VERDAD 2963 Grand Ave. Los Olivos CA 93441 (805) 686-4200 verdadwine.com PEOPLE Despite its historic association with and climatic similarity to Spain, California hadn’t had a serious foray into Spanish grape growing or wines made thereof until 2000 when Louisa Sawyer Lindquist released her first vintage under the Verdad label. Much like her husband did …
LAUREL GLEN VINEYARD 969 Carquinez Ave. Glen Ellen CA 95442 (707) 933-9877 laurelglen.com PEOPLE Upon graduating divinity school in the 1970’s, Patrick Campbell made his way out west to join the Sonoma Mountain Zen Center. The Buddhist monastery assigned him a small plot of vines to tend, a task in which he flourished, eventually moving …
BECKMEN VINEYARDS 2670 Ontiveros Rd. Los Olivos CA 93441 (805) 688-8664 beckmenvineyards.com Tom and Judy Beckmen and their son Steve, the winemaker, purchased their 40-acre estate in Santa Ynez in 1994 when the Santa Barbara County winemaking community was still in its youth. They have been growing the grapes and managing the vineyards there since …
COBB WINES (BOTTLE) 18100 Fitzpatrick Ln. Occidental CA 95465 (707) 874-1962 cobbwines.com PEOPLE Ross Cobb studied Agro Ecology and Sustainable Agriculture at University of California Santa Cruz with an emphasis on living soil, thus paving the way for a lifetime dedicated to maintaining soil health and integrity. Prior to 2016, Ross worked for a number …
HANDLEY CELLARS (COIN) 3151 Hwy. 128 Philo CA 95466 (800) 733-3151 handleycellars.com PEOPLE Founder Milla Handley is an Anderson Valley original, having first come to this remote Mendocino County region in 1978, when it was still a bit of a viticultural backwater. Located at the northwestern end of the valley on the site …
CAMPOVIDA 13601 Old River Rd. Hopland CA 95449 (707) 400-6300 campovida.com PEOPLE In 2010 Gary Breen and Anna Beuselinck purchased an abandoned 50-acre property that once served as an educational culinary center for Fetzer. They chose the property for its bucolic setting, the six-acre garden, and the 2,000 species of plants. But they ended …
BIG BASIN VINEYARDS 14598 Big Basin Way, Suite B. Saratoga CA 95070 (408) 564-7346 bigbasinvineyards.com PEOPLE Bradley Brown enjoyed a rare American upbringing that welcomed wine to the table rather than shunned it. He expanded on this interest as many do, by drinking and traveling, but it wasn’t until had been working in Silicon Valley …
RHYS VINEYARDS (BOTTLE) 11715 Skyline Blvd. Los Gatos CA 95033 (866) 511-1520 rhysvineyards.com PEOPLE The 2004 harvest was the first vintage released by entrepreneur Kevin Harvey’s Rhys Vineyards (pronounced REESE), one of the bright new stars of California winemaking today. Javier Tapia is the winery’s vineyard manager, Jeff Brinkman its winemaker and manager of …
THOMAS FOGARTY 19501 Skyline Blvd. Woodside CA 94062 (650) 851-6777 fogartywinery.com PEOPLE The Thomas Fogarty winery was founded in 1976 by heart surgeon Thomas Fogarty, who intended from the outset that his 350-acre estate in the Santa Cruz Mountains would be part of the California Land Conservation Act. Today, the pristine farm is surrounded …
AMBYTH ESTATE 510 Sequoia Ln. Templeton CA 93465 (805) 319-6967 ambythestate.com PEOPLE Phillip and Mary Hart came to Paso Robles with the intention to retire, but have since ended up launching a full-blown farming operation. They’ve kept the staff intentionally small, recently welcoming the Hart’s oldest son Gelert and his wife Robyn to the …