 
 

    Add your name and address to Cristom's mailing list.  Write, fax or send an email to start taking advantage of news about the current vintage and new releases.

 

Featured Cristom Wines
 

The Vineyards of Cristom

       Cristom cultivates eight distinct vineyards growing Pinot noir, Chardonnay, Pinot gris, Viognier and Syrah totaling 65 plantable acres. The vineyards are dry farmed with the focus on quality fruit with low yields and high density planting.  The Pinot vineyards  are named in honor of family matriarchs.  In addition to standard 750 ml bottles of wine, Cristom also carries those known as "splits" with 375 ml of its Pinot noirs and its Syrah.
 

2008 Estate Viognier
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Until recently, this grape varietal was found almost exclusively in the small Northern Rhone appellation known as Condrieu, where its ancestry could be traced to Roman times. Today it is more widely planted but it’s still rare in the Willamette Valley. We planted 1-1/4 acres of Viognier in 1993 on the warmest site at Cristom. We planted an additional 1-3/4 acres in 2003 that is adjacent to the original planting.

Winery Notes:  Coming

Origin:  100% Estate fruit
Appellation: Willamette Valley - Eola-Amity Hills AVA
 

2007 Estate Pinot Gris
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The 2007 Pinot Gris is made entirely from our 5-acre estate vineyard Emilia. It was planted in 1993 and is adjacent to the winery.  The vines were planted at a high density with two different clones and two different rootstocks. 

Winery Notes:  The 2007 Estate Pinot Gris is pale straw in color.  It is redolent of various citrus elements being led by the Mandarin-Tangerine contingency. It shows an intense ripeness on the palate, yet it’s still refreshing and balanced. The intention of the wine is for it to be consumed in the short term while the fresh fruit flavors are at their liveliest.

Origin: 100% Estate fruit
Appellation: Willamette Valley-Eola-Amity Hills AVA
Fermentation:  Stainless Steel fermented, 100% Malo Lactic fermentation, wine was inoculated with commercial yeast.
Aging:  Aged 11 months on its lees in stainless steel tanks
Bottling:  Bottled in September of 2008

2006 Sommers Reserve Pinot Noir
Willamette Valley
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The ‘Sommers’ is comprised of grapes from our four estate vineyards along with some purchased fruit. Altogether it contains fruit from fifteen vineyard sites. The Reserve designation indicates a longer aged barrel selection of our favorite lots. The final cuvee contains seven different Pinot Noir clones. Cristom introduced the “Sommers Reserve” with the 2004 vintage, replacing the Cristom Reserve designation and continuing stylistically as the same wine. ‘Sommers’ is Jessie’s (of Jessie Vineyard) maiden name.

Winery Notes:  Deep ruby color.  The Sommers Reserve has brooding-deep strawberry aromas and higher notes of lavender and talc.  On the palate it has a savory component that shows black licorice, mocha and Asian spices. All together the wine reminded me of the last time I checked into the ‘Mandarin Oriental’ in Miami. The wine has layer upon juicy layer of flavor with supple and silky textures that are very appealing. This wine will gain some complexity with short to mid-term cellaring. It would be enjoyable for dinner tonight with a variety of Pork and Poultry dishes that should foil its youthful exuberance.

Origin:  87% Eola -Amity Hills, 7% Willamette Foothills, 5% Dundee Hills,
1% Yamhill-Carlton District (65% Estate fruit)
Appellation:  Willamette Valley
Fermentation: Although this wine is made from many individual lots, they were generally fermented with 38% whole clusters. Native yeasts were used exclusively in fermenters ranging in size from one to seven tons.
Aging: Seventeen months in Burgundian cooperage, 44% new oak
Bottling:  Blended and bottled unfiltered in April of 2008
 

2007  Jessie Vineyard Estate Pinot Noir
Eola Hills, Willamette Valley
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This 11-acre estate vineyard is on our steepest slope.  It ranges from about 350 feet to 500 feet in elevation.  We began planting Jessie Vineyard in 1994 at the high density of 2300 vines per acre.  The site has an east, southeast exposure and is comprised primarily of Nikia soil that is volcanic in origin.  Jessie Vineyard has a long and varied slope, showing the greatest range of soils and exposures at Cristom.  It is a selection of our favorite barrels from the vineyard. 

Winery Notes: Coming

Origin:  100% Estate fruit
Clones:  Dijon (113, 114, 115, 667, 777); Pommard
Appellation:  Willamette Valley- Eola-Amity Hills AVA
 

2007 Marjorie Vineyard Estate Pinot Noir
Eola Hills, Willamette Valley
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Marjorie Vineyard was planted in 1982. It is the only vineyard that Cristom kept when the property was purchased in 1992. It is a distinctive site that has wider spacing (630 vines per acre) than the subsequently planted vineyards. All the vineyards are planted on mineral-rich volcanic soils but the soils of Marjorie have the highest percentage of the Jory type. Marjorie is also more east facing than our other vineyard sites.

Winery Notes: Coming

Origin:  100% Estate fruit
Clones:  Pommard and Wädensvil clones along with Dijon clones (114, 115, 777)
Appellation: Willamette Valley- Eola-Amity Hills AVA
 

2007 Eileen Vineyard Pinot Noir
Eola Hills, Willamette Valley
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Planted in 1997, this 12-acre site is the youngest of our estate Pinot Noir vineyards.  It starts at about 700 feet making it the highest elevation vineyard at Cristom. It consists primarily of volcanic soil (Jury) and is planted at the high density of 2300 vines per acre. The wine is a selection of our favorite barrels from the vineyard.  It is the first of our estate vineyards to be farmed entirely by organic methods.

Winery Notes: Coming

Origin:100% Estate fruit
Clones: Dijon (114,115, 777);  Pommard;  and new plantings of Wädensvil (2006)
Appellation: Willamette Valley- Eola-Amity Hills AVA
 

To order any of our currently available wines
or those soon to be released:

 

Finding Cristom Vineyards

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Copyright © 1997- 2010  Susan R. O'Hara. All rights reserved.
Last revised: 01/26/2010