HONIG – THE WINERY THAT RUNS ON THE SUN
I took on the Wine Director job to become involved in a very worthwhile charitable endeavor. When it comes to sick kids, we should all do as much as we can. That goes for helpless animals, too. But I have a confession to make.
As Spiderman never said, with great responsibility comes great opportunity. One of my favorite things, and it happens right around now, is to join our participating chefs in tasting through the wines that will be served with the Friday night dinners. A few days ago, I enjoyed doing just that with Chef Jeffrey Lucas of Ruth’s Chris Steak House. Lucky for us, the wines we were tasting came from Honig Vineyards.
Mike & Stephanie Honig
Mike Honig was kind enough to send us, among other things, his Bartolucci Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. Jeffrey and I were already four bottles into the sampling and dinner discussion when we opened this particular bottle, and it stopped us cold. Our eyes widened. We stared at each other, at our glasses, at the bottle. We giggled.
Bartolucci Vineyard Cabernet
Many of the vintners I’ve written about in these blogs are environmentally involved and go about their grapegrowing in sustainable ways. Well, you can put the Honigs on the list. In fact, they’ve devoted valuable vineyard space to an array of solar panels, so the sunpower gets into the grapes and into the electrical system all at the same time.
Honig uses this type of solar panel
The processes involved in organic and biodynamic farming are pretty clearly defined and detailed. You don’t use pesticides or herbicides. You meet certain criteria and get officially certified. Sustainability…well, that’s a bit more slippery. According to Mike Honig, it means “running the winery in a way that promotes the health and wellbeing of the planet, the employees, and the business.” Each decision they make is based on the potential impact in all these areas.
The problem lies in trying to do a couple of things at once: become economically prosperous while preserving the environment. We all know how mutually exclusive those goals can be. It’s why the Cuyahoga River caught fire in Cleveland back in 1969.
The grapes of Honig. Well, some of them.
Still, winemakers such as the Honigs work hard to resolve the conflict. And in doing so, make wines that embody their skill, their concern, and their heart.
Mike started at age 22, when he took over management of his family’s winery, selling his wines around San Francisco from the back of his Subaru. The rest, as they say, is history.
He’s now aided and abetted by his winemaker sister Kristen, whose own wine career began when she rode around Napa watching her parents taste wines at the (very) few wineries that were open at the time. Later at UC Davis, she wandered away from her biochemistry studies due to the irresistible allure of the wine program. The rest is….well, you know.
Kristen Honig Belair
We’re delighted to welcome the Honigs at the Southwest Florida Wine & Food Fest. You’re gonna love ‘em.