The night before I’d been to a renowned restaurant that listed Stolpman Vineyards on their wine list, so I thought I’d pay them a visit at their outdoor tasting room in lovely Los Olivos, California – a small town with many dozens of winetasting options.

Owner Peter Stolpman, values his long-standing crew members, so dedicates several of his wines to them. For example, the rosé being tasted was the “Para Maria” with half of the profits going to his employee of 20 years.  There was also a red blend – Syrah, Sangiovese and Grenache – called “La Cuadrilla” in honour of the farming team/crew. 

At least 10% of the vineyard’s production goes into the blend. The profits are returned to the crew members, divided by seniority, in the form of both a year-end bonus as well as weekly bonuses on each paycheck.

The big year-end bonus allows crew members to add to their savings, while the weekly bonus increases the quality of everyday life for La Cuadrilla and their families. I’ve never seen this kind of profit sharing with vineyard workers, so was quite intrigued.

La Cuadrilla tends their dry farmed, estate grown grapes by hand only – no tractors or heavy machinery are used.  And the fermentations are all spontaneous and indigenous with no inoculations or other additions.  

I enjoyed my outdoor tasting with Lisa (US$20) and bought a bottle of their ‘Uni’ – a mostly Roussanne and 30% Chardonnay white blend with a herbal palate and nose of honey, acacia, pineapple, and nettle.  Acidity is high on this wine and it is marketed to local Japanese restaurants – hence the sea urchin name and theme.

Definitely worthy of a visit (make a reservation online) if you’re in the Solvang-Buellton area.