“In 1983, my father and I drove up to the Napa Valley to listen to a French Cabaret singer and drink a little bubbly at the Domaine Chandon Winery. It was there and on that date that I decided to produce sparkling wine, my first wine.
I ended up attending the first symposium on sparkling wine at UC Davis that year, met the leading California sparkling winemakers at that event, and only to follow up with visits to all of them in Napa and Sonoma to learn how they produced their wines. After that, I produced my first 1983 Brut sparkling wine made from Oregon Pinot Noir from the Hyland Vineyards. Then, I followed with the 1984 Brut, which was a blend of Hyland Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and a 1985 Brut de Noir, which was a 100% Pinot Noir. These wines received national recognition for their high quality.
The MarkChristian Brut combines “Mark,” which is me, with “Christian” my longtime friend and incredible French Champagne maker, who I worked for in at Maison Deutz in 1986 where I further learned the true art of champagne making.”
-Mark Newton, Proprietor and Winemaker