Wine

Friday, Jun. 06, 2008

Wine Notes: Wine veteran is back at work

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Just a little more than six years ago, Steve Goldman was facing the laid-back life of a retired winemaker.

He and his father, Max, just sold their historic winery — York Mountain Winery.

Although he retained a small part of the property to someday develop on his own, his only real plan was to make a few hundred cases of wine a year and to do some consulting on the side.

That plan changed in August 2002, after he met and married his wife, Lori, and welcomed son Max into the world the following May.

“Now what I have going here is a ‘semi-retirement’ project,” Goldman says with some humor, adding, “Now I’m working to get Max through college in the next 15 years or so.”

So today, at 61, Goldman is growing his brand Stephen’s Cellar beyond the “garage winery” he had initially anticipated.

And with a focus on pinot noir—a grape that flourishes in the unique terroir and microclimate of York Mountain —he is gaining recognition and awards from wine competitions and critics across the state.

Goldman and his father were pioneers in Paso Robles wine country. They bought the York Mountain Winery from the York family in the early 1970s.

The winery was established in 1882 and was in serious disrepair when they purchased it.

“That was a project,” Goldman said.

Everything including the building, vineyards and equipment needed work.

They basically rebuilt the winery and ran it for 30 years, until the county mandated earthquake safety retrofitting and they couldn’t absorb the $2 million cost.

During the course of those 30 years, Goldman and his father established York Mountain as a separate American Viticulture Area, distinguishing it from the warmer-climate Paso Robles area.

The York Mountain area is small—30 square miles —and today is home to about three other wineries.

At an elevation of about 1,200 feet, and 7 miles from the ocean, the vineyards there are influenced by cool maritime breezes and daytime temperatures are generally as much as 20 degrees cooler than the east side of Paso Robles.

Goldman started his Stephen’s label in 1994 with just six barrels of pinot noir.

He produced a small amount of the wine every year on the side, until 2002, when he planted his own small vineyard on the property he kept from the sale and he developed long-term contracts with several neighboring vineyards to provide fruit to him.

Today he’s producing about 2,500 cases a year — mostly of pinot noir, with a small amount of chardonnay and a Bordeaux blend he calls Claret.

The grapes include 20-to 30-year-old vines from the Carver, William Cain, MacBride and Laughney vineyards, as well as newer vineyards including the Encell, Stomsoe and Moore vineyards.

Almost all of his wines are vineyard designated.

He shares a tasting room on Highway 46 West with Lone Madrone and Sycamore Herb Gardens and is distributed in seven states. But Stephen’s Cellar is essentially just a two-person operation.

Lori, who worked for the Paso Robles Vintners and Growers Association for eight years, does all the bookwork and distribution coordination, and Steve manages the vineyards and the winery, and makes the wine.

Recent awards include Double Gold and Best of Class at the San Francisco Wine Competition for his 2005 Moore Vineyard Pinot Noir, and a gold medal for his 2004 Encell Vineyard Pinot Noir at the International Pinot Noir Summit.

In 1997, Goldman was named Winemaker of the Year by the Central Coast Wine Growers’ Association.

His goal these days are modest: “Just to make a little wine, keep myself busy, and try to make some money for Max’s education.” Asked about future growth, Goldman is cautious.

“Three thousand cases is my maximum,” he said. “It’s the capacity of the winery, and I hope I never get there.”