Paul Franson

Many people love to drink wine. Some become interested enough to buy wine magazines, attend wine classes and visit wineries.

Others become so fascinated with wine that they have to make their own. For most people in the past, they had to make wine from concentrate or grapes shipped from California – or they could hope to buy expensive property in wine country, plant grapes and build a winery.

Since it costs $1 million to $10 million and sometimes far more to set up a winery, many prospective winemakers are turning to a new alternative, the “micro-crush winery.”   

These are variations of the popular “custom crush” facilities used in wine country to make many wine brands, but are aimed at people who just want to make a small amount of wine. They typically want the wine for their ownb use, or to show off their vineyards, but some want to sell the wine or serve it in their restaurants. These new operations can help enthusiasts do that legally, even offering web services and marketing help for the wine makers.

Among these companies are Crushpad in San Francisco (www.crushpadwine.com; 415-864-4232), Judd’s Hill MicroCrush in Napa Valley (www.napamicrocrush.com; 866-438-5833) and Sonoma Grapemasters in the Russian River Valley (www.sonomagrapemasters.com; 415-389-1183).

Crushpad is a bonded commercial winemaking facility with modern equipment that procures first-class grapes, which its professional staff turns into quality wine. Using the Internet, its customers can make critical decisions about the wine-making process, certainly enough to truly call the wine their own.

A new twist on winemaking

Making wine for yourself is hardly new, of course. People have been making wine from whatever fruit they have for millennia. The problem facing those who appreciate fine wine, however, is getting excellent wine grapes – and then mastering the demanding and time-consuming process of making outstanding wine, not just something to drink.  

Home winemakers may be able to buy the grapes locally if they’re in an area that grows grapes, or have chilled fresh or frozen fruit or juice shipped in from California, though the process is fairly expensive and most people feel it compromises the quality compared to making wine at the source.

And even given good fruit, making excellent wine requires skill. Many amateur winemakers turn to experienced professionals or even other amateurs for counsel. Some amateurs turn to the commercial winemaking club.

Commercial clubs include The Crush Winemaking Club in Pleasanton, Calif., and Bacchus Winemaking Club in San Mateo, Calif. and near Trenton, N.J. They provide materials, space and guidance in a social environment. They are designed for those who can actively participate in the process but the staff can fill in so you don’t have to be there full time during the winemaking season.

At the Crush Winemaking Club, customers can make as little as one-quarter barrel, about six cases, with other fans. Proprietor Jim Frost says some members have their own small vineyards or grape sources, but most use fruit he supplies. The customers overwhelming want to make Napa Valley Cabernet, though he offers other options. The cost is as little as $14 per bottle. Customers pay $100 per month for a year for 1/4 barrel, with an incremental cost for additional wine.

The ultimate club is probably Bill Harlan’s Napa Valley Reserve, where after a $150,000 payment, you can help winemaker Bob Levy, who also makes wine for Harlan Estate and Bond, make Cabernet comparable to the best in Napa Valley. The actual wine is extra, and the cost depends on how many cases you’d like to make.

Club members can participate in the process, from harvesting grapes to designing their own labels, but the appeal is the camaraderie, social events and use of the upscale facilities as well as the wine.

For serious wine lovers who want to make wine, too, Crushpad, Judd’s Hill MicroCrush and Sonoma Grapemasters are commercial, bonded wineries that can help patrons make wines comparable to expensive commercial products without the enormous expense and complications of creating their own winery—or even trying to manage the process on their own.

They feature well-known professional winemakers, equipment just like other boutique wineries, and they can acquire grapes from premier sources from Santa Barbara to Napa Valley.

All three can handle the whole process, but most customers want to help,  particularly during harvest.

Napa Valley Custom MicroCrush is an offshoot of Judd’s Hill Winery, a respected Napa Valley producer founded by Art Finkelstein with his wife Bunnie. Art founded Whitehall Lane Winery with his brother before starting Judd’s Hill. Son Judd and daughter-in-law Holly are all actively involved, too. The family recently completed a new winery facility close to Napa; its old site was in a very remote location.

As Judd’s Hill, Custom MicroCrush first made wine for local growers who wanted a little wine made from their vineyards, but people without vineyards quickly came to the Finkelsteins for help.

Because of the family’s connections, the company is able to find excellent fruit for clients without vineyards, some from other Custom MicroCrush customers.

Customers can get as involved in the winemaking process as they want. Some  have definite opinions about the winemaking process but others leave the winemaking up to Art and Judd. Many like to help with picking. Art says that customers’ favorite contribution is punching down the caps that form during fermentation.

The winery uses half- and one-ton open bins for small lots and the wine is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, as would be expected in Napa Valley. Each barrel is clearly identified by customer, and they can come and taste samples to monitor their lot’s progress.

A typical cost $22 to $25 per bottle and the wine is comparable to typical $50 to $60 Napa Valley wines.

The basic cost is $2,800 per barrel, though that doesn’t include grapes or barrels. The charge includes crushing, fermenting, pressing, neutral barrels, barrel aging, topping and racking, barrel storage, bottling and bottling supplies (including standard wine bottles, unbranded corks and stock capsules), obtaining label approval, labeling and ongoing winemaking service and consultation. New barrels are not included in those costs; they range from $300 to about $800, depending on the type of barrel chosen.

Racking grapes into the crusher-destemmer at Crushpad in San Francisco

While Napa Valley Custom MicroCrush lies in the midst of attractive vineyards in Napa Valley, Crushpad is in gritty southern San Francisco.

President Michael Brill says the location is convenient for many clients and grape sources to the south and north of the city.

Brill describes his business as being “custom wine,” not custom crush, and in fact, does provide a complete service from supplying grapes to sales support services. Crushpad charges $4,200 for its least expensive barrel of wine including the barrel, rising to $10,000 for high-end Cabernet Sauvignon.

Brill claims 230 separate clients, many of which are syndicates of individuals.

Unlike Custom MicroCrush, Crushpad supplies fruit to most of its clients. The grapes come from vineyards stretching from Santa Barbara to Mendocino, and most—85 to 90 percent—is red. Brill says Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara and Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa are the most popular varieties. Brill says he paid a steep $6,200 per ton for his average Cabernet last year.

Crushpad customers come from 30 states and four countries. They can become as involved as they wish in the process. Although most customers don’t get involved hands-on, “Some people like to sort fruit and start the process,” said Brill.

Punching down the cap at Crushpad

One of Crushpad’s innovations is allowing customers to interact over the Internet, not surprising since Brill comes out of the software business. The company provides customers with guidance but allows them to interact over “MyCrushPad.com” and affect about 30 decision points in the winemaking process. It also sends barrel samples at important junctures and allows customers to blend in other wine if they wish. Joe Cooper is able to visit Crushpad, but he still monitors MyCrushpad.com, as does one member of his winemaking collective that lives in Milan.

Not surprisingly, many customers see their winemaking as social as well as technical, and Crushpad held a party that 120 customers attended, trying other wines to see the impact of changes in the process on the samples.

Both Napa Valley MicroCrush and Crushpad also have many customers who sell their wine commercially, and their permits make this possible. Both companies also make wine for many small commercial producers and Crushpad has even created software that facilitates that process.

They also help getting label approval, for all labels, even those for non-commercial customers of the operations, must get a government certificate of label approval (COLA). The wineries handle that paperwork.

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