The People of Lodi Wine
Around Here, the Grape Doesn’t Fall Far From the Vine.
It’s not uncommon here to meet someone who learned to farm grapes or to make wine from their father or perhaps even their mother, who, in turn, learned from their father or mother; who, in turn—well, you get the point. But the point of the point is this: there’s a lot of knowledge passed from one generation to the next that finds its way into every bottle of wine produced here. One taste and you’ll know, too.
The Legend of Owl Box Tom
Listen, do you hear that? Neither does that rodent about to fall prey to that fast approaching barn owl. It was this stealthy observation that inspired Tom Hoffman to build himself some owl boxes and put them up all around his family’s fourth generation vineyard. You see, rodents eat the roots and owls eat the rodents and—well, Tom figured letting nature take its course was a far healthier pest control solution than letting some chemical do it; an idea that quickly had Tom filling owl box orders from vineyards far and wide. It’s this kind of out of the box thinking—the desire to farm in a way that is environmentally and socially responsible—that eventually led to the creation of Lodi Rules. With continuous input from farmers, scientists and environmentalists, Lodi Rules has become the most comprehensive (and most copied) sustainable winegrowing program in America. Why, everyone from winegrape growers to winemakers to wine drinkers is singing its praises. As for the owls, they’re staying silent. And that’s a good thing. A very good thing indeed.
The True Story of the Crazy Man in Der Weinberg
(Or, how Lodi came to grow the largest collection of German varietals outside Deutschland.)
One sip of Riesling in Mainz was all it took to hook Bob Koth into thinking he could grow German varietals back home in Lodi. Of course everyone thought he was nuts. But here it is going on forty years now and what Bob, his wife Mary Lou, and their two adult children have accomplished is nothing short of remarkable: 15 acres of nothing but German and Austrian varieties, many of which experts said could never, would never, flourish anywhere but their Motherlands. Yet here they grow, 51 different varieties, and come harvest you’ll find trucks loading up on Kerner and Dornfelder and Gelber Muskateller; trucks from wineries in Napa and Sonoma and Healdsburg—not to mention quite a few from right here in Lodi—all clamoring for what Bob calls his “laughing stock.” Funny how a little conviction and a lot of hard work pays off. Then again, Bob’s really no different from any other winegrape grower around here. Okay, maybe he can pronounce a few names others can’t, but the hard work and conviction part—that’s pretty much standard operating procedure around here. And has been for over five generations.
Our Growers & Winemakers
From multi-generational growers to new wave winemakers; what sets Lodi apart are the people. A rising tide lifts all boats is the motto around here, where knowledge flows freely and a helping hand is always at the ready – even if only to pour you another great sampling of a fine Lodi wine.
