En Cavale Wine, North Coast, California
Appellations: Contra Costa County, North Coast, Mendocino, Calaveras County
Varieties: Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel, Vermentino, Sangiovese
Production: 1,000 cases per year
En Cavale Wine was started in 2017 by Wolfgang Weber and Chad Westbrook Hinds as a way to re-examine classic west coast grape varieties like sauvignon blanc and zinfandel through the prism of natural winemaking. That lineup now includes the Italo-Mediterranean stalwarts vermentino and sangiovese, as well as the occasional experimental release.
As they put it, “we work with vineyards farmed according to natural and organic principles in slightly out of the way places with deep and weird geological histories; the Mt. Diablo-California Delta triangle and the limestone escarpments of Calaveras are as freaky as any terroir in California!”
At the winery Chad and Wolfgang attempt to capture a sense of those special places through naturally minded winemaking, which here means no additives or inoculations, and not taking anything away from what the wine and vintage have to say. They typically add minimally-effective sulfur several weeks before bottling, but that’s it. En Cavale believes natural wines of real character should be accessible and affordable to anybody who seeks them out, and not rarities shared only by a chosen few.