In the mid-1970’s, due to a normal teenage interest in alcoholic beverages, my family allowed me to make some wine from the family vineyard and beer at home (under adult supervision, of course). This led to a UC Davis degree as well as concurrent work at a local winery doing the dirtiest and most menial jobs imaginable. In the mid-1980’s good friends at Duxoup Wine Works (think Marx Brothers for the pronunciation) inspired me to try my hand at my own label so I negotiated cellar space in lieu of a raise by my then-current employer, Greenwood Ridge Vineyards in Anderson Valley (I got a raise anyway). Greenwood Ridge was supportive of my project and decided to have some Scherrer Zinfandel produced for their label as well. Unfortunately, I had a poor business plan and during the first year I realized I was not yet ready for this project. Greenwood Ridge continues to make a small amount of Scherrer Vineyard Zinfandel to this day.
Enter Dehlinger Winery in the late 1980’s. Tom Dehlinger was very supportive of my long-term plans and challenged me to develop a solid business plan, facilitating an important entry into my own project. In return, his winery received my heart and soul for a decade. The final key element in our getting started was from my parents. They allowed me to delay paying them for their fine grapes until we began getting cash flow from our wine sales. By 1997, we were ready to make the move to a facility of our own. In anticipation of this, we were able to add Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay to supplement the Zinfandel we were producing, all from my father’s vineyard in Alexander Valley. Tom Dehlinger supported this transition of my focus, allowing me to produce these additional wines in his facility and we parted very amicably after that vintage.
And so after the harvest of 1997, I moved our operation to a corner of an apple packing shed-turned-winery, finally leasing the entire building. During this period, our production grew from just the three varietals from Scherrer Vineyard, to now typically a dozen wines, about half of which are Pinot Noir. Total production is now 4000 to 5000 cases. My good friend, Don Bliss helped me whenever I needed a hand (or a finger to dial 911 in the unlikely event of a forklift mistake) throughout this period until he sold his fine vineyard and moved back to his native Texas in 2006. Since then, I have been able to impose on a handful of friends and local customers when I have needed help, but still continue to work at the winery pretty much alone most of the year. Judi, my wife, has handled administrative and compliance for the winery since 2002, keeping me out of trouble with bureaucrats and making sure we are able to conform with the complex and changing world of direct shipping and wholesaling laws, reports and fees.
WWW.SCHERRERWINERY.COM
GILIAN HANDELMAN - DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, HOSPITALITY & EDUCATION FOR JACKSON FAMILY FINE WINES - TOMATO FEST
19th Annual Kendall-Jackson Heirloom Tomato Festival
Saturday, September 26th, 2015 • 11am - 4:00pm
Kendall-Jackson Wine Estate & Gardens, 5007 Fulton Road, Fulton, CA
Please plan to join us this year for another unforgettable Kendall-Jackson Heirloom Tomato Festival!
In partnership with the Ceres Community Project, please join us for another unforgettable year at the 19th Annual Kendall-Jackson Heirloom Tomato Festival!
This signature event reveals the delicious flavors of more than 150 heritage varieties of tomatoes grown in Kendall-Jackson’s expanded estate culinary gardens. Enjoy the perfect fall day with garden tours, exceptional wine and food pairings, dynamic wine and garden seminars, the popular Chef’s Challenge, and music provided by Grammy nominated Andre Thierry performing his Alternative Creole sounds!
Tickets are available for General Admission, Wine Club Members and the exclusive Premier Package.
• Kendall-Jackson club members enjoy their own Wine Club Member tent and check-in, special wine tasting, and samples of tomato-inspired bites from food vendors.
• The Premier Package includes a Premier tent and lounge, Premier check-in, valet parking with a separate entrance to the event, exclusive foods, along with limited release wines poured by our Master Sommelier.
Ceres Community Project builds healthy and caring communities by engaging teens as gardeners and chefs and nurturing their leadership skills and commitment to healthy eating. Ceres’ volunteer chefs will prepare 93,000 free and low-cost meals in 2015 for hundreds of Sonoma and Marin county families facing a health crisis such as cancer.
WWW.KJ.COM/VISIT-TOMATO-FESTIVAL
TUCKER TAYLOR – DIRECTOR OF CULINARY GARDENS, JACKSON FAMILY WINES
The Kendall-Jackson Estate Gardens offer seven distinct garden spaces. Some are educational in nature; some planted solely for beauty. Still others provide the fruit, vegetables and herbs that inspire the Food & Wine pairings created by our Culinary Team. A veritable cornucopia of beauty and flavor, the gardens are a core component of our commitment to food and wine education.
Set on 2 ½ acres, the gardens offer a seasonal abundance of sight, smell and taste.
OUR GARDEN SPACES INCLUDE:
• Entry Garden: Blooms of Bressingham
• Wine Sensory Gardens
• Red Wine Sensory Garden
• White Wine Sensory Garden
• Culinary Gardens
• International Cuisine Garden
• Vegetable Trial Garden
• Culinary Herb & Edible Flower Garden
• Viticultural Garden
• Seasonal Gardens
VISIT THE GARDENS
Garden Tour and Tastings are offered at 11:00am, 1:00pm and 3:00pm (weather permitting).
5007 Fulton Road
Fulton, California 95439
707.571.7500
Hours:
Open daily from 10:00am to 5:00pm
WWW.KJ.COM/THE-WINE-ESTATE-GARDENS