Welcome to ENSO
- We are a small-batch artisan wine producer, located in the heart of Portland’s Eastside. Our passion is to make wines that speak of the place where they were grown, the climate they were grown in, and their true varietal character. Let each bottle be it’s own enso – an expression of the moment.
This whole experiment began as a collaborative effort between Ryan Sharp and Chris Wishart. The two met at Arcane Cellars on the banks of the Willamette River, where Chris worked as the Assistant Winemaker and Ryan, the Winery Grunt. Over the course of time, they’d hatch a plan to leave the valley to make wine in Portland, where they both live.
Chris Wishart
Chris Wishart hails from both Michigan and California, and spent over six years living in the Napa Valley as an enologist and luthier. With a background in chemistry, he found himself working for The Man (aka Robert Mondavi) for a good while back in the ’90s.
He and his wife Jenny (an accomplished culinary artist) moved from CA to Seattle to Maine to Portland (Oregon!). Upon arriving into this sunny-turn-rainy-turn-sunny state, he began working for the Silvas at Arcane Cellars. His work there was all-encompassing and he now brings that experience with him to ENSO.
When not crafting wine or fixing exhaust fans in the winery, you’ll probably find him relaxing on the back forty of his Doug Fir Urban Ranch, brewing up another Pliny clone.
Ryan Sharp (and Pax)
Ryan Sharp claims the West Coast (but was born in Dallas…Texas). He and his wife Holly (an artist/mom-of-two/superhero) moved to Portland back in Ought Eight. The two of them along with their two boys (Pax & Remy).
Before that, the young family had been in San Francisco as Ryan attended classes at Davis. But that was then and this is now.
After moving to Portland, he transferred to Chemeketa to get a more focussed education…one dealing more specifically with NorthWest climates/grapes. He started home winemaking several years back.
When not stirring up fermenting wine or submitting wine labels to the Feds, you’ll find him hunting down exotic wines from Bandol.
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