WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:04.480 Welcome to Wine Soundtrack USA. Listen to the passion with 2 00:00:04.519 --> 00:00:08.000 which producers narrate their winery and their world team thirty 3 00:00:08.039 --> 00:00:12.080 answers discover their stories, personalities and passions. 4 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:14.880 Hello, friends and listeners of Wine Soundtrack. This is Alison 5 00:00:14.960 --> 00:00:18.039 Levine and today I'm in the tasting room of Royo 6 00:00:18.120 --> 00:00:22.800 Sellers in the Livermore Valley with the partner and winemaker 7 00:00:23.120 --> 00:00:25.839 John chip Rich. John, welcome to Wine Soundtrack and tell 8 00:00:25.920 --> 00:00:27.559 us a little bit about Arroyo Sellers. 9 00:00:28.480 --> 00:00:31.399 That's a pleasure having you here. Thank you. And Arroyo 10 00:00:31.480 --> 00:00:36.880 Sellers were a small, very small winery founded by a 11 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:40.719 group of a family of friends, I think is the 12 00:00:40.719 --> 00:00:43.520 best way of phrasing it. So there are actually ten 13 00:00:43.560 --> 00:00:46.719 of us overall, their partners in the winery, and we 14 00:00:46.759 --> 00:00:50.679 each bring something different to the operation. But we're a 15 00:00:50.679 --> 00:00:53.759 group of people that met over twenty five years ago 16 00:00:54.439 --> 00:00:57.280 and have done a lot of things together over the years. 17 00:00:58.159 --> 00:01:01.240 A few years back, one of the partners decided that 18 00:01:01.719 --> 00:01:04.079 it might be fun to open a winery. There was 19 00:01:04.120 --> 00:01:07.760 a previous winery that we had been affiliated with. Unfortunately, 20 00:01:08.519 --> 00:01:10.840 the owner of that one had passed away and so 21 00:01:11.319 --> 00:01:15.159 it shut down, but it left an interest for all 22 00:01:15.239 --> 00:01:19.920 of us. So the one gentleman Ron decided to open 23 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:24.200 up a new location here at Royal Sellers. And the 24 00:01:24.239 --> 00:01:27.799 business started primarily as wine storage, but it was always 25 00:01:27.840 --> 00:01:30.799 a vision to have a winery involved with it, and 26 00:01:30.840 --> 00:01:31.799 we just grew from there. 27 00:01:32.200 --> 00:01:35.319 And I love this because you said it's ten friends 28 00:01:35.439 --> 00:01:38.079 or ten couple in friends, ten family and friends. So 29 00:01:38.239 --> 00:01:39.959 and the fact is twenty five years and you're all 30 00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:43.560 still friends, you're working together. Someone has really organized very 31 00:01:43.560 --> 00:01:47.000 well and delineated who does what, So there's no resentment 32 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:50.480 that I did more. But so tell me you started 33 00:01:50.560 --> 00:01:52.439 Arroyo Sellers in what year. 34 00:01:52.920 --> 00:01:56.560 We started with the wine storage area in twenty eighteen. 35 00:01:56.760 --> 00:02:00.840 We actually opened up the tasting room once before COVID 36 00:02:00.879 --> 00:02:02.519 did wonderful. 37 00:02:02.680 --> 00:02:06.159 But you're still here. And how many cases do you make? 38 00:02:07.120 --> 00:02:10.919 We vary between five to seven hundred cases a year, 39 00:02:11.039 --> 00:02:12.400 so relatively. 40 00:02:11.879 --> 00:02:15.159 Modest, modest and small. And what do you focus on 41 00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:16.599 grape wise? 42 00:02:17.159 --> 00:02:22.120 We having fun with the grapes mainly. We actually do 43 00:02:22.319 --> 00:02:28.520 a pretty broad range of wines. So we have several whites, 44 00:02:29.800 --> 00:02:32.919 which we considered to be a heritage type for the 45 00:02:32.960 --> 00:02:37.520 Livermore Valley. So Livermore was renowned for its southern hum Bloc. 46 00:02:38.639 --> 00:02:42.280 Semion is another one that is quite good and one 47 00:02:42.360 --> 00:02:45.520 day with the Chardonnay. So we have those, but we 48 00:02:45.719 --> 00:02:49.319 also have another one of the heritage wines for Livermore Valley, 49 00:02:49.319 --> 00:02:51.919 which is a petite row was something that was pioneered 50 00:02:51.919 --> 00:02:56.199 through Concanon the Bordeaux grow here as well. And Cabernet 51 00:02:56.240 --> 00:02:59.439 franc is another signature whine now for the Livermore Valley. 52 00:02:59.479 --> 00:03:02.439 So we've been corporated dat into the portfolio as well. 53 00:03:02.599 --> 00:03:05.439 Okay, so more white wines than reds. 54 00:03:06.000 --> 00:03:10.919 No, it's actually a pretty healthy mix. So this year, 55 00:03:11.639 --> 00:03:14.319 even though we only bottled seven in our cases, we 56 00:03:14.400 --> 00:03:19.240 did produce sixteen different wines there, wow, four whites and 57 00:03:19.599 --> 00:03:20.240 twelve rids. 58 00:03:20.599 --> 00:03:21.120 Wow. 59 00:03:21.199 --> 00:03:21.520 Wow. 60 00:03:21.879 --> 00:03:24.439 And working with a lot of Bordeaux varieties in the 61 00:03:24.479 --> 00:03:25.840 classics of them. 62 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:27.039 That is correct. 63 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:30.439 Okay? And are you do you own any vineyards or 64 00:03:30.680 --> 00:03:33.960 just sourcing fruit? And if you're sourcing fruit, is it 65 00:03:34.120 --> 00:03:36.439 just from Livermore Valley or do you expand out? 66 00:03:37.199 --> 00:03:41.199 We source our fruit, so we're definitely not farmers. We 67 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:44.319 leave out to people who know what they're doing. We 68 00:03:44.360 --> 00:03:49.120 buy almost exclusively from the Livermore and the majority of 69 00:03:49.159 --> 00:03:50.919 the grapes actually come from within two and a half 70 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:54.680 miles of the winery. We do have one exception, and 71 00:03:54.919 --> 00:03:58.080 that is that we've picked up some Torroldego just because 72 00:03:58.080 --> 00:03:59.520 we felt like, you know, that would be a lot 73 00:03:59.520 --> 00:03:59.879 of fun. 74 00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:00.319 Why not. 75 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:03.960 Everyone knows charle to go absolutely and it's not grown 76 00:04:04.000 --> 00:04:06.360 here in Livermore. So we did source it from. 77 00:04:06.199 --> 00:04:08.719 Gold from where gold golt. 78 00:04:08.759 --> 00:04:10.159 Where's that It's by Sacramento? 79 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:14.560 Okay, not far, not terribly far. And I'm going to 80 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:16.720 make the assumption that with the amount of wine that 81 00:04:16.759 --> 00:04:21.199 you produce, that you are exclusively, exclusively available here as 82 00:04:21.240 --> 00:04:24.160 a direct to consumer winery. That you've got your tasting 83 00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:26.959 room and your website. But are you in any markets? 84 00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:29.920 Do you sell in any restaurants locally or in any 85 00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:30.560 other cities? 86 00:04:31.439 --> 00:04:34.600 We are pretty much local. We do sell to a 87 00:04:34.680 --> 00:04:38.639 number of restaurants. I think you're mainly here in Livermore. 88 00:04:39.160 --> 00:04:42.319 We just close the deal with Costco, so we're going 89 00:04:42.399 --> 00:04:45.040 to have some wine showing up there in the very 90 00:04:45.079 --> 00:04:48.480 near future. Otherwise, the majority of the cell is through 91 00:04:48.560 --> 00:04:49.199 the taste somewhere. 92 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:52.519 Then this is where people have to find you, and 93 00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:56.480 that's how I found you. So I'm curious. You know, 94 00:04:56.560 --> 00:05:00.199 you and your friends have come to wine after other careers. 95 00:05:00.399 --> 00:05:02.959 Wine is something you love, But what is your first 96 00:05:03.040 --> 00:05:06.000 memory relevant to wine? How old were you and what 97 00:05:06.120 --> 00:05:09.279 was that experience where you actually either tasted or found 98 00:05:09.279 --> 00:05:10.199 out wine existed. 99 00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:15.240 Okay, I'm going to give you a couple ways of answering. Yet, 100 00:05:16.319 --> 00:05:18.959 when I grew up in the family, we grew up 101 00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:24.199 in western Pennsylvania, wine was not something that was an 102 00:05:24.279 --> 00:05:30.639 everyday part of our lives, and so those consequences. My 103 00:05:30.680 --> 00:05:33.439 first face the wine was BlackBerry wine. 104 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:37.639 Made from blackberries, and that was the first experience Your 105 00:05:37.680 --> 00:05:39.319 first memory relevant to wine? 106 00:05:39.399 --> 00:05:39.759 Correct? 107 00:05:39.959 --> 00:05:43.519 So then I can fast forward and say, Okay, when 108 00:05:43.560 --> 00:05:47.720 you started drinking wine, do you have You may have many, 109 00:05:47.759 --> 00:05:50.920 because I mean it sounds like you have had experienced 110 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:53.399 drinking wine. But is there one wine that stands out 111 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:55.600 as one of those aha moment wines, like one of 112 00:05:55.600 --> 00:05:59.240 those really memorable wine experiences. 113 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:04.279 Out? Yes, and against not the shortest answer in the world, 114 00:06:04.360 --> 00:06:08.079 but with my once I graduated from college, with my job, 115 00:06:09.439 --> 00:06:14.199 I had a lot of international activity associated with my job, 116 00:06:14.240 --> 00:06:17.360 and so I got to travel fair amount, and of 117 00:06:17.360 --> 00:06:20.480 course wine and dinner became a part of my life 118 00:06:20.519 --> 00:06:23.839 and I got to experience a lot of absolutely wonderful 119 00:06:23.839 --> 00:06:27.199 wines over the years. My wife and I went out 120 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:31.879 a cruise and the Somalie on board the cruise ship 121 00:06:33.519 --> 00:06:36.600 noted that we tended to like some pretty nice wines, 122 00:06:36.759 --> 00:06:40.040 and he came up to us and said, Okay, tomorrow 123 00:06:40.199 --> 00:06:42.240 is your last day for dinner on the cruise ship. 124 00:06:42.399 --> 00:06:44.720 When you come to the dining room, do not get seated. 125 00:06:45.360 --> 00:06:48.439 Ask for me. And we said okay, and we came 126 00:06:48.480 --> 00:06:51.240 in and there he had a separate little table set 127 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:55.600 aside with a decanter on it, and he introduced us 128 00:06:55.600 --> 00:06:59.879 to Sassakaia. Okay, and that was just a lovely wine. 129 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:04.720 And we kind of still enjoy the glass of Sasakaia 130 00:07:05.120 --> 00:07:06.120 to this state. 131 00:07:06.439 --> 00:07:09.519 With a very lovely memory associated with it. So it's 132 00:07:09.639 --> 00:07:13.680 that a lot of times that aha moment with wine 133 00:07:14.040 --> 00:07:15.920 is centered not just about what was in the glass, 134 00:07:15.959 --> 00:07:20.199 but the whole experience exactly. So if we were to 135 00:07:20.240 --> 00:07:23.079 come to your home, what kind of wines would we 136 00:07:23.120 --> 00:07:25.279 find in your house? Are you a collector of wine? 137 00:07:25.319 --> 00:07:30.199 Are there certain grapes you have or regions your own wines, 138 00:07:30.279 --> 00:07:33.160 local wines? What would we find in. 139 00:07:33.120 --> 00:07:37.800 Your house, sadly, almost anything, well. 140 00:07:37.600 --> 00:07:39.079 That's not sadly, that's exciting. 141 00:07:39.160 --> 00:07:43.959 Well, it's all relative, but we have a pretty broad 142 00:07:44.040 --> 00:07:49.360 range of wines because again, for us, wine is not 143 00:07:49.439 --> 00:07:53.240 just something that you see. It's a mood, it's an expression, 144 00:07:53.319 --> 00:07:56.040 it's the time of the day, what you're doing, who 145 00:07:56.079 --> 00:07:59.839 you're with, what you're eating. And so we pretty much 146 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:01.079 the spectrum covered. 147 00:08:01.879 --> 00:08:04.360 And is there anything you opened up recently that drank 148 00:08:04.399 --> 00:08:05.199 really well. 149 00:08:06.759 --> 00:08:11.120 Well, there are a few. So again we a friend 150 00:08:11.120 --> 00:08:13.399 of ours just had a birthday, so we bought a 151 00:08:13.439 --> 00:08:17.439 bottle of the Sassakaya for that. We also enjoyed a 152 00:08:17.480 --> 00:08:22.000 beautiful worn Alia just recently had a favely Jevre Chambertine 153 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:23.720 which was just exquisite. 154 00:08:23.879 --> 00:08:25.879 But do you know, do you know what vintage that 155 00:08:25.920 --> 00:08:26.480 family was. 156 00:08:27.000 --> 00:08:30.720 The family that we just had was a twenty nineteen. 157 00:08:32.399 --> 00:08:38.080 The Saskai was also in nineteen, The Ornelli was in eighteen. 158 00:08:40.480 --> 00:08:42.200 But the other thing is we opened up one of 159 00:08:42.240 --> 00:08:46.480 ours just recently with a group of friends, and which 160 00:08:46.519 --> 00:08:50.919 one was beautiful? It was our Dorado. It's a twenty 161 00:08:51.080 --> 00:08:55.639 twenty three Bordeaux blend, so it's fifty six percent. Is 162 00:08:55.639 --> 00:08:59.799 a field blend of petite Serah, I'm sorry I missed 163 00:08:59.799 --> 00:09:04.679 bo petite for dough cab franc and a mile back. 164 00:09:05.440 --> 00:09:09.240 Thirty percent is Caverny Sevignon, and then the remaining fourteen 165 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:10.320 percent is Marlowe. 166 00:09:10.519 --> 00:09:14.120 Wow, you drink a lot. I like that. I like that. 167 00:09:16.519 --> 00:09:21.799 So as someone who drinks a lot a broad diverse 168 00:09:22.039 --> 00:09:25.039 selection of wines from all over the world, as well 169 00:09:25.080 --> 00:09:29.360 as making what sixteen different wines here, do you think 170 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:31.360 there's a such thing as a perfect variety? 171 00:09:32.240 --> 00:09:37.919 I don't. Again, to me, it really ties into the 172 00:09:38.000 --> 00:09:41.399 moment man, who you're with, the foods, et cetera. 173 00:09:42.960 --> 00:09:46.879 And so as a wine drinker, I mean, you know 174 00:09:46.919 --> 00:09:49.519 you did talk Sasa Kay and Ornelia, But as a 175 00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:51.039 wine drinker, red whiteter Rose. 176 00:09:54.000 --> 00:10:00.360 Slight bias towards the reds, but again equal opportunity. There 177 00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:04.360 are certain days where a Rose said, no, this is 178 00:10:04.360 --> 00:10:07.159 what you're going to drink today. Yeah, the white said no, 179 00:10:07.360 --> 00:10:10.039 this is this will be perfect. And what we're sipping 180 00:10:10.120 --> 00:10:10.759 right now. 181 00:10:11.080 --> 00:10:15.600 Is a white because it's middle of the day, it's 182 00:10:15.639 --> 00:10:19.600 warm out. What more do you want? Absolutely, you're right, 183 00:10:19.679 --> 00:10:23.000 it's about place and time and space still are. 184 00:10:22.960 --> 00:10:29.879 Sparkling, sparkling goes with everything, and it's always a great, 185 00:10:30.399 --> 00:10:34.480 great thing to have. But I more steel than sparkling. 186 00:10:34.960 --> 00:10:39.360 Well, speaking about going with everything and about moods and times, 187 00:10:39.399 --> 00:10:41.720 a lot has to do with what you're eating. So 188 00:10:41.759 --> 00:10:44.559 how do you approach food and wine pairing? Do you 189 00:10:44.600 --> 00:10:47.200 follow rules? Do you think the old adage of white 190 00:10:47.200 --> 00:10:49.000 wine and fish, red wine and meat, or is there 191 00:10:49.000 --> 00:10:51.480 something else you look for in making the choices. 192 00:10:52.879 --> 00:10:55.759 I look more at the flavors and the flavor profiles. 193 00:10:57.840 --> 00:10:59.679 I look at the acid levels and the way I 194 00:10:59.679 --> 00:11:03.080 look at Christmas, take a look at the fattiness in 195 00:11:03.600 --> 00:11:06.279 the foods, what spices go with the foods, and then 196 00:11:06.320 --> 00:11:07.080 I go from there. 197 00:11:07.679 --> 00:11:10.279 So do you pick your food and then choose the 198 00:11:10.279 --> 00:11:12.240 wine or do you pick your wine and then decide 199 00:11:12.279 --> 00:11:13.720 the dish? 200 00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:17.679 Normally I picked the food first and then I'll choose 201 00:11:17.759 --> 00:11:19.960 a wine that I think goes best with it. There 202 00:11:20.000 --> 00:11:23.120 are exceptions where I said this is the one I read, 203 00:11:24.440 --> 00:11:26.320 But as a role, it's the food. 204 00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:31.639 First, okay. And can you offer an example. Let's say 205 00:11:31.679 --> 00:11:35.240 that you have, as you said, some spice in your dish. 206 00:11:35.279 --> 00:11:37.720 What would you be looking for in a wine as 207 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:38.759 a compliment to that? 208 00:11:40.039 --> 00:11:44.919 Well, if it was a very spicy as in hot 209 00:11:44.919 --> 00:11:48.360 spice dish. There, I would look for something that's a 210 00:11:48.399 --> 00:11:52.600 little cool er, a little crisper, so slightly higher acid 211 00:11:52.919 --> 00:11:56.120 just to help work with the spices. If it's a 212 00:11:56.240 --> 00:11:59.120 rounder spice there, I would look for a wine it 213 00:11:59.120 --> 00:12:01.799 would be able to stand up to the spice so 214 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:06.000 that it wouldn't be overpowered by the dish. So, for instance, 215 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:10.039 we make a zinfandel here that I call a Lasagna 216 00:12:10.080 --> 00:12:15.320 wine because lasagna is an old, rich food and this 217 00:12:15.399 --> 00:12:18.080 wine is not a whimpy wine. It'll stand up and 218 00:12:18.159 --> 00:12:22.120 hold its own with the wine, and the two work together. 219 00:12:22.759 --> 00:12:28.879 In more of a compliment to each other as opposed 220 00:12:28.919 --> 00:12:30.159 to a contrast to each other. 221 00:12:30.360 --> 00:12:33.759 That is correct. Yeah, for me, the perfect pairing is 222 00:12:33.799 --> 00:12:36.840 when both the food and the wine are enhanced by 223 00:12:36.879 --> 00:12:37.799 the other's presence. 224 00:12:38.159 --> 00:12:40.960 We all try to achieve that. That's what we work for. 225 00:12:41.080 --> 00:12:44.080 That's what we work for. So for somebody who hasn't 226 00:12:44.080 --> 00:12:47.440 had the pleasure to taste of royal sellers yet, what 227 00:12:47.480 --> 00:12:48.559 do you think they're missing out on? 228 00:12:50.840 --> 00:12:53.960 What they're missing out on is the beauty of the 229 00:12:54.039 --> 00:12:57.559 little more fruit the first. First off, The second thing 230 00:12:57.720 --> 00:13:00.639 is that we don't overwork. The wine. Fruit tells us 231 00:13:00.639 --> 00:13:05.039 what to do, and we want fruit to be the showcase, 232 00:13:05.200 --> 00:13:08.840 the centerpiece of the wine. So what you're getting here 233 00:13:09.000 --> 00:13:13.000 is you're getting a nice, clean wine, not overly oaked, 234 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:16.679 not overly worked, but something that is just a real 235 00:13:16.879 --> 00:13:20.559 beautiful representation of what that grape wants to be. 236 00:13:21.720 --> 00:13:24.360 So when we talk about what a grape wants to be, 237 00:13:24.399 --> 00:13:25.919 and you were mentioning that you don't think there's a 238 00:13:25.960 --> 00:13:28.399 such thing as a perfect variety. But as a wine maker, 239 00:13:28.799 --> 00:13:34.639 are you aspiring to achieve some level of perfection or scores? 240 00:13:34.679 --> 00:13:36.840 I mean, do wine critics and scores play a big 241 00:13:36.919 --> 00:13:39.360 role in what you do? Do you find them to 242 00:13:39.399 --> 00:13:41.159 be useful or what's your opinion? 243 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:46.679 That's another good question. What I tell people about wine 244 00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:50.759 critics is if you can find one that aligns with 245 00:13:50.840 --> 00:13:54.879 your taste, that's great because then you can use them 246 00:13:55.519 --> 00:13:58.080 to go out there and source a lot of different things. 247 00:13:59.279 --> 00:14:02.279 But you need to trial things. For me, the most 248 00:14:02.320 --> 00:14:06.120 important person and their opinion of the wine is the 249 00:14:06.120 --> 00:14:09.000 person sitting across from me as I'm pouring the glass 250 00:14:09.080 --> 00:14:17.200 for them. That that's probably the shortest answer I can 251 00:14:18.039 --> 00:14:26.320 But yeah, as far as again, not having a specific 252 00:14:26.840 --> 00:14:30.960 variety in mind, is we're doing things. The short answer 253 00:14:31.000 --> 00:14:34.480 there is yes, I'm trying to achieve perfection for every 254 00:14:34.519 --> 00:14:37.639 wine that we make. What we do when we work 255 00:14:37.679 --> 00:14:39.759 on the blending, so we do a lot of blends. 256 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:44.279 There's the occasion where you'll taste something by itself and 257 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:48.279 you'll say, Okay, I'm not gonna mess with this. It's 258 00:14:48.320 --> 00:14:52.120 just exactly what it needs to be. But the majority 259 00:14:52.200 --> 00:14:55.000 of what we do are blends, and well, we're tasting 260 00:14:55.039 --> 00:14:57.879 the wine. We're we're not tasting the wine as a 261 00:14:57.960 --> 00:15:01.360 regular taste. We're looking for the holes, the gaps. Okay, 262 00:15:01.399 --> 00:15:05.840 I like it, but it would be even better. And 263 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:07.840 that's why we have a range of wines that we 264 00:15:07.919 --> 00:15:11.279 play with, because then we'll say, Okay, maybe a little 265 00:15:11.320 --> 00:15:14.720 bit of this will help to plug that hole. And 266 00:15:16.039 --> 00:15:20.679 to me, that's the best part of being a wine 267 00:15:20.679 --> 00:15:24.639 maker is having that opportunity and seeing how the grapes 268 00:15:24.720 --> 00:15:25.679 want to play together. 269 00:15:25.799 --> 00:15:27.879 Yeah, well that's the beauty of what a blend is. 270 00:15:28.399 --> 00:15:31.879 You know, varieties are beautiful on their own, and like 271 00:15:31.919 --> 00:15:34.000 you said, when one is great, they're great, but there 272 00:15:34.039 --> 00:15:37.200 is something really beautiful about finding how they can work 273 00:15:37.240 --> 00:15:41.480 with each other. So, if space aliens were to land 274 00:15:42.120 --> 00:15:43.879 in your parking lot out there and come knock on 275 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:47.200 your door, which of your wines, of all your sixteen wines, 276 00:15:47.240 --> 00:15:49.360 would you say, Welcome to royal sellers. 277 00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:53.960 I would start them with the white blend, the liver More. 278 00:15:54.320 --> 00:15:56.039 It's aptly named too. 279 00:15:56.879 --> 00:16:01.039 Yeah, it's well, it's a wine helped to put Livermore 280 00:16:01.120 --> 00:16:05.799 on the map. I was back and the eighteen eighties, 281 00:16:07.159 --> 00:16:10.879 a blend of Savinium bulk and semon was actually entered 282 00:16:10.919 --> 00:16:14.639 into the Paras Exhibition and it did quite well. It 283 00:16:14.759 --> 00:16:20.120 won best of class, okay, and. 284 00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:21.159 Against a classic four Jeau white, which is a blend 285 00:16:21.159 --> 00:16:24.960 of Samnil blanc and semione. Right, okay, So yeah, we've 286 00:16:24.960 --> 00:16:27.240 got that here. So I guess I'm a space alien. 287 00:16:27.320 --> 00:16:29.759 I got welcomed with and you call it the Livermore White. 288 00:16:29.960 --> 00:16:33.559 I call it Livermore Livermore. So welcome to Livermore with 289 00:16:33.600 --> 00:16:35.799 a glass of Livermore. It's perfect. I love it. I 290 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:39.960 love it. So you're sourcing fruit from lots of different vineyards, 291 00:16:40.440 --> 00:16:42.039 do you spend a lot of time in the vineyards. 292 00:16:43.240 --> 00:16:48.240 We have developed relationships with the growers over the years. Yes, 293 00:16:48.279 --> 00:16:51.799 we've had the opportunity to walk the vineyards discuss them. 294 00:16:52.240 --> 00:16:56.039 There's a level of trust also that that's been established. 295 00:16:56.039 --> 00:17:01.000 So when the growers say, you know, it would be 296 00:17:01.000 --> 00:17:04.279 a good time to pick around now, we tend to 297 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:07.160 believe them. That doesn't mean that we won't go and 298 00:17:07.240 --> 00:17:10.240 walk them in your your sample and taste. But it's 299 00:17:10.400 --> 00:17:14.119 really more of, let's say, a cooperation of partnership with 300 00:17:14.240 --> 00:17:19.079 the growers than one telling the other one to do and. 301 00:17:20.960 --> 00:17:26.000 With your you said you started this. You started making 302 00:17:26.000 --> 00:17:30.640 a royal seller's wines in twenty eighteen, or you had 303 00:17:30.640 --> 00:17:32.319 the storage and then the wine came a little later. 304 00:17:33.119 --> 00:17:34.920 Twenty eighteen was about right, twenty eighteen. 305 00:17:35.119 --> 00:17:38.680 But you were a partner in another winery you using 306 00:17:38.720 --> 00:17:41.240 livermore fruit, and were you the wine maker for that 307 00:17:41.279 --> 00:17:42.359 winery as well. 308 00:17:43.200 --> 00:17:45.319 The other wine maker. There's two of us as part 309 00:17:45.319 --> 00:17:48.119 the wine maker team here. So Tim Sauer was the 310 00:17:48.160 --> 00:17:50.480 primary wine maker at the other place, and I helped 311 00:17:50.519 --> 00:17:53.680 him out. That's actually how I got involved in the 312 00:17:53.680 --> 00:17:57.039 wine industry in the first place, was through a friendship 313 00:17:57.079 --> 00:18:01.880 with Tim. So I've been playing with making wines now 314 00:18:02.000 --> 00:18:06.440 for twenty five some odd years. Kim's got over thirty 315 00:18:06.480 --> 00:18:07.200 some odd years. 316 00:18:07.279 --> 00:18:10.400 Okay, so for twenty five years, even though you're not 317 00:18:10.440 --> 00:18:13.079 in the vineyard every single day, you know, you've been 318 00:18:13.119 --> 00:18:16.039 making wine twenty five vintages. And I'm curious, in a 319 00:18:16.079 --> 00:18:18.279 place like Livermore Value, do you see a lot of 320 00:18:18.319 --> 00:18:20.400 consistency from year to year? Do you see a lot 321 00:18:20.400 --> 00:18:23.000 of vintage variation? I mean, we know every vintage sells 322 00:18:23.000 --> 00:18:26.200 a different story, but are the differences from one year 323 00:18:26.240 --> 00:18:28.920 to another more similar or more different? 324 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:34.400 It's recently consistent. I mean, there are obviously big differences 325 00:18:34.839 --> 00:18:38.960 in the weather every once in a while, so some 326 00:18:39.119 --> 00:18:44.039 vintages will just absolutely stand out, and then others they 327 00:18:44.039 --> 00:18:47.319 get impacted by other environmental aspects. We had a lot 328 00:18:47.359 --> 00:18:51.720 of wildfires in a twenty twenty time frame, and so 329 00:18:52.200 --> 00:18:54.920 there were concerns over what was going on in that 330 00:18:55.039 --> 00:19:01.839 time frame, and you know, passion follow on that year. 331 00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:04.920 We were a little more selecting what we bought, and 332 00:19:04.960 --> 00:19:08.480 we had to modify the winemaking process to try to 333 00:19:08.519 --> 00:19:12.599 minimize the influence of smoke tank on the lines. But 334 00:19:13.240 --> 00:19:18.480 you take those anomalies out of the situation and the 335 00:19:18.519 --> 00:19:22.519 living more fruits are reasonably consistent. At least that's our experience. 336 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:25.440 And as a team because you are a group of 337 00:19:25.839 --> 00:19:29.599 ten friends. Do you guys have any sort of traditions 338 00:19:29.640 --> 00:19:32.160 that you do each year at the start of harvest 339 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:36.400 or during harvest, that's you know, any sort of annual 340 00:19:37.440 --> 00:19:41.920 toasts or random funny things we do. 341 00:19:42.359 --> 00:19:46.680 Actually, we do a lot during the course of the 342 00:19:46.759 --> 00:19:51.240 year as grips. For instance, we do a lot of 343 00:19:51.279 --> 00:19:59.119 holidays together and one family will pretty much do the Easter. 344 00:19:59.319 --> 00:20:01.240 Some of you will get Fourth of July someone, or 345 00:20:01.359 --> 00:20:03.960 do Christmas someone, or do Thanksgiving, and we rotate around 346 00:20:03.960 --> 00:20:08.440 for that. Bottling is another opportunity where we all just 347 00:20:08.480 --> 00:20:13.000 get together and enjoy the day. It's a very active day. 348 00:20:13.160 --> 00:20:18.000 But any good luck rituals not really. No no toes, noah, 349 00:20:18.079 --> 00:20:19.079 lucky socks, noo. 350 00:20:21.599 --> 00:20:25.359 There's always toast. But there's more humor than anything else. 351 00:20:26.160 --> 00:20:27.920 You got to keep laughing. It's a lot of work, 352 00:20:28.000 --> 00:20:31.039 so you got to laugh through it, absolutely. And I 353 00:20:31.119 --> 00:20:34.160 like to hear that because with ten personalities, you know 354 00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:37.079 that could be a challenge and it's better to laugh 355 00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:37.720 than to yell. 356 00:20:38.119 --> 00:20:38.880 That is correct. 357 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:43.839 So once the wines come into your cellar, that's when 358 00:20:43.839 --> 00:20:46.640 they're in your domain. Now these are your babies. You 359 00:20:46.720 --> 00:20:50.640 may not be as intimately familiar with the vines on 360 00:20:50.680 --> 00:20:53.519 a personal basis, but you are intimately familiar with every 361 00:20:53.559 --> 00:20:57.279 single barrel intaate. What is that kind of relationship with 362 00:20:57.400 --> 00:20:59.720 Do you talk to them? Do you yell at the gwind? 363 00:20:59.920 --> 00:21:03.480 You coax it along? Does it talk to you? 364 00:21:04.559 --> 00:21:09.599 I never yell at goin, That would be bad. But yes, 365 00:21:10.359 --> 00:21:13.960 we will chat, we'll talk, will happen. Music playing often 366 00:21:14.079 --> 00:21:19.640 in the background, and yes, the wine does talk to 367 00:21:19.759 --> 00:21:25.079 us on a constant basis. We tend not to disturb 368 00:21:25.519 --> 00:21:29.160 the wine a lot, but we will of course be 369 00:21:29.799 --> 00:21:32.440 checking it on a rinking basis, and it lets us 370 00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:34.000 know what it wants to do. 371 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:39.640 And you don't yell it because you don't want it 372 00:21:39.680 --> 00:21:43.559 to be temperamental and misbehave. But do you find that 373 00:21:43.640 --> 00:21:47.400 playing music alters the wine at all? Does it affect 374 00:21:47.400 --> 00:21:49.079 the wine or is that more for your own moods? 375 00:21:49.200 --> 00:21:52.440 I think it affects us more than it does the wine. 376 00:21:52.160 --> 00:21:57.119 But as I said earlier in the discussion, when I 377 00:21:57.160 --> 00:22:00.799 taste the wine, it's more the mood the day, the 378 00:22:00.920 --> 00:22:04.680 time was going on around, And as a consequence, I 379 00:22:04.680 --> 00:22:08.039 think that it actually helps us in our approach in 380 00:22:08.119 --> 00:22:09.880 working with the wine. 381 00:22:10.359 --> 00:22:12.160 So when you were a little boy, what did you 382 00:22:12.200 --> 00:22:15.039 want to be when you grew up? Was winemaker always 383 00:22:15.039 --> 00:22:17.680 a dream in the back of your mind or did 384 00:22:17.720 --> 00:22:18.920 you have other fantasies? 385 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:25.559 Wine making was nowhere at all in the thought process 386 00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:32.920 for well easily the first thirty plus years of my life. 387 00:22:34.039 --> 00:22:39.759 Wine drinking, yes, that was definitely involved, but no, my 388 00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:43.960 career choice. I'm an engineer, and that was what I 389 00:22:44.160 --> 00:22:45.920 really wanted to be. 390 00:22:46.599 --> 00:22:51.240 The scientific mind, yeah, sadly, well, there's some there's a 391 00:22:51.240 --> 00:22:53.920 lot of science and wine. So that's probably what draws 392 00:22:54.400 --> 00:22:55.680 you even more into it. 393 00:22:55.720 --> 00:23:01.200 And that will could be although I would say that 394 00:23:01.279 --> 00:23:05.279 what I bring to the party here with my partner Tim, 395 00:23:05.480 --> 00:23:10.000 is more of the art side, the blending part of it. 396 00:23:10.200 --> 00:23:14.440 Tim is much more knowledgeable on the science of winemaking, 397 00:23:15.880 --> 00:23:17.960 and so I think as a consequence, I think we 398 00:23:18.039 --> 00:23:22.680 can actually compliment each other very well. Our tastes are 399 00:23:22.880 --> 00:23:23.599 very similar. 400 00:23:23.799 --> 00:23:27.480 I love that. That's wonderful. So when you're not working, 401 00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:31.680