The Wine Makers on Radio Misfits

The guys sit down on a blustery day to talk about Sam’s Sixteen600 Spring Releases. Besides the awesome wines there was Lots of laughter and fun follows. Enjoy our humour please! [EP230]

The guys sit down and talk weather, field and wine updates with Todd Jolly, Sonoma’s Best Somm. It’s always fun to sit down with the The Oregon Ducks Biggest Fan, Todd. Enjoy [EP229]

Take a Sonoma County boy and transplant him high in Texas where he can grow grapes and make Texas Wine. Ricky Taylor has some great stories about the trials and tribulations of trying to grow his dreams in the high country of Texas at 5400ft elevation. Needless to say we had fun. Enjoy [EP228] Alta Marfa @altamarfa Altamarfa.com [email protected]

The guys head into the eastern hills of Napa’s Oakville District. Second generation winemaker Maya Dalla Valle let Brian, Sam and John behind the curtains of her family’s esteemed Dalla Valle Vineyards estate, where there are no public tastings and there’s a waiting list to get the wines. Maya talks about growing up in Napa, the legend of her namesake wine and her path back to the family business. The wines are fantastic and corgi content is top-notch! [EP227]

I don’t think there’s another guest I quite so enjoy having on the show than Bob Cabral. Back in the days of “Heard it through the Grapevine” Radio show on KSVY I had Bob as a regular guest. And he or Three Sticks have been on The Wine Makers podcast several times. He’s just that much fun to talk with. Talk about somebody with a clear definition of what life should be like, Bob’s own line Bob Cabral Wines is a beautiful and complete full circle. He set out to achieve this and he is doing so. Beautiful Bob, thanks for being our guest again. Cheers [EP226]

This week we sit down with “TJ” from Ownroot Collective, a wine club that shines a light on small producers, most of which have other jobs that support their passion. Terra showcases two wine makers each month and offers their wines to her subscribers. Then they do a Zoom where they are able to meet the wine maker and ask questions. This is a very unique business model and the wines are carefully selected, each bottle we tried was amazing. Our friend Ben Larks from Idle Cellars, a small wine maker with multiple jobs, sits in with us and opens up his portfolio of wines and humor. This was a very fun show. @ownrootcollective ownrootcollective.com @idlecellars idlecellars.com

This week Kimberly T. Johnson from Philosophy Winery & Vineyard located in Baltimore City Maryland joins us on the podcast. Kimberly, winemaker started Philosophy wines along with her friend and partner Sommelier Denise Roles Matthews in 2018. Working in the Maryland wine industry for over a decade, in many capacities she discovered that wine was her passion. She had finally found her purpose, exploring distinct agriculture (land & soil) and producing high quality wine that highlights diverse grape varietals as unique as Maryland itself. Kimberly and Bart met through “The Roots Fund” an organization which was created to invest in communities of color to provide opportunities to those seeking a career and education in all aspects of wine. The rest of the story is best told on the podcast.[EP224] www.philosophywinery.com @philosophywinery www.therootsfund.org @rootsfund

Rebekah’s passion for winemaking began when she visited Napa Valley with her parents at just 16, being from Washington DC she didn’t grow up around wineries but that trip and a friend of her fathers explaining winemaking and wine tasting to Rebekah piqued her interest. The discussions from that visit left such a lasting impression that she went on to pursue a dual degree in chemistry and biology at Macalester college with the dream of becoming a winemaker. When she started gaining practical experience in the wine-growing regions of California, Oregon, Italy, and New Zealand, her path started to come into view. This week’s show is best told by her, check it out the wines are awesome.. [EP223] www.postandvine.com

Pushing 80 degrees on a February day at the tasting house wondering if we’re just plunging headlong into Summer. Good lord! Jasmine Egan joins Sam, Bart, Brian and John for a Spring Release Dane Cellars party and they cover all thing wine for you organic listeners. Enjoy [EP222]

Viticulturist Jake Neustadt is a bay area native who was attending UC Davis, studying journalism and international relations. Like other stories that we have heard he discovered viticulture and winemaking and how that maybe this was to be his career path. Starting at Rock Wall Winery, some time in New Zealand and then to Ridge winery where he dove deep into old vines. But it’s his time at Bedrock that has brought him to the podcast. What likely started out as a conversation about the Old Vine Palomino that grew at the Evangelho vineyard has become Soleras Del Pacifico. Flor-aged wines made from California’s ancient Palomino vines. Ready for a bit of education about Sherry? Check it out. [EP 221] www.solerasdelpacifico.com @SolerasDelPacifico  

Randy Hester, creator of the Lightning wine brand, has taken over Austin Texas by storm. With his family name carried on with the C.L. Butaud line and Frenchy’s Rose, Randy and Brooke made the leap from Sonoma to Austin and did it right. 100% Texas wines is obviously a Really good thing in Austin and Randy tells all of the stories on this week’s show. We sampled lots of great wines and heard and told lots of old friend stories. Enjoy. clbutaud.com Facebook @clbutaud Instagram @clbutaud Randy’s IG @elrandin

Delmas/SJR Vineyard had a problem. It’s a prime Syrah vineyard in the The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA in Walla Walla Valley but extreme winter temperatures were wreaking havoc on the vines and threatening the viability of the vineyard. Rather than keep doing what everyone else did, Brooke Delmas Roberts came up with a radical new way of pruning and training the vines-MHT or Mini Head Trained vines were born. Hear all about their vineyard, their wines and this premier OREGON appellation. [EP 219]

Lyle Fass is devoted to wine and sneakers. He’s devoted, emotionally, scientifically and financially. His devotion would verge on manic if he wasn’t so good at it. Never one to shy away from a story or an opinion, Lyle joins the Wine Makers via Zoom from Manhattan and breaks down, what he looks for in wine, how he finds and how he sells and tells us what he really thinks about natural wine…and Nikes. [EP 218]

This week’s show is brought to you by Zoom. Yes we are temporarily recording by Zoom because of COVID worries, but hope to be back live with a new guest next week. This week we opened it up to listener questions, a vineyard update and Sam has more nice words about the loss of Phillpe Cambie. Thanks to all of your support and we look forward to a great year. [EP217] Cheers!

Ever wonder why one wine label hits you and others just don’t? Or how a label can actually represent what’s really in the bottle with all of the wine’s particular characteristics? Well, Tim Gatto has a lot of answers for you and it’s a fascinating discussion. We explore how winemakers hit And miss the mark everyday and what you should look for in the wine aisle. [EP216] Enjoy! [email protected] gatto.design

To say Hardy thinks about wine different than all of us is a understatement. He seems thinks about life differently. The amount of energy, soul and excitement he has and spreads when talking about wine is infectious. Hardy shares stories about how he went from high tech to low intervention wines and now to Extradimensional Wine Co. Yeah!!! [EP215] Grab a glass of wine and hang on tight. Cheers! www.winecoyeah.com @winecoyeah @dirtysouthwine

This week on the show we talk with Brad and Glenn about their time working for Mr. Mondavi. Brad got his winery job at Charles Krug working harvest in 1967, while there he accepted a second job working at the then new Robert Mondavi Winery in 1970. Perhaps the only person who has worked in both Mondavi cellars at the same time. Shortly thereafter Brad was promoted to Cellar Foreman, it was shortly after that time he interviewed Glenn Workman for a cellar position, after an extensive interview Glenn joined the team. This was a time in the California wine industry of growth and learning. These two men were working for one of the leader’s that brought us to what we now know as the modern California wine industry. Enjoy their stories and check out Brad’s wines Leto Cellars [EP214) www.letocellars.com @letocellars

Ambassador James D. Zellerbach founded Hanzell Vineyards in 1953 with a vision to create wines that could compete on the world stage and he picked an amazing piece of property in Sonoma Valley. Over the past 68 years there have been some stellar teams at Hanzell. Today we talked with part of the current Hanzell Farm team. Both Jason and Brandons path to Hanzell is best told in their own words. Which is the story of how Hanzell has evolved from being a vineyard and a winery to a farm that continues to produce some of the most sought after, age worthy wines in California. They aren’t the first to farm using some of the techniques but they might be one of the most thoughtful. Enjoy the show and we hope you have a great Thanksgiving. [EP213] Cheers! www.hanzell.com @hanzellfarm @jasonmjardine @brandon.bredo

Will Bucklin and his family have long and notable history in Sonoma Valley. However that history is dwarfed by the history in their 150 year old vineyard, Old Hill Ranch. While tasting through the incredible line up of wines Will makes from the vineyard his mother and step-father saved from demolition nearly 50 years ago, we tried to capture some of te storied history of both the place and the people. Mostly we ended up talking about Grenache—and after nearly 2 and half hours we were all left wanting more. Look for Part Deux one day soon when we record from bridge of the Starship Bucklin! [EP212] www.buckzin.com @willbuckzin

Returning to her second home from France, Isabel brought the rains, her wit and wisdom back to Winery Sixteen600. Isabel is the winemaker for A Duex Tetes (along with Philippe Cambie and Phil Coturri) and we tasted samples from Oakville and the Rossi Ranch Grenache from the latest harvest. Phil Coturri joins us a for a bit of organic farming insights.We give thanks for our listing in Wine Business Monthly as 2021 Industry leaders that made us all feel quite good. Enjoy the show! [EP211]

You might know Gustavo as the Winemaker at Scribe here in Sonoma Valley. Did you know that he and his wife Jackie their own wines under the Orixe Sotelo label? Focusing on Spanish varieties grown here in California. Or as they say it “singular wines from Alta California”. This is a good one and we hope you will not miss the chance to try their inaugural wines. www.sotelowines.com @sotelo.wines @tintodecalifornia

Those of us in the wine business know this company and likey access something they publish on a daily basis. Looking for a job? Want to know the latest insider news? How about an in depth report on barrel producers, yeast cultures or on supply chain issues. This is the place to start. Cyril Penn (Editor in Chief) has followed the U.S. wine industry as editor of Wine Business Monthly for nearly two decades. In that time, Wine Business Monthly has emerged as the leading provider of information to the wine industry in North America. Cyril has explored wine regions throughout the world, is a frequent speaker at industry events, and is often quoted in the news media. He has more than three decades of wire service, magazine and broadcast experience. After graduating Fordham University in New York he started his career with Reuters in New York and later contributed to dozens of publications, specializing in energy, high technology and biotechnology. [EP209] www.winebusiness.com @winebusiness

This week the guys converse about a wide variety of topics and answer listeners questions. Did you know archaeologists have unearthed a 1500 year old wine production facilty in Israel ? Does Petrus taste better after spending a year on the International Space Station ? Did the SF Giants collude with weathermen in LA to knockdown Dodgers potential home runs ? We cover it all this week. Enjoy the show!!! [EP208] winerysixteen600.com danecellars.com sonomasommwines.com

Sam, Bart and John are joined by Tanner Walle from Valley Bar and Bottle and cover all things harvest, shortages and Fall Releases from Dane and Sixteen600. Lots of listener questions and the Bix Clan is heading for Sonoma! [EP207]

This week we are celebrating International Grenache Day with The Grenachista, Casey Greybehl, who’s entire portfolio consists of nothing but Grenache Noir and Grenache Blanc. This is one of our favorite days of the year and the bottles on the table far outnumbered the people on the show. From Pet-Nat to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, we drank it all. Enjoy !!! grenachista.com @the.grenachista @internationalpirateday

David Rossi is a Jersey Boy who used to make wines in his basement, literally flying in fruit from different parts of the world to make 10 gallon batches to experiment with. Now known as one of the top producers of world class Pinot Noir in California, we discovered some of his favorite wines are the aromatic whites he crafts from cool sites up north. Having taught himself, he knows just about everything you should not do when making wine and his witty sense of humor is sharper than his skill set. fulcrumwines.com @fulcrumwines [email protected]

It’s all about harvest on The Wine Makers this week. Whites are rolling in and reds are coming up as we speak, the days are long but everybody is excited for a great vintage year. Brian has roussanne on the line and Bart’s got Chenin coming up. Brian has a French Rose’ dinner coming up at the Fairmont and damn if we aren’t going to show up…with a reservation, not crashing it. Cheers and Enjoy. [EP204]

This week we sit down with Tony Biagi, one of Napa and Sonoma’s star winemakers. He is listed as winemaker at Hourglass, The Vineyardist Family, Amici Cellars and his own Patria Wines and consulting winemaker at Lasseter Family Winery, Jada Winery, Caliza Winery and Alma Rosa Winery. However if you ask Tony, the2020 Vinous Winemaker of the year, he prides himself most in mentoring young winemakers who lead these estates. While his career arc lines up with the rise of Napa Cult Cabs but if you really want to hear Tony wax poetic about wine, ask him about classic old California Wine, which is just what we did. Tony shared a bottle of 1985 Carment, made in the heart of what is now known as the Moon Mountain District. [EP203]

Birdhorse represents a vision for the future of California wine-making, a vision anchored in a passion for diversification And they make some really nice wines. Striving to use under-represented varietals Corinne Rich and Katie Rouse sure make good use of their backgrounds including Bedrock University and Scribe to turn out a diverse line of wines from Arneis, Verdelho and Valdiguie varietals and more. [EP202]

Sam, Bart and John do a bit of reminiscing about the podcast, all of our friends and listeners who made it possible and all of our incredible guests. And of course Ed Silha plays the best role as The Podfather himself, Despite drought, fires and pandemics we’re still at it bringing you the very best of Sonoma winemaking. Cheers and Enjoy!!! [EP201]

This week we welcome Prema Behan from Three Sticks Wines and Nicole Garzino from the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers. Prema is the Director of Operations at Three Sticks and the current President of the board of the Vintners & Growers. Nicole is the new executive director of the Vintners & Growers. Three Sticks is a favorite past guest of the podcast, so we wanted to check in about what new with them. If you haven’t check out our episode with winemaker Bob Cabral it’s not to be missed. We also wanted to welcome Nicole to hear how she came to her new job and what’s new and exciting with the SVVGA. [EP200] @sonomavalleywine www.sonomavalleywine.com @threestickswines www.threestickswines.com

This week on the Wine Makers Pod-Two professors from Bedrock University, AKA Cody Rasmussen of Desire Lines Wines and Reid Griggs of Tidings Wines, visit to Bart, Brian and Sam for a conversation ranging from the microbiome of vineyards to the wine selection in Iowa college towns. Cody is the Associate Winemaker at Bedrock Wine Co. where Reid worked in 2016, one of his many internships at high profile wineries. Both are among the best and the brightest of California’s young winemakers. We dig into Reid’s research at UC Davis, Cody gets into the intricacies of fermenting Riesling, Brian discovers his new favorite California Cabernet and Sam dings wine glass until his finger turns black and blue. [EP199]

Jen & Sara were going to make wine together, and they knew that it started with organic grapes and that the wine would be a reflection of the vineyard. What they didn’t know was what the winery would be called. Now inspiration comes in many forms and “Trouble” comes in many forms and after getting to know these two we think you will know exactly where the name comes from. [EP198] www.littletroublewines.com @littletroublewineco

Sam, Bart and John cover Weather, Wind and Water after the holiday and answer listener questions. The heat spell is starting to fade a bit, Sonoma is beautiful and we’re still in the mega drought. Enjoy a light-hearted conversation that’s a lot of fun. Cheers! [EP197]

This week we sit down with Morgan Twain-Peterson, MW, founder and winemaker of Bedrock Wine Co. in Sonoma. If you listen to the show, you know Morgan is a bit of a phenom, making his first wine at 5, saving historic vineyards, starting a California “grower” sparkling wine program Under the Wire, M.W., the list goes on. If you want to know anything about wine, ask Morgan. We get into a lot of subjects on this pod, including drought, DOC instability, climate change, and the amazing investment being made by Morgan and his partner Chris Cottrell to release some of the best sparkling wine in California. Enjoy this one. [EP196] -Cheers

How nice was it for the whole team to gather outback of the Sixteen600 Tasting House for a chat with John Musto and Tom Young from Drive Wines. These guys make some really nice wines and we actually got to taste some of their original garage-made that aren’t for sale. But don’t worry as they have plenty of great wines on their list and these are Micro-production, single-vineyard wines too. This is another great Sonoma area success story that started out in an old race car garage that ended up well. A beautiful day in Sonoma and an awesome show. Enjoy [EP195] www.drivewines.com Email -> john@ tom@ drivewines.com Twitter, Instagram, Facebook -> @drivewines

La Prenda Vineyard Management is a full service vineyard management company. That means that not only do they have a skilled crew working in the vineyards and in this case orchards but they also have a winemaker on staff. Mike Cox is a Sonoma native who first started working at Hacienda Winery when attending UC Davis in the late 80’s. Mike spent the majority of the last 30 years working at Schug Winery and he brought along a bunch of wines and a couple of ciders he made to share with us. We only scratched the surface of stories and experiences with Mike, so we hope you enjoy this episode and I’m sure there will be a follow up show so we can dive in to the wines we didn’t get a chance to open. [EP194] www.laprendavineyards.com www.sonomacollectionwine.com @laprendasonoma

Groove Wines isn’t a canned wine company, it’s a winery that puts some of it’s wines in cans. We sat down this week with Nate Miles and Matt Nagy to talk about their new brand. Yes the same Matt from Benevolent Neglect, Nate and Matt met each other working for Steve Matthiasson in Napa valley, it was a great conversation check out the show. Nate says that Groove is a new wine company interested in making wines that you want to drink, bring you pleasure, and make you happy. We want to make your wine experience more flexible and convenient, a better fit for your modern lifestyle. We’re going to do this by putting your wine in cans. [EP193] www.groovewines.com @groovewines

When we first sat down with David Ramey in October of 2018 we spent time talking about his start in the wine business and the winemaking techniques that he pioneered of which many winemakers use today. This time we are joined by his children Claire and Alan as David takes a step into the future helping guide his children toward running this family business. We also get some insight into the standards that this winery has build it’s reputation on. [EP192] rameywine.com/ @davidramey @rameywinecellars

While studying chemistry at the University of Colorado at Denver, Danielle sensed that laboratory research was not fulfilling her passion. Throughout her young adult life, Danielle’s father, shared his love of wine, continually encouraged her to move to California and explore winemaking. Finally, in the late summer of 2013, she took his advice and moved to Sonoma. That year Danielle had her first opportunity in the wine industry working as a cellar intern for harvest at the Kamen Estate. Dan, armed with a background in geology and a passion for organic agriculture. Dan moved to California with his soon to be wife, Danielle in early 2014. Phil Coturri gave him his start in wine-growing where he worked with the vineyard crews at Kamen Estate. Over his six years working with Enterprise Vineyards, Dan studied all aspects of organic farming, including biodynamic agriculture and Korean natural farming. While Dan keeps very busy in the vineyards, he is also known to lend a hand in the winery whenever needed. Dan is an integral part of the husband and wife Jambe de Bois Wines team. Jambe de Bois was born out of Danielle’s yearning to study winemaking and develop her own unique style. Every vintage is different not only because of the weather that shapes it, but also the experimental and bold techniques employed to make the wine. “Jambe de Bois is her creative outlet. These small batches of wine are meant to be a discovery of different winemaking processes as I learn more every year. One thing I know about wine, is I will never be done learning.” www.jambedeboiswines.com

Master Sommelier Christophe Tassan has spent his career hanging out in the most rarified air the wine and hospitality business has to offer. He grew up in his family’s Michelin-starred restaurant in Avignon, he worked for super star chef Alain Ducasse, he was the wine director of the legendary Le Bec Fin in Philadelphia, he attained literal heights running the wine program at Aureole in Las Vegas famous for the Wine Angels soaring 50 feet into the air to retrieve the best bottles. A career like his doesn’t lack for hardware either; he was awarded 2nd Best Young French Sommelier in 1988, Best Sommelier “South of France” in 1992 and became a Master Sommelier in 2000. In 2004 he was rewarded with the title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France – Sommelier, France’s highest distinction for the trades. Today, his career has taken him to new heights-the top of the Moon Mountain District where Christophe oversees Moon Hollow a new wine label from Michael and Xochi Birch who own The Battery in San Fancisco where Christophe is also the beverage director. Through it all, Christophe remains a humble steward to the grape, to the wine and to the stories they can tell. [EP190] www.moonhollow.com

This week we sit down with Paul Duroussay, former intern to our friend Jeff Cohn. Paul grew up and was educated in Burgundy with friends and family in the wine business. He now imports small production wines that would normally never see American soil. Follow the story from France to California and see what it takes to bring these incredible wines to us. Oh and there’s Champagne too !!! The wines are incredible and the prices are mind blowing for the quality. Viva la France 🇫🇷… pierreclosimports.com

This week we checked in with two of our favorite guests, Blair Guthrie from Guthrie Family Wines and Joel Burt from Las Jaras Wines. We thought it would be fun to have them both on together to double your pleasure. This is a great show, covering a wide variety of topics, and a multitude of wines. Normally we tell you to pour yourself a glass, but this week you might want to crack a couple bottles. Enjoy !!! [EP188] lasjaraswines.com guthriefamilywines.com

Well it’s been a year of Zoom for The Wine Makers during the Covid pandemic so to celebrate Spring, bud break and vaccinations, we did this show in person on the beautiful new deck at the Sixteen600 Tasting House. We cover a lot of ground today with lots of beautiful new releases from Bart and Dane Cellars plus new ones from Sam. This is an episode you should really enjoy. Cheers! [EP188]

This week we discuss Weed Slayer, no that’s not Sam’s nickname. The maker of Weed Slayer/ Agro Gold WS Herbicide and Fertilizer was hit with a false advertising class action lawsuit related to claims that the product was safe. We are now learning that this product contains glyphosate and diquat, which are both prohibited for use in organic production. What are the consequences and what do we do now? [EP186]

Scott Kirkpatrick moved out to California from Kentucky with $30 in his pocket. He discovered a love for wine, and for a woman named Allison. After working numerous harvests at a crush pad facility, he had an idea. What if we make Petite Sirah and treat it like the aromatic, lively beauty that it could be, instead of continuing to produce the masculine beast that most wine makers typically do ? Mountain Tides was born, with his artistic photographer wife crafting the labels, they started on a voyage of discovery into all things Petite. Now four years later they have attracted the attention of the wine world. Why do they do it ? How do they do it ? Give it a listen and hear for yourselves. mountaintideswine.com @mountaintides

Paul Giusto and Michael Sebastiani met back in the day, working together at Viansa Winery in Sonoma. In 2004, they decided to partner up and go out on their own, taking their vineyard connections, Michael’s wine making experience and Paul’s marketing skills. These guys are true ambassadors of Sonoma County, showcasing fruit from some of the most prized and historic vineyards. Their wines are like them, accessible and approachable. Paul joined the conversation from the back of his truck, parked in the MacLeod Vineyard on Lawndale Rd. in Kenwood. Check it out. [EP184] highway12winery.com

We welcome back Paul Mabray this week and he is joined by Erica Duecy, they are here this week to introduce us to their new company. Pix is a wine discovery platform that helps wine consumers find the right bottle: If you’re looking for a specific wine, the website will help guide you to it, or to a great alternative. If you’re exploring a region or variety, they will find benchmark bottles in the price range you specify. Pix locates bottles for in person pick-up or delivery. Set to launch in Spring 2021, Pix is a better way to find and buy wine. [EP183] @pixwine @pmabray @ericaduecy

Bart Hansen and Sam Coturri are officially announcing their “Spring Release” wines. Dane Cellars is releasing the 2018 Chenin Blanc from the Buddha’s Dharma vineyard and the 2018 Grenache from Rossi Ranch. Sam Coturri is releasing the “A Deux Tetes” series with a 2019 Grenache Rose from the Miller Vineyard in Napa, a 2018 Grenache from Rossi Ranch and the 2018 Grenache from Oakville Ranch. All the wines are currently available by visiting their websites. [EP182] winerysixteen600.com danecellars.com sonomasommwines.com

Shaina Harding earned her degree in Enology & Viticulture at UC Davis, working for Domaine Chandon, Clos Pegase and Flora Springs before taking the position of Associate Winemaker at HUNNICUTT Wines. Natalie Coughlin grew up outside of Napa in Vallejo, with a love of food and wine,before becoming one of the most decorated American Olympic swimmers in history. How did these two dynamic women meet and decide to start a small production label called Gaderian Wines? Listen to this week’s Podcast and get the whole story. [EP181] Gaderianwines.com Hunnicuttwines.com Nataliecoughlin.com