frequently asked questions

what ingredients are in your wines?

organic grapes and added sulfites (SO2) of 20-30 parts per million, except in extreme cases where it is necessary to add more sulfites to control a potential form of spoilage. every couple years there is a wine that needs 45-ish ppm to be its best self (imho).
except for in one or two wines per year, i don’t add sulfites at all until the week before bottling. no other additives are ever used. filtration of any kind is never used. temperature control is never used.

why do you add so2/sulfites?

in the majority of instances, i am adding sulfites simply because i do not want the wines to be mousy. i work so hard to make these wines, and the last thing i want is for them to be unenjoyable when they are finally finished. i’m not willing to jeopardize that for both financial and organoleptic reasons.
in rare cases, i add sulfites to the wines during élevage because of the presence of Brettanomyces or volatile acidity. to be clear: i do not mind a bit of either of these so-called “faults” in the wines—in fact, i welcome them in small quantities—but i do not want them to be out of control.

do you farm any of your vineyards?

yes! i co-farm a 2 acre vineyard with the owner called Makjavich (say: Mack-uh-vich) Vineyard. this is where i spend most of my time during the growing season (april-june). obviously i do not own any land (lol) because this is California, i’m 30ish years old, and my family isn’t $$$.
i buy from 8-10 additional vineyards, depending on the year. i do not farm more vineyards because i am only one person with two hands and very little financial capital. i do not have a tractor or any other large vineyard equipment that would make farming more acreage as one person even remotely possible. another crucial thing i am lacking is workers, which—for the pay rate i think is appropriate—would be a lot more expensive than a tractor. one day, maybe!