How did you get to be a wine maker, what was the path that led you there?

I came to wine by working in the hospitality as a young man, working in restaurant, and I realized early on that the job that what I liked best in the restaurant was the wine director. They got to come in late, they got to leave early, they got to drink wine all night, and I thought: that’s a really good job! That’s what attracted me to wine first. After many years of doing different things, after living in Denmark for ten years, I had the opportunity to come back to America and make wine, and I just decided to just do it. And I did it!

What is a challenge you’ve met in your early wine making career that you managed to overcome?

The fact that I had no formal wine making training. I never went to a wine making school, I had never worked at another winery. I was able to overcome that by realizing what I know, and not worry about what I don’t know. So simply taking all the knowledge that I accumulated and being able to apply it. Just trusting that I have the confidence to make wine, in a traditional manner, like it’s been made throughout history.

What is the genesis of Substance? How did you get the idea of the concept? What did you want to encompass in it?

Substance is a bold statement that the wine is a wine of integrity, quality, and honesty. We farm with no chemicals, with native ferment. It’s wine in its most true form. Wine of substance stands for Quality. It began as an idea more than 15 years ago. Overtime it was developed and put in a way to communicate the language of wine. Most people don’t speak wine. In the US we are not a wine culture as a country, but many people enjoy it. So using a language that people can recognize, pronounce, and remember, It’s way to provide access to my wine. People recognize the periodic table, it feels familiar, comfortable, it picks the curiosity.

What is the thing you’re the proudest of as a wine maker?

I’ve had many accolades, and I’m fortunate that my wine sells around the world, but the thing I’m the proudest of, is that I’ve been able to make wines that are affordable with purity and integrity for everyone to drink. I think everybody should have access to good wine no matter how much money they have. I take the skill set that I have and the inspiration to the very high end, and I apply it with the same noncompromising stance, for a modest price or a higher price, with the same integrity.

Can you tell us a funny anecdote you have lived as a wine maker?

I’ve doing this for 25 years now! The first 15 years, I foot crushed all my small batch red wine, bare footed. It was so incredibly cold in my open top fermenters! After 15 years of doing it, I realized I could have put aqua socks, but I didn’t know they existed. I’ve been doing wine in the most old-school and traditional manner, but my feet did not need to be cold for 15 years! In my heart I felt that this is what I needed to do to make the best absolutewine possible, and I so I did it! I always felt that commitment to what I do.

What final words/message would you have to conclude this interview?

The most important is that wine should be pleasant to drink, balanced. I make the wine for the people, and I think people like the wine that I make for them!

Discover more about K Vintners wines