Caren was born in California and spent her childhood as a Girl Scout in the Sierra Foothills. Attending the great outdoors has always enlivened and enriched her soul. The formation of knowing herself has always been as a part of nature! At the precipice of her adolescent years, her family moved to the Twin Cities. She lived in the Cities from then through college at the U of MN, where she studied fine arts and humanities while working full-time in the service industry. 

After graduating in 2008, she tucked her degree away to pursue freedom—moving back to the west coast; this time to Ashland, OR, a small town at the convergence of the Cascade and Siskiyou Mountains. She searched her soul in the mountains and found her livelihood and community in the town; where she worked at a small micro-brewpub that focused on seasonal and local food. Here she learned about craft-brewing and the profound beauty of artisanal cuisine.  At the same time, she discovered opportunities to explore local vineyards and wineries in the Rogue Valley and Applegate. 

Wanderlust and friendship led her to move to New Orleans in 2010, where she found her way into the world of fine-dining in a culture that loved dining!  She had the opportunity to work and learn with incredibly talented chefs and sommeliers; thus, deepening her understanding of culinary artistry and entering the ideosphere of the formalization of gastro-sensory pleasure. She found her passion in creating cocktail menus and wine-pairing, developing an understanding of the science, beauty and magic of flavor. 

In 2015, she returned to Southern Oregon to give birth to her daughter; seeking a more rustic backdrop for her new family. She completed the intro course with Court of Master Sommeliers, and worked for a local beverage distributor as their fine-wine specialist; connecting local wineries to businesses in the area. She then left the industry to develop her homestead in Cave Junction in the end of 2017. She took to growing her children and garden; and finding a deep and profound connection to the cycles of nature.

Recently, she decided it was time to move her family back to Minnesota to find home. In so many ways, finding a place at Rootstock is full-circle: back at home in Minnesota, back at home in the service-sphere, and connecting people to the pleasure of beautifully crafted wine that holistically inspires— not only your palate; but our community of humans and our community with nature!