“We chose a vineyard in Templeton in the Paso AVA because we love the pioneering spirit of the wine industry in this area. For logistical reasons, we like the fact that it's almost exactly half way between LA and San Francisco. Also, Templeton is a quiet, unassuming little place. Nobody would suspect that world changing forces are at work here. By the time they realize, it will be too late. Enough about that, though.”
– Ray Schofield
Read MoreFarming is hard, and grapes are sticky. — Victor Abascal
Read MoreWe are able to be hands on with all our wines and take the time to be in our vineyards that we source from which is important. — Shelly Zanoli
Read MoreSmall producers have undeniable focus, laced with exciting stories of small scale production.
— Ethan Etnyre
Read More“Jean & Larry Rowe were both in the computer industry. Jean is a serious photographer and Larry spent many years working on digital media and entertainment applications. So, it was natural to think about color spectrums and related terminology. Jean created the tag line “Wine is neither black nor white. It’s always shades of grey” that perfectly captures the notion that winemaking requires constant attention to detail and continuous adaptation to the grapes produced each year.”
Read More“We work with Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Grenache Blanc and Viognier. We have plans to also work with Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay and perhaps Pinot Noir in the future. Our winemaker is especially passionate about Syrah for its dark fruit flavor, peppery finish and gorgeous full body.”
– Anita Kothari
Read More“I specialize in Petite Sirah and blends using that grape. It’s just so versatile based on location, farming practice and winemaking style. I also use Syrah, Grenache, Tannat and Petit Verdot in my red blends, and sometimes as single varietal bottlings, depends on the vintage. I make a Viognier as well with grapes from the Caliza Vineyard.”
– Matt Villard
Read More“We wanted a label that exhibited understated elegance as we hoped the wine would. We didn’t find a name that felt right after a considerable search that we liked better than our family name, so we just went with that.”
– Bill Kimsey
Read More“The name says it all. We are all about family and this passion project is my attempt to integrate my wife and children into my daily life and, hopefully, create some sort of a legacy that they will want to be a part of as they get older. I want the smells of harvest to be one of the smells that they remember vividly from their childhood. The labels are just fun little works of art. Some people think I’m crazy for having such a weird and wild label like Boomshakalaka but I am far more focused on the wine inside of the bottle and letting it speak for itself.”
– Mark Ferguson
Read More“ I love that it’s still small in Dry Creek and a little below the radar for Cabernet unlike Alexander Valley. Russian River gets all the credit for Pinot. Dry Creek sits quietly in the middle growing more Cabernet than Zinfandel, even though everyone thinks of Zinfandel when they think of DCV.”
– David Scheidt
Read More“ My favorite is Tempranillo. The wines are dark, full of tannins, and surprisingly acidic. When young they are fresh and fruity yet when aged have connotations of tobacco and leather. It’s great for blending. It’s very versatile variety and it ripens early!”
– Mark Welch
Read More“Cab Sauv is my fave as it's the wine that inspired me to start my own label.” — Dusty Nabor
Read More“Volatus means flight in Latin. My background is not wine but as a Navy pilot. I flew FA-18 Hornets and Super Hornets for the Navy and served two tours as a TOPGUN Instructor. When I started the wine label I wanted something aviation related but not immediately apparent. Over the years we have made the Volatus label more and more about aviation and flight and the branding works very well.”
– Hal Schmitt
Read More“Grenache is my favorite. It loves to give. It is big fruited, bright when it’s not overripe, has guts but can be complex, and likes our sunny climate. “ — Dennis Sharpe
Read More“We are named the vineyard and wines after our daughter Marin who was 6 years old when we initially planted the vineyard. She worked / played alongside of us as we developed the vineyard and she grew up with it. She recently graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo this summer with a degree in winemaking and has been our winemaker for over a year.”
– Duane Wolgamott
Read More“We fell in love with the industry when we lived in San Francisco when my husband and I were first married. We'd go up to Napa and stay at working vineyards. We knew this was something we wanted to do. We then moved to southern CA, and when we found our house in Malibu, there was a vineyard across the way and we knew we could plant there. We planted our first crop in 2001 and harvested from there in 2004.”
–Carol Hoyt
Read More“As an avid wine lover, I was constantly on a quest for something better. I wanted elegance, body, and boldness in our wines. I wanted wines I would be proud to offer to our friends and family. This led to a fun, weekend hobby that gradually grew into home wine making and then evolved into wine that matters.”
–Erick Allen
Read More“We choose to use the name Caliza for our winery as in Spanish it means limestone. It is the limestone based soils of our own vineyards, and much of Paso Robles area that makes for our great wine growing conditions. I felt that by choosing a name that always reminds us that the wines we produce begin in the vineyards and it is these special soils that give us much of the character found in our wines.” –Carl Bowker
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