You’ve heard of craft beer, but what about craft wine?  It’s sort of the same thing, producers outside of the main stream, doing what they love, making wine from their heart and soul.  It’s another level of winemaking, beyond artisan or boutique.  The beauty of craft wine is its authenticity, a singular focus and uniqueness that sets that wine apart from the crowd.  These wines speak of a winemaker’s interpretation of that very specific place, and not a copycat version of what some think it should be.

So what qualifies as craft wine?  Small production, hand-made wines that are distinctly American, translating to uniquely American expressions of classic grapes and blends.  While wines can often be compared to similar wines from across the globe, craft wines think outside the box, creating wine that follow’s the producer’s expression of what they think it can be, from their special vineyards.  For example, Nebbiolo is renowned for its Italian roots, with a very distinctive profile, but Nebbiolo in California will be different, good in its own way.

Craft wines actually carry a designation, issued by the Craft Wine Association.  These small wineries need help in getting their message out, and assistance in developing a consumer marketplace to make their wines more available.  Craftwine.org provides a portal to sell these wines, along with industry partnerships, events, and social media buzz.  On NxtCrush, small production wineries can operate just like on their own website, receiving all the proceeds of the transactions, with the added benefit of being more visible to the wine drinking public.

I had the opportunity to explore two craft wineries through a virtual tasting, organized with the assistance of Carole Lawson, head of the Craft Wine Association.  It was a great comparison, one from Northern California’s Humboldt County (Terragena Vineyard), and the other from Southern California’s Ramona Valley (La Finquita Winery).  Comparing the cool climate varietals of Riesling and Nebbiolo, versus the warm climate grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petit Verdot, and Mourvedre, there was a faint resemblance to the European varietal wines, but different in a way that they had their own style and character.

Courtesy of Terragena Vineyard

Terragena Vineyard, meaning “born of the earth”, is literally a small winery on a mountain in the forests of Humboldt County.  Christopher Buchanan, driven by a dream, is a true trailblazer in this region.  In 2008, Buchanan moved from New Orleans to this undeveloped land, and created everything from scratch.  It’s an amazing journey, he cleared the land, and lived in a yurt while spending the next several years building out the winery operation, designing off the grid water and solar power to sustain his vision, including a 1,000,000 gallon pond that collects rainwater which he uses to irrigate his vines during the growing season.  Then in 2013, Buchanan planted his two acre vineyard to Pinot Noir, 17 different clones in a grand laboratory experiment.  He also sources fruit from six other small grower vineyards, who are as committed to his sustainable vision as he is. Total production is small, with up to 20 different wines making up the 1,000 cases.

Buchanan puts his heart and soul into every bottle, believing that “quality is more important than varietal purity”.  He experiments with clones, oak treatments, and other winegrowing and winemaking techniques.  All the bottles are numbered, reflecting their hands-on production.  Each vintage has a different expression, a testament to what Mother Nature gave him that year.  And then there is the inherent differences in wine grape varietals, as Buchanan says, “Nebbiolo is like an opera singer, Pinot Noir is like a ballet dancer.”   He changes out his lineup, experimenting with different bottlings, and winemaking techniques, like skin contact.  In any case, Terragena is off the grid, but in the groove, committed to crafting wine that speaks of the vineyard’s special place.

Terragena Riesling 2018 Wiley Vineyard Anderson Valley (SRP $39) - a racy, aromatic, dry Riesling field blend of 92% Riesling and 8% Muscat delights with a rich mouthfeel.  Floral and citrus notes usher in stone fruit and green apple flavors, with a chalky mineral spine, all the while constantly evolving in the glass.  This Riesling is pure in its aromatics and flavor, fermented in neutral oak and stainless steel.  Fruit from this 45-year-old vineyard enjoy a long, cool growing season, and this hang time is expressed in the wine.  Delicious by the glass or a good pair with sushi and seafood.

Terragena Nebbiolo 2017 Lost Coast’s Dragon Vineyard (SRP $49) - in the glass, the beautiful transparent red color is classic Nebbiolo, but one swirl, and it’s very different.  Notes of strawberry, vanilla, and mesquite waft atop red fruit flavors, a bright vivid wine that has its own style.  The Dragon Vineyard has one of the few plantings of Nebbiolo in California, which is notoriously a difficult grape to grow, but makes elegant wines.

La Finquita Winery and Vineyard, meaning “the little farm”, is a dream come true for Charlie and Jess Koehler.  Smitten with wine after a trip to Julian and the Ramona Valley in 2008, Charlie and Jess moved to Ramona and immersed themselves in winemaking, working at local wineries to gain knowledge and experience.  Then, in 2013, they purchased La Finquita Winery & Vineyards, and embarked on their pursuit of making wine they love.  In their estate vineyard, the Koehlers grow Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, and Syrah.  La Finquita also works with other select local vineyards to obtain the fruit for other wines in their portfolio.

Making over a dozen wines, from bubbly to dessert, Jess Koehler defines their business as “A Modern Romance of Wine”.  Their wines are “lovingly handcrafted from vineyard to glass and every step in between”, looking to blend traditional winemaking techniques and taking creative license, offering innovative wines that can appeal to everyone.

La Finquita Puppy Kisses 2018 (SRP $30)- light and refreshing, this low alcohol Chardonnay from the South Coast AVA has yellow apple, pomelo, pineapple, and lime zest notes.  Made entirely in stainless steel, it is a good thirst quencher on a hot day or pairs well with shellfish, pork, fish, or pasta with a cream sauce.  This is one of La Finquita’s charity bottles, where $2 from each bottle sold goes to the Frosted Faces Foundation, a local elderly dog rescue organization.

La Finquita Mourvedre 2016 (SRP $30) - this lower alcohol version of a classically big wine offers aromas of tobacco, blackberry, and pepper, alongside flavors of black cherry, black currant, red plum, and blueberry.  Soft tannins and a light smokiness infuse the wine, lending it to food pairings such as charcuterie, grilled cheese, or chicken in a rich sauce.

Part of the joy of drinking wine is finding something different, an undiscovered gem to be shared.  Craft wine definitely fills that niche.  Gaining traction in the US, the Craft Wine Association has almost 50 winery members, this is a movement to help support the small independent wineries in creative ways, and get the word out.  Winemaking is a labor of love, and craft wines come from the heart and soul, authentic and unique.