Wine and I became formally acquainted in 2002. I was working at a country club, as a waiter just outside my hometown of Sanger, CA. This palace was my introduction to the world of wine and fine dining. Growing up we lived much more simply. Sun tea was about as exotic as it got in my household. (BTW, I still love sun tea). One slow night at the country club I was chatting with the bartender, talking about various drinks and then wine came up. I told him I had never tried a wine not called thunderbird. Appalled, he insisted that I give it a try. A house Cab, the brand escapes me. I remember liking it. He then poured me a taste of something different. It was then I asked a question that, at the time, I didn’t realize would snowball into a level of curiosity that would set the course for my life going forward. That question was “what makes them different?” He graciously went over the variables that define one wine versus another and I became obsessed. There I was 19 years old, in awe at the wine wall at the grocery store wondering all about all the wines in front of me. Could all of these wines be different?
As my interest and knowledge grew I knew that this is the world I wanted to belong in. Shortly after my 21st birthday I moved to Saratoga Springs in upstate New York. I immediately sought out the local wine shops. The second place I walked into offered me a job, and without hesitation I accepted. More excited about the employee discount than the paycheck. Getting a crash course in wine retail and what it meant to be a wine buyer. A roll that fell into my lap not long after I started there. It blew me away at 21 years old that my job was to try wines and say yes or no. I learned so much so fast and met amazing people that shared my passion.
After a year or so two things hit me. What more is there for me in the Wine Industry? And that I missed California. I began to explore what kind of options in wine were out there. With my experience, I figured maybe becoming a sommelier and running a wine program somewhere. But that never set right with me. One day one of my sales reps that I had become friends with asked me randomly. What’s next for me? Mind you he had no idea that I was exploring options back in California. He asked if I had ever considered making wine? I didn't even consider that to be an option, but when he asked it I felt as if the lights just turned on in my head. I decided right then and there that this is what I am moving back to California to do.
Growing up 2 hours away, I always felt a connection to the Central Coast. So when I began exploring the various winegrowing areas in California, Paso Robles felt like the most obvious place to dig in my toes. Upon visiting and exploring this place with considering it to be my new home, I received validation almost immediately. I stopped into taste at a small place called Dover Canyon. I began chatting with Mary, and in conversation I mentioned I’m hoping to move to the area to pursue winemaking. She offered me a tasting room job on the spot and I accepted. I was employed at a small family winery in the region where I wanted to be. I was wide eyed and filled with enthusiasm. The next step was to find a place to live.
Once I settled into the area I knew that I wasn’t going anywhere and that I wanted to start my own label. My first vintage in Paso Robles was 2006. I was working in the tasting room at Dover Canyon. Helping out with harvest there and was also the harvest intern at Norman Winery just down Vineyard Drive. That was also the year that I began my journey into starting a project of my own. It all started with a ton of Syrah. At this point I figured it would be a few years before I would get to this point of making my own wine, but I have never been the type to turn down an opportunity. I was offered a ton of Syrah from my boss, he knew what my goals were. I accepted and this was to be the first release of Nelle Winery.
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