Roco Winery 2015 RMS Brut Sparkling Wine

Having founded Oregon’s first sparkling wine production facility, Argyle Winery, it’s only natural that Rollin would bring his 30+ years of sparkling expertise to ROCO. During his 27+ years with Argyle, Rollin crafted some of the most highly acclaimed New World sparkling wines, which made Wine Spectator’s Top 100 wines three times, proof that he has mastered the sophisticated craft of fine Méthode Champenoise. Rollin’s vision has become a reality as the world continues to discover that the Willamette Valley’s cool, maritime climate is indeed ideally suited to world-class sparkling wine production.

Ripe but high acidity wine grapes of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are gently and slowly pressed. The heart juice of the grape berry is collected and fermented in small French Oak barrels to produce a tart still wine. Then, in late winter, this wine is given a small, precise amount of sugar with a sparkling wine yeast. Pushed into a capped Champagne bottle, a second fermentation ensues for about four weeks. The bottles of wine, yeast, and lots of bubbles are then aged in cool storage for 2.5 years. Next, the wine bottles are riddled, or shaken and turned upside down, causing the yeast residue to collect behind the crown cap for removal. Once the yeast is removed, or disgorged, a carefully calibrated “dose” of a few milliliters of a rich wine and sugar mix is added to each bottle prior to corking and wire basketing. The result is delicious sparkling wine.