Interview
This interview is with Charles Hesson of Arborbrook Vineyards. In this interview, Charles talks about his path into the wine industry and finding Oregon.
Charles shares about growing up and spending time on his great grandparents’ farm outside of Dallas, Texas. He goes on to talk about the farm’s wild blackberry bushes and how wine really started to click when he connected the aromas of his great grandma’s fermented blackberry juice to wine.
Charles goes on to talk about his experience in fine dining and how he got immersed in Italian wine. Later, he shares about transitioning out of the restaurant industry and into wine. He goes on to talk about finding Oregon and working at places like Dobbes, Alexana, and now Arborbrook.
This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Arborbrook Vineyards in Newberg on February 27, 2025.
Interview
This interview is with Dr. Bob Gross of Cooper Mountain Vineyards. In this interview, Bob speaks about his path into medicine and stops along the way, and how he found his way to the west coast. An interest in wine coupled with a medical practice opportunity and desire to be in Portland eventually led to finding the land that would become Cooper Mountain and planting a vineyard.
Bob also talks about the conversion to organic and biodynamic farming and the growth of the industry he’s seen.
This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Cooper Mountain Vineyards in Beaverton on March 28, 2023.
Interview
This interview is with Gilles de Domingo of Cooper Mountain Vineyards. In this interview, Gilles speaks about growing up in Bordeaux and setting out into the wine world with the intent of going back to help run his family’s estate. A chance encounter led him to Oregon to work at King Estate in the 1990s, and he has stayed in the Oregon wine industry since.
Gilles talks about his role as the winemaker being to honor the work of the vineyard stewards, and not to mess up their efforts. He discusses his own interested in biodynamic and organic farming and the ways he has seen these farming methods increase in Oregon. And he talks about his most important accomplishments.
This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Cooper Mountain Vineyards on March 28, 2023.