Introduction

Welcome,

Through this blog I hope to share some insight into the day to day operations of Thomas Fogarty Winery. Over the next few weeks I'll introduce you to the staff here at the winery and show you how and why we do the things we do.

My name is Nathan Kandler, I am the Associate Winemaker here at Thomas Fogarty Winery. I manage the cellar and laboratory and work with our Winemaker, Michael Martella, on all winemaking decisions and tending our vineyards.

We are a Family-owned winery located in the northern reaches of the Santa Cruz Mountains appellation. We produce about 15,000 cases of wine a year annually. We have a tasting room that is open Wednesday thru Sunday from 11 AM to 5 PM. The tasting room is a great way to get to know our wines as we usually pouring upwards of 10 wines a day, often wines that are not available anywhere else.

We farm two vineyards up here in the mountains. Our home ranch, where the winery is located, is planted to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It is the cooler of the two sites and has shallow loamy soils over ancient marine deposits. Gist Ranch, some 20 miles south-west of the winery, is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and small blocks of Malbec, Syrah, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris. Gist ranch’s soils are fractured sandstone and it is much warmer than the home vineyard.

We’ll talk more about the individual vineyards, and even the blocks within these vineyards later. These micro-parcels of vines are the key to the individuality and character inherent in our wines.