A lover of old-world wines, led by Burgundy and Sancerre, Jay Christopher Somers created his estate in 1996. He then sourced his grapes from the best vineyards in Oregon. In 2010, he decided to join forces with Ernst Loosen, one of the best German winemakers, who is also passionate about Pinot Noirs. Together, they bought a beautiful 16-hectare parcel of vines at Chehalem Mountain in Newberg, Oregon.

Rocked from an early age by the rock records his mother brought home, Jay had found his calling: rock guitarist. Creedence Clearwater Revival's Cosmos Factory album in particular and John Fogarty's guitar solo on "Heard it Through the Grapevine". A second path may then open up in his subconscious: the vine...

Jay started by brewing beer. He met his wife Ronda in the early 1990s and together they decided to turn to a truly common passion: wine. Jay first worked with Don Kautzner at Adelsheim Vineyard in Oregon, then with Neil McCallum at Dry Creek Vineyard in New Zealand and finally with John Paul at Cameron Winery in Oregon. He learned with them how to make great red wines of Pinot Noir on the model of Burgundy wines and great white wines of Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Riesling on the model of the wines of Burgundy, Sancerre and the Rhine.

Jay's second passion is still the guitar, of which he has a nice collection and which he plays as lead guitar for the Portland Band Reduction.