Monroe is rural, and located south of Corvallis, in farming country. The winery is located in the shadow of Green Peak Mountain and surrounded by hills and grass fields as far as the eye can see. In the spring and summer, late afternoon winds tumble down the hills into the valley, offering gentle breezes or blustery bursts, along with fragrant wisps of spring flowers.
It is a far cry from San Francisco, where the Broadleys lived in the early 1970s, working for a book-publishing firm. It was a time of great excitement in the Bay Area, with explosions in cultural activities, food, wine and music.
On weekends, Craig and Claudia would wander through Napa Valley vineyards, tasting and learning about wine. The couple liked burgundy-styled wines, and wines with power and character.
Gradually, the Broadleys began nurturing an idea of opening their own winery and creating wines they liked, especially after tasting a few Oregon Pinot Noirs. They moved to Eugene in 1977, after convincing their publishing bosses to allow them to telecommute from Oregon.
"We looked around Oregon for a place to start, in the obvious places where other wineries were located," recalled Craig. "Then we discovered 20 acres in Monroe. For us, it seemed liked the end of the road, coming from San Francisco. But, we bought it and planted Chardonnay in 1982 and Pinot Noir in 1983."
Claudia recalled that isolation in the rural country was harder than she expected at first, and the work was extremely labor intensive. But gradually, the couple settled in to their new digs, and son Morgan began his wine career at the age of 9, learning how to drive a tractor and help with harvest and crush.
"He's done it all," said Claudia of her 31-year-old son. "We've all performed just about every task at the winery.
"This is exactly what I wanted to do. It was a long process, but I wouldn't change it for anything."
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