My love of wine began in a rather unusual way. It was 1973 and I had recently moved off of a 41 ft Trimaran sailboat in the Florida Keys. My knowledge of wine was basically nonexistent, with the exception of Spains infamous Meteus Rose which paired amazingly well with both broiled lobster and grouper sandwiches. I was invited by my best friend Don to a wine tasting, and I told him that it would be a waste of wine because of my lack of both knowledge and interest. Don was adamant that he knew me well and that I would love it, so I went. 

We arrived at the home of a local Doctor and realized we were a tad under dressed for what appeared to be a very formal sit down tasting of 1st growth Bordeaux Wines. Apparently Hawaiian shirts, shorts, and sandals did not mesh well with suits and formal gowns. Uncomfortable with our tasting companions would be a gross understatement, so after our first foray into France we ran out of clean stemware. Our host had not arranged for enough glasses so our wine specialist had to go to the kitchen and wash glasses.

I excused myself from the frosty stares of our host and fled to the kitchen to offer my help. Turns out Bill was a professor from France and taught a wine course at the local university. He appreciated my help and interest in learning more about the wonderful wines we were tasting. Needless to say, we became great friends over the next 5 years and he taught me all about French wines. I have been fortunate to have tasted most 1st growth Bordeaux wines back to 1919.

My family’s move to California in 1977 resulted in meeting Daniel, my wife’s cousin, and his wife. They later became creators of Wild Hog Vineyard. I have helped Daniel with all aspects of winemaking and cleanup for over 17 years. In fall of 2002 as before I was offered the opportunity to make wine at their facility. Knowing how much work was involved I didn’t want to venture into a project unless I could access fruit that was somehow unknown, but at the same time unique.

A call for help to my friend Fred resulted in access to cabernet from a new world class vineyard in Lake County's Red Hills Appellation. They would supply the fruit for my first vintage and if they liked what I produced they would continue to provide fruit. We met the challenge and the rest is history. I have used my knowledge of Bordeaux varietals to change the last vintages somewhat with the addition of small amounts of petite verdot, cab franc, and malbec.