About Us

We seek to offer consumers a choice of wine varieties and styles that differ somewhat from many on the market today. With the better known varieties, we use viticultural and winemaking techniques which contribute uniqueness to the resulting wine.

Our viticultural practices include cane pruning (seldom used in the Lodi area) and expanded vertical trellis. We also use a dual irrigation system utilizing the most favorable benefits of both drip and sprinkler. Our efforts to establish a "natural balance" in our fields include biological controls, a minimum of pesticide use and ground covers.

Our winemaking techniques include barrel fermentation of both Chardonnay and Viognier. Our choice of barrels of French oak and other European oak adds diversity to our wines. We use techniques which keep the oak from dominating the wine, while allowing it to blend with the natural fragrances and flavors, thereby producing approachable wines. The use of Zinfandel for an off-dry Rosé is rather unusual.

We also choose various lesser-known grape varieties that offer unique qualities and then work with them on a trial basis prior to presenting them commercially. This is especially true for our "German Collection" wines. German wines are often viewed here as sweet, mild and fruity. However, visits to Germany introduced us to the unique and diverse qualities of German wines. These wines cover the entire range from dry, crisp table wines of lower alcohol content to very sweet dessert wines which can age and improve for decades. This motivated us to research the many German varieties, search for sources of these varieties and establish vineyard trials. We vinted them on an amateur basis prior to choosing which wines to use initially for commercial production. This has taken years and is an ongoing process as we work with additional varieties. Kerner, our first offering, is vinted in an off-dry and very crisp style. Our second German Collection wine is Dreirebe, a late harvest proprietary blend of three German varieties. Other varieties and styles, including reds and ultra late harvest dessert wines will follow when ready for presentation.

Thus the description which often accompanies our label is not just marketing hype, but rather the result of our family's decision as to what we wanted to achieve when we decided to produce wine--providing a choice of affordable and approachable hand-crafted wines to enhance meals.