Lodi`s ·Heritage Oak Winery, Five Generations in the Making

Lodi's ·Heritage Oak Winery,
Five Generations in the Making
Where a day of wine tasting may include hiking, kayaking, birdwatching and a picnic by the river.
By Kimberly Horg-Webb
eritage.Oak Winery opened in
2007 but was built on land that
has been owned and operated by
the owner lorn Hoffman's family for nearly 150 years.ln the 1860s, his great-greatgrandfather had a 400 acre farm along the
Mokelumne River. Their home overlooked the river and was about a half mile
east of where the winery is now located.
Tom was teaching at a school in
South America where he met and married
Carmela. A couple years later the couple
returned to Califomia. Although Hoffman
returned to the "Golden State" with plans
to teach, his father had another idea.
Within a year Hoffman was convinced that
H
The huge oak tree that is not only the start of the trail but also helped give the wineryi
name.
(Kimberly Horg-Webb
shifted from fanning Tokay grapes to wine
varietals; he followed the trend and now
grows Zinfandel, Cabemet Sauvignon,
Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay.
In 2005 he started seriously thinking
about developing a winery. He thinks it
seemed to be an obvious direction for him.
"I understood basic wine making, we
had grapes and we had a beautiful piece of
property," Hoffman said. ''What 1 have
tried to do is basically produce wines that 1
like to drink, in an atmosphere that is
friendly and natural."
He says he relies on his own instincts, ~
his family, the land he lives on and the critters that live there with him. He has tried to
take advantage of the fact that this property is by the Mokelumne River. Because of
'--------rtS location and his love of nature, he wants
the winery to have an emphasis on nature.
Visitors can take a walk on a trail that
starts out at the huge oak tree next to the
winery. It is a 3/4 mile walk one way that
goes through the vineyards, skirts the bluff
overlooking the flood plain, crosses the
bottom land and ends at the beach, where
there are several picnic tables and a rope
swing.
''The trail is interesting because it
crosses many habitats and all around are
countless species of birds and other
wildlife forms," Hoffman said.
Tom Hoffman and his mother Joanne
Apart from being open to picnickers
Hoffman showcase Heritage Oak's wines
who come out for a walk, Hoffman also
in the tasting room. (Kimberly Horg-Webb)
has a biologist that comes out once a
month to lead birding groups (on Saturday
mornings). The winery is also listed on the
Sandhill Crane Festival tour list which is
held in November.
Hoffinan 11180 encourages kayaking
and will open the beach up to customer's
vehicles so people can have access to the
area.
''We made the decision to make the
trail available because it gives people
another reason to come here," he said. .
According to Hoffman, people come
primarily in quest of a wine tasting "expeOwner Tom Hoffman proudly stands by his
rience" which includes one-on-one time
barrels of wine.
(Kimberly Horg- Webb)
with the wine maker and possibly a barrel
tasting or unscheduled tour. And maybe
he should work in the family business,
someone may have heard a rumor that the
Hoffman's grandfather grew Emerald
wine maker will play Scarlatti on the piano
Riesling, Chenin Blanc, Burger, Ruby
with just a little prodding.
Cabemet, and Zinfandel. He also. had
Wine lovers come looking for
about 50 percent of their acreage planted to
Zinfandels, Cabemet, Tempranillo or
Tokays, peaches, walnuts, and cherries.
Hoffman's white wines. The two most
. Hoffman's father planted numerous
popular wines are Zinfadelity and
Sauvignon Blanc fields for Mondavi, and
Sauvignon Blanc but Hoffman says his
Gallo took the Tokays of their hands.
favorite wine is Heritage Oak Zinfandel.
During the past couple decades
"I emphasize the fruitiness of the
Hoffman has developed his own passion
grape," he said. ''None of this would be
for wine making. And as the local industry
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Lodi'sHeritage Oak Winery-Continued from Page 33
possible ifit were not for the wonderful climate here in the Lodi region, perfect for
growing wine grapes," he said.
Tom and Carmela Hoffman and his
mother, Joanne, run the facility. He says
customers appreciate a personal connection so he makes a point of providing that
to people.
Joanne Hoffman admits she had
ambivalent feelings about the winery
opening because of the economy.
Distribution has been his biggest challenge for this newcomer. Heritage Oaks
arrived on the scene at a time when the
retail market is flooded with little wineries
and the broader economy is in recession.
. Distnbutors have been reluctant to pick up
his products because many are having a
hard time pushing the ones they already
have.
''Fortunately, I have distribution locally in the Lodi and Stockton area and have
a small distributorship working for me in
. Colorado Springs but 92 percent of our
sales are at the tasting room" he said.
Many customers including Elk Grove
resident Ray Ashby can't count how many
times he has been to the winery. He says he
was a customer before Hoffman had wine
bottled and for sale.
'We first visited looking for the small
independent winemaker doing his own
thing, questioned whether a wine would be
good when tasted in the barrel but recognized that Tom had 'the taste' to know
what it would develop into, so better go
with Tom's palate," Ashby said. "It just
doesn't get any better than Heritage Oak."
He offers a private picnic area by the
river in which visitors can bring their own
food or buy their picnic lunch for $15
which includes cheese and crackers, salami, and an apple. Locals and visitors can
enjoy intimate events, concerts, art shows,
and exhibitions throughout the year. He
tries to plan an event every month whether
it is showcasing art or having a local live
band. Tamara Little will perform on
Saturday, March 19.
. In April he holds a "Zin Spin" in
which local bicycling-clubs tour the wineries, on Mother's Day there will be a picnic
and concert, Father's Day the winery will
have an art fair and on July 4, it will hold
another picnic and concert. Starting in June
and nmning until August it will also have
"Stress Therapy" every other Friday night.
Customers can watch the sunset, drink and
eat desert while the flocks of hurnrning- .
birds fly above their heads.
For more information about the winery or the events it holds visit heritageoakwinery.com or call (209) 986-2763. _