August 6, 2025 • 43 mins
As you drive through the gates of Del Valle Winery, you see our Sangiovese Vineyard next to our vine covered arbor, a very popular place to sit and wine taste. Walk up the few steps of the Tasting room deck and enjoy the Livermore sunshine. In the Tasting Room, you can sit at tables, stools at the bar or enjoy a private tasting in Bobs Boardroom. As you walk out the Tasting room, you will find yourself on our covered patio where our Friday Firepit Music events take place, weddings and private events as well as daily wine tastings and small plates and lunch from our kitchen. Our barrel room is a great indoor spot, and one of my favorites is our Secret Garden, a serene setting to host an intimate gathering. At Del Valle we focus on the wine tasting experience, with an offering of foods to enjoy and complement our wines. Our kitchen is open daily (Thursday thru Monday) and serves sharable items, salads, soups, sandwiches and flat breads. Our Sangiovese is made from our vineyard on the property, all other varietals are from fruit sourced in the Livermore Valley. Our 2024 bottling consisted of 950 cases, we have continued to make more wine each year since opening the winery in 2020 and plan to bottle 1100 cases this year.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Wine Soundtrack USA. Listen to the passion with
which producers narrate their winery and their world team thirty
answers discover their stories, personalities, and passions.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Hello, friends and listeners of Wine's Soundtrack. This is Alison
Levine and today I am in the charming tasting room
of del Vall Wines in the Livermore Valley with owner
Gina Molinar. Cardina and Gina, Welcome to Wine's Soundtrack and
tell us a little bit about del Vall.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Sure, del Vow sits in Livermore on Tesla Road, and
we're very close to the Lake Delval. So when my
dad and I decided to open this winery in twenty twenty,
he wanted to name it Delvo Winery because of the
proximity to the lake. So that's why we did that.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And then with is this a natural lake or a
man made lake?
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Natural lake?
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
And then with our with our wine club and stuff,
we sort of went off the camping area from Lake
Delval where our wine club is the Happy Campers, So
you know, just fun things like that. Our staff wears green,
kind of like the forest green like you would wear
at a campground type thing, so just you know, fun,
(01:20):
just to play a little.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Bit on that. So you started this with your dad
and you said twenty thirteen.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
No, twenty twenty. We were actually brand new Reletive. We're yes,
this is our second winery in the valley, but we are.
We were in the title company signing everything and watching
on the TV everything closing down for the COVID pandemic.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
What timing you have, perfect.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Timing, And so it was a little daunting at first,
but actually it worked to our advantage in the end
because we had time. It was a winery before and
we wanted to go turn key into our brand, and
it helped us. Everyone was closed, so it gave us
the time to get it together so we could open
(02:07):
with our own brand and nobody was turnkey event at
the time.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Right, So how long did you have another brand for We.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Have our other brand. We've had that since the early nineties.
And what is that called. That's Gray Winery.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Okay, So Gray Winery is yours since the nineteen nineties
and then Devell and they're totally separate. There's no overlap
in terms of vineyards or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
There is overlap in terms of vineyards. Del Val Winery
has a very small sanjov Ac vineyard on it, so
those grapes are dedicated to the Delvell sanjov Ac. We
have many varietals that grow at the Gray property, so
we do some of the grapes are set aside for
(02:51):
Delvo's wines, and then we source other grapes throughout the valley,
the Livermore Valley for del Vows wines to fill in
their portfolio of wines.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
So the only thing you have planted here is san jioves.
How many acres do you have planted?
Speaker 3 (03:04):
That's a state at Garray here? Oh, it's very very tiny,
very tiny, just right out in front. We're only a
whole three acre property, so it's probably half.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
An acre of san choves. And how many acres do
you have at Gray?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
We have a twenty acre piece. Gray sits on twenty acres.
There's I think it's nine acres that are planted.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Okay, And what are the different grapes that you're working
with for this brand?
Speaker 3 (03:33):
For del Val we do grenache, which we source in
the Livermore Valley. Gray does not grow that. We have
Cabernet franc, Sauvignon blanc Chardonnay, Cabernet, Sauvignon, the San Joves,
and then we have a few.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Blends, okay, and everything sourced from Livermore Valley.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Yes, all grapes are sourced from Livermore Valley okay.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
And your total case production for.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Del val last year we did nine point fifty and
we're going to be bottling about eleven hundred cases this year,
so we've been ramping it up each year that we've
been in existence.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
And are you one hundred percent direct to consumer like
here in the tasting room and online or are you
in any markets outside of Livermore.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
No, we're one hundred percent direct to consumer.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Okay. Well, we got that out of the way. So
that's the basic stuff. So now we're going to get
to know you. So my question of you you've had
you've been involved obviously since nineteen ninety with wineries. What
is your very first memory relevant to wine?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Ooh, my very first one. I grew up in San
Francisco till I was ten and then came over to
the valley. So when I was younger, we would always
go to my great aunts and my great uncles and
we would go for Sunday dinners quite often, probably I
don't know, at least ten times a year, and the
(04:55):
jug of wine would sit on the floor by my
great uncle and I'm like, what, like, what is that stuff?
Why does it just come on the table every once
in a while when the glasses are going to get filled.
I wasn't allowed to have wine, even though you know,
back in the day the Italians all gave their kids wine,
but we didn't get wine. So that's my first recollection
(05:17):
of wine.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Your ret hole.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
Oh, I was under ten, so probably six seven.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, there you go, first memory relevant to wine. Yeah,
so obviously you've grown up and have a lot more
awareness of wine and have enjoyed a lot of wines.
Is there a particular wine somewhere, whether it was the
beginning or even more recently, it was one of those
aha moments? And what was that moment? What was it
about that wine?
Speaker 3 (05:41):
An aha moment when I when I decided I liked wine?
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Because it couldn't that or it could be later, could
just be from your travels or from exploration, just a
wine that stands out in your mind that.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
You were like, well, wine is a varietal, I will say,
and it's pino noir. I just love peano and I
think it's so friendly with or without food. I typically
eat when I'm drinking wine, even if i'm wine tasting,
I like something to nibble on. Pino noir is probably
(06:14):
the first varietal across the board that I found that
I don't have to have food with. Oh, I like
to have food with I like to have food with
all my woe. Yeah, Pano noir would be my favorite varietal.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Do you remember where the first peano no war was
from that you had?
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Oh, that's a really good question. No, I don't. Probably
in a restaurant. I got treatis to some really nice
dinners at a wine restaurant shop in Walnut Creek, and
I can't remember the name of it now, but we
had all these lovely wines that I was never experienced
(06:52):
with before. And I know I had a pino there,
but I don't remember the name. I'm sorry enough.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
So now if we came to your home, what kind
of wines do you personally drink or collect? What do
you have in your house? Is it a lot of
your own wines, Livermore Valley wines, or do you have
a lot of peanots or wines from around the world.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
No, I don't.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
I have Bubbly always, any particular champagne or non champagne.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
Champagne, typically champagne. Yes, my favorite is champagne. And I'm
not particular to a brand either, I just I love champagne,
so that's always in my house. And then the wines,
the steel wines would probably mostly be the Livermore Valleys.
I go out and taste here in the valley quite often,
(07:42):
and when I'm out, I always buy a bottle of wine,
so that comes home with me wherever I am. And yeah,
so it's Livermore Valley.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Anything you opened recently and enjoyed over dinner that drank
really well.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
The last bottle that I was a saw me blank
from here. Actually yeah drink Well, yeah it did, it did,
and I'm not a big white wine drinker, so yes, okay,
it was great.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So it's it's it's funny. I always kind of ask
this question as a one two three answer. I think
you answered already. But redwater rose red still are sparkling?
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Oh well, bubbles are my bubbles are my happy place,
so sparkling. But but yeah I like red so still too, Okay,
equal opportunity there.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Yeah, absolutely, And you were also saying that you you
think of where you enjoy wine when you're eating, I mean,
because they're naturally together. So how do you approach food
and wine pairing? Do you have rules you follow or
sort of guidelines where you say, you know, white wine
and fish, red wine and meat. Do you look more
for compliments or contrast? What do you How do you
(09:00):
approach it when you're preparing a meal at home or
even going out to a restaurant.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Right, I would say traditionally, you know the traditional way
to pair the food and the wine, but I really
like it. I like to challenge. I'm a chef at Garray,
and I like to challenge him to pair things that
are going to surprise me. So we did a wine
tasting one time where dessert was paired with a white wine,
(09:30):
a still white wine, not a dessert wine, and so
I said, surprise me. And then I had other people
taste and they wanted to go in the order of
what they thought the order was, and they thought that
white wine at the end was wrong and I'm like, no, no,
it's there intentionally, So that's what we're going to do.
And they were like wow. So I enjoy the fun
(09:51):
of it. I enjoy that part. When I'm out at
a restaurant, I drink what I like and sometimes it
doesn't go It doesn't follow any rules. I just drink
what I like.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
So is that more like you pick what you're gonna
drink and then you figure out what you're gonna eat afterwards,
or you don't care if they help each other at all.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
When I'm going out socially with friends and we're just
having a nice dinner, I don't really care if at
pair as well. I just we pick something that we
like to drink and go from there.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Just as long as it doesn't create a bad taste
in the mouth.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Exactly, exactly, exactly exactly.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
So with the different varieties that you've been working with
over the years, do you think there's a such thing
as a perfect variety?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
No? No, Because people will ask me what is my
favorite wine? And that's really so subjective. It depends on
and this is the answer I give, And then they
leave a little perplexed. But I say, well, I have
to know what am I doing? What's the temperature outside?
Am I inside? Am I outside?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Who am I with?
Speaker 3 (10:59):
Am I having food? Am I not having food. I mean,
all those things to.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Me summer is it winter? Exactly?
Speaker 3 (11:05):
All those things play on what's my favorite at the time,
So it's really hard to say. It's like, can you
pick one of your babies and call them the cutest? No,
they're all.
Speaker 2 (11:17):
Great, and perfection is just in the eye of the beholder, exactly, exactly, exactly. Well,
some people who like to ascribe or reach a level
of perfection, or wine critics and scores, they sort of
assess whether a wine has achieved what in someone's eyes
(11:37):
is close to perfection. I'm curious what your opinion is
on wine critics and scores and how do they how
important are they to you as a wine drinker, and
how important too are they to you as a small
wine brand.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
I would say when I first started drinking wine, I
was impressed by wine scores. Now I'm not so much
impress by wine scores because I see when we might
put a wine in five different competitions, and we have
sometimes five different very answers on how the wine is scored.
(12:14):
So while it's a great talking point and we do
typically get pretty good scores, it's not what I would
fall on the sword for you know.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
Yeah, and with with a small brand, I mean it's
probably a lot more word of mouth than it is
getting some bigger ward. It's I mean, I didn't spend
a lot of time. We're in a private room. I
didn't spend a lot of time in the teaser room,
but I didn't see a lot of metals hanging about.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
Now we have a little area where we're reworking and
putting some metals up there. But it's not the main gig.
I mean, it's nice and it's great to talk about,
and they do. They are all listed on our tasting menu.
We do win quite a few awards, so I mean,
I'm grateful for that and it's great.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Ye. So for somebody who hasn't had the pleasure to
taste the del val wines yet, what do you think
they're missing out on?
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Well, I think they're missing out on very approachable wines.
We are very approachable, very fruit forward, easy drinking. I
equated myself one time to a pyramid of how I
wanted wine to be made. I don't think we need
(13:35):
to make like the best wine for the top five
percent of the people, because then we'd only be marketing
to five percent of the people. I want to make
a really good wine. So I want to market to
you know, that great spot, that sweet spot where it
hits a majority of the people, where they can have
a nice dinner and enjoy the wine. And like I
(13:56):
said earlier, any wine with any food, it doesn't have
to go, you know you. I just want a very friendly,
approachable wine.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
And So if space aliens were to land in your
parking lot and come walking up to the door here,
and you were to welcome them with one wine that
says welcome to Deva like this is welcome to my winery,
which of your wines would you present them with?
Speaker 3 (14:19):
So I would probably give them Luna del Val. Okay,
Luna del Val is a lovely blend, and it's moon
over the valley. So you know, I am anticipating this
space shuttle coming down. They might be able to equate
with you know, the moon over the valley right right,
(14:41):
So we're in the valley and yeah, it's a lovely
and what is it a blend of it's a you're
going to ask me those questions and I told you
I'm not good at blends, but I was. I brought
that with me just in case you asked me. It's
sixty percent pre mativo eleven and a half percent melt
back eleven and a half percent or low six percent
Cabernet sauvignon, three percent cabne fronk, three petite for dough,
(15:06):
and five petits rah.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
That is quite a blend all liver More Valley. Wow,
quite a unique blend grapes that aren't normally put together.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
So yeah, that's wine maker for you.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
And would you say you have more blends than single
varietyal wines or a nice balance between the two. No,
we have a nice balance.
Speaker 3 (15:24):
We have We've we've had two blends for a very
long time and now we're just going to be introducing
a third blend.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Are they all as crazy as that one? Yes? Yes?
Kind of like the kitchen sink, yes, yes.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
You know we start with it with a with a
mean varietal with the blend, and then add to it
until we're happy with what we're tasting.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Okay, So do you spend a lot of time in
the vineyards or are you more the indoor like cellar girl.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
Well, actually I am the label person. I love doing
the labels. That's how I got started in this gig
with my dad when he opened the first winery is
pick me to do the labels, so that that was
just too much fun. So I've done a label that
is going to be our third blend that will have
at Delvell and it's honoring my dad. My dad passed
(16:23):
away in January of twenty three, so that was my
gig was to get this do this label for him.
So we're working on the label now. The wine is bottled.
I have two vintages bottled already, just no label, just
no label. No, I have the label. I have the label.
I'm going to show it to you. I have the label.
So yeah, so that's really exciting. And I forgot what
(16:47):
the question was.
Speaker 2 (16:47):
Well, I asked if you spend a lot of time
in the vineyard or in the cellar.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
So labels were my thing. But as far as the
vineyard goes, I love to I lived at the vineyard
for three years and just loved it. You know, it
was great to get up in the morning and see everything.
But I don't that's about the extent of it, you know.
I don't know rootstock, I don't know any of those
(17:13):
technical things. I just see how lovely they are and
how beautiful they look.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Well, when you were living on the vineyard and spending
time with the vines, did you feel that you had
sort of a I always ask for a culture, So
people who spend time in the vineyards, what kind of
a relationship they have with their vines? If they talk
to them, yell at them, cry with them, or whatever,
if the vines talked back to them. But I really
feel that when you live on a property, you are
far more in tune with the grapes that are there.
So I'm wondering, as someone who wasn't farming them, but
(17:40):
just living among them, did you feel that you had
some sort of a connection to them?
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Well? Really, no, no, no. They were the first ones
that welcomed me up in the morning. And the property
is very, very very quiet when everything has gone and
nothing's happening on the property. So the grapes were all there,
so they were my friends. Yeah, they were around.
Speaker 2 (18:03):
You never felt alone when you were with the grapes side,
I did not. And do you get involved with the
making of the wine as well? I mean, I know
you mentioned you have a wine maker and you are
the owner of the winery, but do you get involved
with the blends or with any parts of the wine
making process.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
Yes, the wine maker is. He's not insistent, but would
like us to be or like me to be a
part of that. So yeah, we do taste blends together
and make determinations based on that. I just tell him
what I'm thinking. He knows, you know, what to put
together to give me what I want. I guess, so yeah,
(18:42):
so we work.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
It that way and as a team. Do you guys
have any good luck rituals that you do at the
start of harvest or during harvest?
Speaker 3 (18:51):
No?
Speaker 2 (18:51):
No, no traditions of opening bubbles or no.
Speaker 3 (18:56):
No, not really, not really no.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
You know, we just opened bubbles every day. So exactly
a party.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
Right.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
So when you were a little girl, what did you
want to be when you grew up? I mean you
said that you moved to the valley when you were
about ten years old. Were you growing up around vineyards?
Were you familiar with this as an option?
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Never? Never thought about this in a million years. My
dad was in the garbage and recycling business in San
Francisco and then had an opportunity to buy the company
in Pleasanton, which is next door to Livermore, and so
we came over here, excuse me for that reason. And
then I've been in the garbage business. But I wanted
(19:42):
to be a teacher. My father thought I should be
his secretary, and I'm like, oh no, that's not going
to work for me. So we went along like that.
You know. I did the teacher thing. I opened up
a preschool, loved it was great, best time of my life.
And then I did end up going to work for
the garbage and recycling company, which I now own and manage.
Speaker 2 (20:07):
You worked your way from the bottom up.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
You're well trained, absolutely absolutely. Oh. I was ceialing envelopes
when I was, you know, five years old, and I
would sit when we moved to Pleasanton and people would
come to our home and talk to my parents about,
you know, the business or making decisions or whatever. I'd
sit at the table and listen, and I just took
it all in because I was I was, I am
(20:30):
the age when you were taught children are to be
seen and not heard. So I sat and I listened.
Nobody ever shunned me away from the table, So I
got a lot of experience, you know, just by sitting
there and listening. My dad, though, was doing he needed
to do a ten thirty one property exchange. He had
sold some property and he bought vineyard with the exchange,
(20:57):
and that's how we got into the wine business.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
The vineyard. Did he have an intent to make wine
or was it the age old story of you have
a vineyard because it'll be pretty to wake up to,
and then suddenly you're a wine maker.
Speaker 1 (21:08):
No.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Actually he bought property out here in Livermore, in the
Crane Ridge area, which was wenty property went. He sold
some properties and there was a pad for a house
and my mom said, I don't want to live all
the way out there. I'm like, oh, pick me please,
I'd love to live out there. It was beautiful. So
the property was planted with Murlau grapes at the height
(21:32):
of merlow. So when the first vintage came in, we
sold the grapes because we weren't quite prepared to make
our own. So my dad sold most of the grapes
and he was like, wow, where has this been all
of my life?
Speaker 2 (21:49):
A lot different, A little different than garbage, yes, yes,
much different, much different.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
In fact, my father used to say, oh God, they
come every year, these grapes. I'm not ready for this
this year. But you know, you don't get to plan that.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
Was he more involved in the farming and wine making
when he started, Oh.
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Absolutely, yeah, yeah. Not not in the you know, the
wine making. He was more of the grunt. He was
the helper to do whatever.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
You know.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
He was told by the people that knew what they
were doing what to do, and he enjoyed that.
Speaker 2 (22:27):
That's great. I'm curious. You're running two wineries and you're
running a trash business. You're a busy lady, I am.
So when do you ever have free time? Well?
Speaker 3 (22:44):
No, I I just everything kind of wraps up into one.
I don't start one job at this time and ended
at that time. It just seems to all meld into one.
So I have I have fun time when people are
working sometimes because that's not my time that I'm doing
(23:04):
a working thing. I'm doing something for the winery or
a tasting or you know, whatever it is I'm doing.
So I'm I don't have a lot of free time,
but I have a lot of great time.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
And if you have free time or had free time,
what do you like to do that you're not doing already?
What do you wish you had more time to do?
Speaker 3 (23:27):
Sit in my backyard and enjoy the warm weather and
my pool. But I plan that. I do plan times
and I have people come over. So if I make
a plan, then you know I'm solid.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Yeah. Any other hobbies, yes, I do.
Speaker 3 (23:46):
I rubber stamp, I yes.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Explain that I'm not sure I know what.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
Else rubber stamp. I actually sell the products for fun.
I've been doing it for a million years because I
love crafting, and again I didn't have time to craft.
So I thought if I made a commitment to something,
I would make the time to craft. So rubber stamping.
I teach people how to make greeting cards with stamps,
(24:14):
ink papers. It's a lot of fun. That's why when
we got into the wine business, my family got into
the wine business, I wanted to do the labels because
it was crafty to me, right, it was I could
be artsy and creative and that kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
So, yeah, a lot of fun. But your label is
not rubber stamps, or label is not rubber stay. You
don't have the you know, will travel.
Speaker 3 (24:38):
I having no, no, no, no, no, no, no not
at all.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Much more traditional, much more traditional.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Yes, absolutely, So.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
When you look back, what would you say is one
of your work wise, what would you say is one
of your proudest achievements to day?
Speaker 3 (24:58):
Oh wow, that's a hard question. I think being able
to play with the boys and hold my own because
a lot of times I don't think women get their due.
(25:18):
And so I was told not too terribly long ago
by a gentleman that he goes, well, I don't know
about kids taking over their parents' businesses, you know, they
just I don't know. And then especially girls, I'm like, wow, okay,
(25:39):
ninety five. No, this is somebody that's not very much
older than me, and he goes, but look at Gina.
She's doing it. She's doing a great job. I'm like,
somewhere in there I think was a compliment. I'll take it.
I'll take it. But yeah, I think that's probably my
my proudest moment to me, and I would like to
I would like my dad to know that I could
(26:01):
hold ma'am.
Speaker 2 (26:02):
I'm curious if you have found on the gender issue
the same challenges in wine as maybe you found in
the trash world, because I'm making an assumption that the
garbage and trash world is a far more male dominated industry.
Even the wine has always traditionally been a very male
dominated industry.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
Somewhat, yes, And in the garbage business that I'm in,
it's very family it's mostly family oriented companies, so very
similar in the wineries. It's a very similar feeling in
both businesses. But yeah, much more male dominated in the
(26:42):
garbage business. Yeah sure.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
And also I've noticed there are a lot of women
that run businesses, run wineries here in Livermore So. I mean,
since you started in the nineties, you're probably one of
the first women that was here.
Speaker 3 (26:56):
Well not the first, not definitely, not the first, but yeah,
one of them. We have a women's wine collective here,
so that's pretty cool. We get together and put on
events and yeah, it's it's really awesome.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
That's wonderful. Good women. So obviously you worked with your dad,
You sat around tables with adults talking business all the time,
is there, And you're a teacher, so you understand this
part of the question. But you know, we get advice
all the time in our lives from our teachers, our parents,
(27:32):
our mentors, our co workers. Is there a piece of
advice someone gave you along the way that has that
really stayed with you. I mean it could be a
newer piece of advice, but something that really drives either
how you live or how you work.
Speaker 3 (27:45):
M that's another good question. You asked very good questions,
thank you. One that I can't think of an answer
to right now. I mean, I guess, you know, just
have people tell me that I could do it is
good advice to me. It's just I sometimes I feel
(28:07):
unsure of myself. Maybe not so much now, but as
I was growing up and taking on leadership roles and things,
and I always tried to challenge myself because I always
felt that that was something I was lacking in and
I could just kind of stay in the shadows. But
I didn't really want to be in the shadows. So
(28:28):
just having people encourage me along the way and tell
me that I could do it, I think was probably
the best advice I had been given.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
And if you could give advice to our listeners about
wine or life, what kind of advice would you give?
Any advice? Same advice you give to your preschoolers. The
nice playfair, nice playfair. Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
You know what I would say as it relates to
the wine business especially, is try everything. You don't have
to like everything, try everything. I used it on my
preschoolers because I would cook them lunch. We would have
a prepared lunch, and you know, they'd look at me
and say, oh, I don't I.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
Don't like that.
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Have you tried that? No, then you need to try it.
But I don't like it, I said, all you need
to do is try it. If you don't like it,
you do not have to eat it. And you know,
I find myself telling people at the wine bar sometimes
when I'm there the same thing. Well, I only drink this, this,
and this, but have you tried this? Have you tried
(29:36):
primativo before? No, but you like Zimfandel it's the same thing,
so try it and if you don't like it, you
never have to drink it again, right, And they're like, oh, okay,
I mean I go on that same vein.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
I mean when someone says I don't like white wine,
I'm like, you know, there are like a thousand grapes
out there that are white. It's hard to say you
don't like any. Up to the challenge. I'll find one
for you. But also it is that thing that even
if you don't like one wine, like, someone tries your
primitive and they don't like it, doesn't mean they won't
like your nextdoor neighbors, or they haven't had a good experience,
but they haven't tried yours, and yours is grown in
(30:13):
different soil with a different wine maker. They should give
yours a chance because who knows.
Speaker 3 (30:18):
Which I think is the beauty of a wine club.
You know, join a wine club and you get a
variety of things. I love it when people stick with
our package that we have for that club's release, rather
than oh can I change this because I don't like
da da da da da. You know, I think it's
I think that's the reason to join, is to be
(30:39):
exposed to those other varietals or that year or that
style or whatever it is, and then try it.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
With food, and it may be a totally different experience. Exactly, exactly,
absolutely so complete this sentence. For me, A table without
wine is like.
Speaker 3 (30:58):
A diet, That's true. I mean, what do they let
you have on a diet, like three ounces of wine?
You might as well just say, have the table without
the wine.
Speaker 2 (31:14):
Let's go back to that table. There's wine on it. Okay,
We've got your bottles of wine on a table, we're
sitting around it. There's an empty seat next to it.
Who from any walk of life living or deceased. Do
you wish you could sit down and share a bottle
of your wine with Oh?
Speaker 3 (31:34):
Well, I think my grandfather when I knew him, he
no longer drank wine, but he loved growing, and he
was alive when we started the winery, and so my
dad had brought him out to the vineyard a few times.
(31:55):
But he said, you know, you just couldn't grow grapes
in California. It's not hilly enough. So my grandfather grew
up in a small providence outside of Venice, and so there,
he said, the hillsides where you grew the best grapes,
(32:16):
and so they weren't going to grow here. So we
didn't really get a lot of time with him once
we had started this, And it would have been so
great and so much fun now to sit with him
if he were to drink the wine especially and try
the wine and just be able to give us the
nuggets of knowledge that he had from from all of
(32:38):
his time growing. When he came to California, that's what
he did, was he went to work in the farms.
He grew gladiolas.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
And I don't remember what else, but yeah and yeah,
and he would see that a valley floor is okay, yes, yeah, exactly,
it makes wine exactly, drinkable wine, drinkable wine exactly.
Speaker 2 (32:58):
Yeah. Do you have any what you said you're you're
into creative. Do you have any favorite you know, musicians
or groups that you like to listen to, any certain
performers or do you have any favorite films dedicated to wine?
(33:20):
Anything wine related in that way? Maybe not music, music's
not wine related, but.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
No, I know not one that I can think of.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
No. And with your preschoolers, you have the school a
while ago, right before you started wine, so they're not
all grown up and they're able to drink right.
Speaker 3 (33:37):
Yes, absolutely, I've seen a few of them.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Oh yeah. So if your whole preschool class from the
nineteen eighties nineties were to walk in here today and
you could give them one wine to say welcome guys,
and I'm so glad you're grown up and old enough. Now,
which why did you want to show their share with them?
Speaker 3 (33:55):
Well, I would have to pick probably Cabne franc I
love Caberne franc and, so I think i'd pick Caberne
franc It's pretty consistent with us here in the valley, So.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
I think i'd pick that okay, And they've come in here,
so they've probably tried it, so I would hope. Yes.
Is it a little scary when you fed them when
they were like four and now they drink your wine? Yes?
Speaker 3 (34:24):
Very much, so very much. So.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
So if if I, if you were to go out,
I send you off to a deserted island, and you
can only take three wines with you, Any three wines
from anywhere in the world, any producer, any grape. What
three wines would you take with you?
Speaker 3 (34:43):
Hmm, Well, I would take does it have to be specific?
I would take a bubbly. I would take a Peano noir,
I kind of like the well Lamite Valley in Oregon
peanuts And what else would I take? Oh? Probably Luna
(35:03):
del val.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
But see, take one of your own. It's always worse
than wait, I'm not surprised by the champagne.
Speaker 3 (35:12):
So yeah, I know it's really hard, huh. And I'm
not real particular, you know, I like a lot of
them equal opportunists.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
I get it. Well, you know the one thing you
were warned about at the beginning. You know none of
the questions coming, But you do know that we play
a game of wine and music. And it is that time.
And while you think you know, you think you've prepared,
you don't know the wines I'm going to pick. That's
(35:42):
the trick.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
I know that's freaky.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
Now. You know wine, as you talked about drinking wine
and how it works with food, and that wine is
something you drink based on how you feel, the mood,
the weather, everything you talked about that a lot, and
what are you in the mood to drink right now
versus maybe tonight at dinner or in three months when
it's hot, or in five months when it's cold. Music
(36:07):
has that same feeling for us. We listen to what
we listen to based on our moods or it puts
us in a mood. So combining those two things together,
I want to pick a few wines ones you've talked about.
I want to start with what I've been drinking, which
is the rose, this electric cotton candy colored rose of grenache.
(36:29):
So tell me about the wine and what song, genre
or musician you think it represents well.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
The songs have to be very poppy, very fun. Sun
Roof by Nikki Yours and Daisy I think is a
great song for that. It's just you know, something that
play playful, playful. It's playful to me. The wine is playful,
it's you described it to a tea. The cotton candy
color is so pretty and just very vibrant.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
And I might not take that back and say it's
watermelon jelly rancher. I'm kind of between the two. It
kind of fluctuates. Maybe so maybe so not sure. Okay.
Then you talked about the Cabernet Franc, what you would
be giving to your young students now that they're grown up,
and that you say it's consistent every year, and we
know that Cap Franc is now one of the declared
(37:21):
official varieties of the Livermore Valley. So tell me about
that Cap Frank and the song it conjures for you.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
So Cabernet Franc for me is a little bit more
on the elegant side. So I would go with Deep
Smooth by Santana, okay, because I think, although I don't
know that Santana, I would consider him elegant, but he's,
you know, just the music is elegant to me, especially
(37:50):
with featured with Rob Thomas. You know, it's just okay.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
And then let's talk about your kitchen sink Red Blend,
Luna Velle, Lenda del Val, that you give the aliens,
Lena del Val, that I give the aliens.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
Funny enough is I think? Ain't no mountain high enough?
I love it right. It conjures up fun. It's everybody
dancing together and just a lot of fun. I think
for me that and these grapes will have fun together,
and they do. There's enough of them so they're having
a good time.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
And then the last one we're gonna do. I've got
the bottles sitting in front of me, haven't tasted yet.
It doesn't have a label on it. I'm assuming this
is the one you talked about that you have made
two vintages and have a label, but haven't put the
label on yet. So tell me what this one is.
It was made for your father. But what is the varietal?
What are the varieties in it? What is the wine?
Speaker 3 (38:42):
Sure? So again I'll refer to my notes because I
can't remember all these things. I'm old now. But it's
predominantly Kevini franc It's fifty percent cavern and frank which
was a favorite of my dad's as well, thirty percent
caps so of ten percent petitsa ROVs five Sangio and
five Primativo. And you know, it's it's my fault that
(39:04):
it has sat without a label for such a long
time because I agonized for the right words to put
on the on the back label, and I just, you know,
one day sat down and said, Gina, you have to
get this done. There are two vintages now bottled and
they are ready, so get it together. So I finally
got it together. The label is done. We're just waiting
(39:26):
for the foil to be done on the label now
and then it'll it will be linked.
Speaker 2 (39:30):
And what is the official name of the one.
Speaker 3 (39:32):
It's called r JM. My dad's name was Robert Joseph Molnharo.
So you know, I thought it would be fun. You know,
everybody does the the the GSM, and I'm like, oh, well, GSM.
I know it stands for three grapes, but we're gonna
do r JM, just five exactly.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
And what song would you pair with that?
Speaker 3 (39:53):
Well, I my dad loved saxophone music, and he served
in the army and was at Panama and when he
went off in the fifties mid fifties, the perez Parato
was playing cherry Pink and Apple blossom White. Now probably
(40:18):
you wouldn't know it by the title, but if you
heard the music, you would know this music. And every
time we would have musicians come to Del Valle, we
have music here every Friday night. So every time we'd
have musicians come that were saxophone players, he'd ask them,
can you play the song? Can you play the song?
None of them could ever play the song because the
(40:40):
song is from nineteen fifty five, but it's in honor
of him, and it was when they made the music.
It was for young love and you know, just that
wide eyed and that was my dad then when he
was going off to the service.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
So perfect. There you go. Yeah, okay, last question, what
wine region in the world is at the top of
your bucket list to go explore? Domestic, international, anywhere Italy, Italy,
any particular region or just.
Speaker 3 (41:12):
Italy, just Italy, but I'd probably want to go to Tuscany.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
And the second half of that question is for people
who want to come here, come visit, what will they
find when they come here? When you open you say
you have concerts on Fridays, Tell me just a little
bit about what's offered here.
Speaker 3 (41:31):
So our property were open on Mondays, and then we're
open Thursday through Sunday, so we close on Throesday through Monday. Yeah,
some people don't have a hard time with doing that
part of the week through the Monday, but yes, we
are open five consecutive days, and we take Tuesday and
Wednesday when they come here. We have a restaurant, a
(41:54):
food offering. I wouldn't say a restaurant in the traditional
sense of the word. We have many food offerings with
our wines. We've got small plates. We've got soups, salads, sandwiches,
and flat breads, so that type of thing easy to
eat while you're wine tasting. We do weddings here. We
(42:18):
have the music every Friday night. We started the music
every Friday night as soon as we could open after
COVID once we could have things outside, because we thought, okay,
well here's a way to get this, get this gig
rolling right, let's do this, And so we've been very
consistent and our music on Friday nights is amazing.
Speaker 2 (42:38):
Now.
Speaker 3 (42:39):
When we first started, sometimes we were the only ones
in the audience listening to the bands or the musician.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
But and now when a jazz band comes and plays,
you warn them in advance that they have to know
how to play cherry pink and apple blossom.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
No, no, no, not at all, not at all.
Speaker 2 (42:57):
Well you should make sure one does and you have
that label in that bottle. Then you can raise a
glass to your dad. But in the meantime, I'm going
to raise a glass to your dad, to our JM awesome,
and to you Gina, and thank you for joining us
on Wine Soundtrack. I hope you had fun and uh,
let's get.
Speaker 3 (43:14):
It made its.
Speaker 1 (43:19):
Thanks for listening to a new episode of Wine Soundtrack USA.
For details and updates, visit our website windsoundtrack dot com.
Welcome to Wine Soundtrack USA. Listen to the passion with
which producers narrate their winery and their world team thirty
answers discover their stories, personalities, and passions.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Hello, friends and listeners of Wine's Soundtrack. This is Alison
Levine and today I am in the charming tasting room
of del Vall Wines in the Livermore Valley with owner
Gina Molinar. Cardina and Gina, Welcome to Wine's Soundtrack and
tell us a little bit about del Vall.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Sure, del Vow sits in Livermore on Tesla Road, and
we're very close to the Lake Delval. So when my
dad and I decided to open this winery in twenty twenty,
he wanted to name it Delvo Winery because of the
proximity to the lake. So that's why we did that.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And then with is this a natural lake or a
man made lake?
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Natural lake?
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
And then with our with our wine club and stuff,
we sort of went off the camping area from Lake
Delval where our wine club is the Happy Campers, So
you know, just fun things like that. Our staff wears green,
kind of like the forest green like you would wear
at a campground type thing, so just you know, fun,
(01:20):
just to play a little.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Bit on that. So you started this with your dad
and you said twenty thirteen.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
No, twenty twenty. We were actually brand new Reletive. We're yes,
this is our second winery in the valley, but we are.
We were in the title company signing everything and watching
on the TV everything closing down for the COVID pandemic.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
What timing you have, perfect.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Timing, And so it was a little daunting at first,
but actually it worked to our advantage in the end
because we had time. It was a winery before and
we wanted to go turn key into our brand, and
it helped us. Everyone was closed, so it gave us
the time to get it together so we could open
(02:07):
with our own brand and nobody was turnkey event at
the time.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Right, So how long did you have another brand for We.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Have our other brand. We've had that since the early nineties.
And what is that called. That's Gray Winery.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Okay, So Gray Winery is yours since the nineteen nineties
and then Devell and they're totally separate. There's no overlap
in terms of vineyards or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
There is overlap in terms of vineyards. Del Val Winery
has a very small sanjov Ac vineyard on it, so
those grapes are dedicated to the Delvell sanjov Ac. We
have many varietals that grow at the Gray property, so
we do some of the grapes are set aside for
(02:51):
Delvo's wines, and then we source other grapes throughout the valley,
the Livermore Valley for del Vows wines to fill in
their portfolio of wines.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
So the only thing you have planted here is san jioves.
How many acres do you have planted?
Speaker 3 (03:04):
That's a state at Garray here? Oh, it's very very tiny,
very tiny, just right out in front. We're only a
whole three acre property, so it's probably half.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
An acre of san choves. And how many acres do
you have at Gray?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
We have a twenty acre piece. Gray sits on twenty acres.
There's I think it's nine acres that are planted.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Okay, And what are the different grapes that you're working
with for this brand?
Speaker 3 (03:33):
For del Val we do grenache, which we source in
the Livermore Valley. Gray does not grow that. We have
Cabernet franc, Sauvignon blanc Chardonnay, Cabernet, Sauvignon, the San Joves,
and then we have a few.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Blends, okay, and everything sourced from Livermore Valley.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Yes, all grapes are sourced from Livermore Valley okay.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
And your total case production for.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Del val last year we did nine point fifty and
we're going to be bottling about eleven hundred cases this year,
so we've been ramping it up each year that we've
been in existence.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
And are you one hundred percent direct to consumer like
here in the tasting room and online or are you
in any markets outside of Livermore.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
No, we're one hundred percent direct to consumer.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Okay. Well, we got that out of the way. So
that's the basic stuff. So now we're going to get
to know you. So my question of you you've had
you've been involved obviously since nineteen ninety with wineries. What
is your very first memory relevant to wine?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Ooh, my very first one. I grew up in San
Francisco till I was ten and then came over to
the valley. So when I was younger, we would always
go to my great aunts and my great uncles and
we would go for Sunday dinners quite often, probably I
don't know, at least ten times a year, and the
(04:55):
jug of wine would sit on the floor by my
great uncle and I'm like, what, like, what is that stuff?
Why does it just come on the table every once
in a while when the glasses are going to get filled.
I wasn't allowed to have wine, even though you know,
back in the day the Italians all gave their kids wine,
but we didn't get wine. So that's my first recollection
(05:17):
of wine.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Your ret hole.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
Oh, I was under ten, so probably six seven.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, there you go, first memory relevant to wine. Yeah,
so obviously you've grown up and have a lot more
awareness of wine and have enjoyed a lot of wines.
Is there a particular wine somewhere, whether it was the
beginning or even more recently, it was one of those
aha moments? And what was that moment? What was it
about that wine?
Speaker 3 (05:41):
An aha moment when I when I decided I liked wine?
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Because it couldn't that or it could be later, could
just be from your travels or from exploration, just a
wine that stands out in your mind that.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
You were like, well, wine is a varietal, I will say,
and it's pino noir. I just love peano and I
think it's so friendly with or without food. I typically
eat when I'm drinking wine, even if i'm wine tasting,
I like something to nibble on. Pino noir is probably
(06:14):
the first varietal across the board that I found that
I don't have to have food with. Oh, I like
to have food with I like to have food with
all my woe. Yeah, Pano noir would be my favorite varietal.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Do you remember where the first peano no war was
from that you had?
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Oh, that's a really good question. No, I don't. Probably
in a restaurant. I got treatis to some really nice
dinners at a wine restaurant shop in Walnut Creek, and
I can't remember the name of it now, but we
had all these lovely wines that I was never experienced
(06:52):
with before. And I know I had a pino there,
but I don't remember the name. I'm sorry enough.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
So now if we came to your home, what kind
of wines do you personally drink or collect? What do
you have in your house? Is it a lot of
your own wines, Livermore Valley wines, or do you have
a lot of peanots or wines from around the world.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
No, I don't.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
I have Bubbly always, any particular champagne or non champagne.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
Champagne, typically champagne. Yes, my favorite is champagne. And I'm
not particular to a brand either, I just I love champagne,
so that's always in my house. And then the wines,
the steel wines would probably mostly be the Livermore Valleys.
I go out and taste here in the valley quite often,
(07:42):
and when I'm out, I always buy a bottle of wine,
so that comes home with me wherever I am. And yeah,
so it's Livermore Valley.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Anything you opened recently and enjoyed over dinner that drank
really well.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
The last bottle that I was a saw me blank
from here. Actually yeah drink Well, yeah it did, it did,
and I'm not a big white wine drinker, so yes, okay,
it was great.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So it's it's it's funny. I always kind of ask
this question as a one two three answer. I think
you answered already. But redwater rose red still are sparkling?
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Oh well, bubbles are my bubbles are my happy place,
so sparkling. But but yeah I like red so still too, Okay,
equal opportunity there.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Yeah, absolutely, And you were also saying that you you
think of where you enjoy wine when you're eating, I mean,
because they're naturally together. So how do you approach food
and wine pairing? Do you have rules you follow or
sort of guidelines where you say, you know, white wine
and fish, red wine and meat. Do you look more
for compliments or contrast? What do you How do you
(09:00):
approach it when you're preparing a meal at home or
even going out to a restaurant.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Right, I would say traditionally, you know the traditional way
to pair the food and the wine, but I really
like it. I like to challenge. I'm a chef at Garray,
and I like to challenge him to pair things that
are going to surprise me. So we did a wine
tasting one time where dessert was paired with a white wine,
(09:30):
a still white wine, not a dessert wine, and so
I said, surprise me. And then I had other people
taste and they wanted to go in the order of
what they thought the order was, and they thought that
white wine at the end was wrong and I'm like, no, no,
it's there intentionally, So that's what we're going to do.
And they were like wow. So I enjoy the fun
(09:51):
of it. I enjoy that part. When I'm out at
a restaurant, I drink what I like and sometimes it
doesn't go It doesn't follow any rules. I just drink
what I like.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
So is that more like you pick what you're gonna
drink and then you figure out what you're gonna eat afterwards,
or you don't care if they help each other at all.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
When I'm going out socially with friends and we're just
having a nice dinner, I don't really care if at
pair as well. I just we pick something that we
like to drink and go from there.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Just as long as it doesn't create a bad taste
in the mouth.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Exactly, exactly, exactly exactly.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
So with the different varieties that you've been working with
over the years, do you think there's a such thing
as a perfect variety?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
No? No, Because people will ask me what is my
favorite wine? And that's really so subjective. It depends on
and this is the answer I give, And then they
leave a little perplexed. But I say, well, I have
to know what am I doing? What's the temperature outside?
Am I inside? Am I outside?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Who am I with?
Speaker 3 (10:59):
Am I having food? Am I not having food. I mean,
all those things to.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Me summer is it winter? Exactly?
Speaker 3 (11:05):
All those things play on what's my favorite at the time,
So it's really hard to say. It's like, can you
pick one of your babies and call them the cutest? No,
they're all.
Speaker 2 (11:17):
Great, and perfection is just in the eye of the beholder, exactly, exactly, exactly. Well,
some people who like to ascribe or reach a level
of perfection, or wine critics and scores, they sort of
assess whether a wine has achieved what in someone's eyes
(11:37):
is close to perfection. I'm curious what your opinion is
on wine critics and scores and how do they how
important are they to you as a wine drinker, and
how important too are they to you as a small
wine brand.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
I would say when I first started drinking wine, I
was impressed by wine scores. Now I'm not so much
impress by wine scores because I see when we might
put a wine in five different competitions, and we have
sometimes five different very answers on how the wine is scored.
(12:14):
So while it's a great talking point and we do
typically get pretty good scores, it's not what I would
fall on the sword for you know.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
Yeah, and with with a small brand, I mean it's
probably a lot more word of mouth than it is
getting some bigger ward. It's I mean, I didn't spend
a lot of time. We're in a private room. I
didn't spend a lot of time in the teaser room,
but I didn't see a lot of metals hanging about.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
Now we have a little area where we're reworking and
putting some metals up there. But it's not the main gig.
I mean, it's nice and it's great to talk about,
and they do. They are all listed on our tasting menu.
We do win quite a few awards, so I mean,
I'm grateful for that and it's great.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Ye. So for somebody who hasn't had the pleasure to
taste the del val wines yet, what do you think
they're missing out on?
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Well, I think they're missing out on very approachable wines.
We are very approachable, very fruit forward, easy drinking. I
equated myself one time to a pyramid of how I
wanted wine to be made. I don't think we need
(13:35):
to make like the best wine for the top five
percent of the people, because then we'd only be marketing
to five percent of the people. I want to make
a really good wine. So I want to market to
you know, that great spot, that sweet spot where it
hits a majority of the people, where they can have
a nice dinner and enjoy the wine. And like I
(13:56):
said earlier, any wine with any food, it doesn't have
to go, you know you. I just want a very friendly,
approachable wine.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
And So if space aliens were to land in your
parking lot and come walking up to the door here,
and you were to welcome them with one wine that
says welcome to Deva like this is welcome to my winery,
which of your wines would you present them with?
Speaker 3 (14:19):
So I would probably give them Luna del Val. Okay,
Luna del Val is a lovely blend, and it's moon
over the valley. So you know, I am anticipating this
space shuttle coming down. They might be able to equate
with you know, the moon over the valley right right,
(14:41):
So we're in the valley and yeah, it's a lovely
and what is it a blend of it's a you're
going to ask me those questions and I told you
I'm not good at blends, but I was. I brought
that with me just in case you asked me. It's
sixty percent pre mativo eleven and a half percent melt
back eleven and a half percent or low six percent
Cabernet sauvignon, three percent cabne fronk, three petite for dough,
(15:06):
and five petits rah.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
That is quite a blend all liver More Valley. Wow,
quite a unique blend grapes that aren't normally put together.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
So yeah, that's wine maker for you.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
And would you say you have more blends than single
varietyal wines or a nice balance between the two. No,
we have a nice balance.
Speaker 3 (15:24):
We have We've we've had two blends for a very
long time and now we're just going to be introducing
a third blend.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Are they all as crazy as that one? Yes? Yes?
Kind of like the kitchen sink, yes, yes.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
You know we start with it with a with a
mean varietal with the blend, and then add to it
until we're happy with what we're tasting.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Okay, So do you spend a lot of time in
the vineyards or are you more the indoor like cellar girl.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
Well, actually I am the label person. I love doing
the labels. That's how I got started in this gig
with my dad when he opened the first winery is
pick me to do the labels, so that that was
just too much fun. So I've done a label that
is going to be our third blend that will have
at Delvell and it's honoring my dad. My dad passed
(16:23):
away in January of twenty three, so that was my
gig was to get this do this label for him.
So we're working on the label now. The wine is bottled.
I have two vintages bottled already, just no label, just
no label. No, I have the label. I have the label.
I'm going to show it to you. I have the label.
So yeah, so that's really exciting. And I forgot what
(16:47):
the question was.
Speaker 2 (16:47):
Well, I asked if you spend a lot of time
in the vineyard or in the cellar.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
So labels were my thing. But as far as the
vineyard goes, I love to I lived at the vineyard
for three years and just loved it. You know, it
was great to get up in the morning and see everything.
But I don't that's about the extent of it, you know.
I don't know rootstock, I don't know any of those
(17:13):
technical things. I just see how lovely they are and
how beautiful they look.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Well, when you were living on the vineyard and spending
time with the vines, did you feel that you had
sort of a I always ask for a culture, So
people who spend time in the vineyards, what kind of
a relationship they have with their vines? If they talk
to them, yell at them, cry with them, or whatever,
if the vines talked back to them. But I really
feel that when you live on a property, you are
far more in tune with the grapes that are there.
So I'm wondering, as someone who wasn't farming them, but
(17:40):
just living among them, did you feel that you had
some sort of a connection to them?
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Well? Really, no, no, no. They were the first ones
that welcomed me up in the morning. And the property
is very, very very quiet when everything has gone and
nothing's happening on the property. So the grapes were all there,
so they were my friends. Yeah, they were around.
Speaker 2 (18:03):
You never felt alone when you were with the grapes side,
I did not. And do you get involved with the
making of the wine as well? I mean, I know
you mentioned you have a wine maker and you are
the owner of the winery, but do you get involved
with the blends or with any parts of the wine
making process.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
Yes, the wine maker is. He's not insistent, but would
like us to be or like me to be a
part of that. So yeah, we do taste blends together
and make determinations based on that. I just tell him
what I'm thinking. He knows, you know, what to put
together to give me what I want. I guess, so yeah,
(18:42):
so we work.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
It that way and as a team. Do you guys
have any good luck rituals that you do at the
start of harvest or during harvest?
Speaker 3 (18:51):
No?
Speaker 2 (18:51):
No, no traditions of opening bubbles or no.
Speaker 3 (18:56):
No, not really, not really no.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
You know, we just opened bubbles every day. So exactly
a party.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
Right.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
So when you were a little girl, what did you
want to be when you grew up? I mean you
said that you moved to the valley when you were
about ten years old. Were you growing up around vineyards?
Were you familiar with this as an option?
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Never? Never thought about this in a million years. My
dad was in the garbage and recycling business in San
Francisco and then had an opportunity to buy the company
in Pleasanton, which is next door to Livermore, and so
we came over here, excuse me for that reason. And
then I've been in the garbage business. But I wanted
(19:42):
to be a teacher. My father thought I should be
his secretary, and I'm like, oh no, that's not going
to work for me. So we went along like that.
You know. I did the teacher thing. I opened up
a preschool, loved it was great, best time of my life.
And then I did end up going to work for
the garbage and recycling company, which I now own and manage.
Speaker 2 (20:07):
You worked your way from the bottom up.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
You're well trained, absolutely absolutely. Oh. I was ceialing envelopes
when I was, you know, five years old, and I
would sit when we moved to Pleasanton and people would
come to our home and talk to my parents about,
you know, the business or making decisions or whatever. I'd
sit at the table and listen, and I just took
it all in because I was I was, I am
(20:30):
the age when you were taught children are to be
seen and not heard. So I sat and I listened.
Nobody ever shunned me away from the table, So I
got a lot of experience, you know, just by sitting
there and listening. My dad, though, was doing he needed
to do a ten thirty one property exchange. He had
sold some property and he bought vineyard with the exchange,
(20:57):
and that's how we got into the wine business.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
The vineyard. Did he have an intent to make wine
or was it the age old story of you have
a vineyard because it'll be pretty to wake up to,
and then suddenly you're a wine maker.
Speaker 1 (21:08):
No.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Actually he bought property out here in Livermore, in the
Crane Ridge area, which was wenty property went. He sold
some properties and there was a pad for a house
and my mom said, I don't want to live all
the way out there. I'm like, oh, pick me please,
I'd love to live out there. It was beautiful. So
the property was planted with Murlau grapes at the height
(21:32):
of merlow. So when the first vintage came in, we
sold the grapes because we weren't quite prepared to make
our own. So my dad sold most of the grapes
and he was like, wow, where has this been all
of my life?
Speaker 2 (21:49):
A lot different, A little different than garbage, yes, yes,
much different, much different.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
In fact, my father used to say, oh God, they
come every year, these grapes. I'm not ready for this
this year. But you know, you don't get to plan that.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
Was he more involved in the farming and wine making
when he started, Oh.
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Absolutely, yeah, yeah. Not not in the you know, the
wine making. He was more of the grunt. He was
the helper to do whatever.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
You know.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
He was told by the people that knew what they
were doing what to do, and he enjoyed that.
Speaker 2 (22:27):
That's great. I'm curious. You're running two wineries and you're
running a trash business. You're a busy lady, I am.
So when do you ever have free time? Well?
Speaker 3 (22:44):
No, I I just everything kind of wraps up into one.
I don't start one job at this time and ended
at that time. It just seems to all meld into one.
So I have I have fun time when people are
working sometimes because that's not my time that I'm doing
(23:04):
a working thing. I'm doing something for the winery or
a tasting or you know, whatever it is I'm doing.
So I'm I don't have a lot of free time,
but I have a lot of great time.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
And if you have free time or had free time,
what do you like to do that you're not doing already?
What do you wish you had more time to do?
Speaker 3 (23:27):
Sit in my backyard and enjoy the warm weather and
my pool. But I plan that. I do plan times
and I have people come over. So if I make
a plan, then you know I'm solid.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Yeah. Any other hobbies, yes, I do.
Speaker 3 (23:46):
I rubber stamp, I yes.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Explain that I'm not sure I know what.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
Else rubber stamp. I actually sell the products for fun.
I've been doing it for a million years because I
love crafting, and again I didn't have time to craft.
So I thought if I made a commitment to something,
I would make the time to craft. So rubber stamping.
I teach people how to make greeting cards with stamps,
(24:14):
ink papers. It's a lot of fun. That's why when
we got into the wine business, my family got into
the wine business, I wanted to do the labels because
it was crafty to me, right, it was I could
be artsy and creative and that kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
So, yeah, a lot of fun. But your label is
not rubber stamps, or label is not rubber stay. You
don't have the you know, will travel.
Speaker 3 (24:38):
I having no, no, no, no, no, no, no not
at all.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Much more traditional, much more traditional.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Yes, absolutely, So.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
When you look back, what would you say is one
of your work wise, what would you say is one
of your proudest achievements to day?
Speaker 3 (24:58):
Oh wow, that's a hard question. I think being able
to play with the boys and hold my own because
a lot of times I don't think women get their due.
(25:18):
And so I was told not too terribly long ago
by a gentleman that he goes, well, I don't know
about kids taking over their parents' businesses, you know, they
just I don't know. And then especially girls, I'm like, wow, okay,
(25:39):
ninety five. No, this is somebody that's not very much
older than me, and he goes, but look at Gina.
She's doing it. She's doing a great job. I'm like,
somewhere in there I think was a compliment. I'll take it.
I'll take it. But yeah, I think that's probably my
my proudest moment to me, and I would like to
I would like my dad to know that I could
(26:01):
hold ma'am.
Speaker 2 (26:02):
I'm curious if you have found on the gender issue
the same challenges in wine as maybe you found in
the trash world, because I'm making an assumption that the
garbage and trash world is a far more male dominated industry.
Even the wine has always traditionally been a very male
dominated industry.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
Somewhat, yes, And in the garbage business that I'm in,
it's very family it's mostly family oriented companies, so very
similar in the wineries. It's a very similar feeling in
both businesses. But yeah, much more male dominated in the
(26:42):
garbage business. Yeah sure.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
And also I've noticed there are a lot of women
that run businesses, run wineries here in Livermore So. I mean,
since you started in the nineties, you're probably one of
the first women that was here.
Speaker 3 (26:56):
Well not the first, not definitely, not the first, but yeah,
one of them. We have a women's wine collective here,
so that's pretty cool. We get together and put on
events and yeah, it's it's really awesome.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
That's wonderful. Good women. So obviously you worked with your dad,
You sat around tables with adults talking business all the time,
is there, And you're a teacher, so you understand this
part of the question. But you know, we get advice
all the time in our lives from our teachers, our parents,
(27:32):
our mentors, our co workers. Is there a piece of
advice someone gave you along the way that has that
really stayed with you. I mean it could be a
newer piece of advice, but something that really drives either
how you live or how you work.
Speaker 3 (27:45):
M that's another good question. You asked very good questions,
thank you. One that I can't think of an answer
to right now. I mean, I guess, you know, just
have people tell me that I could do it is
good advice to me. It's just I sometimes I feel
(28:07):
unsure of myself. Maybe not so much now, but as
I was growing up and taking on leadership roles and things,
and I always tried to challenge myself because I always
felt that that was something I was lacking in and
I could just kind of stay in the shadows. But
I didn't really want to be in the shadows. So
(28:28):
just having people encourage me along the way and tell
me that I could do it, I think was probably
the best advice I had been given.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
And if you could give advice to our listeners about
wine or life, what kind of advice would you give?
Any advice? Same advice you give to your preschoolers. The
nice playfair, nice playfair. Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
You know what I would say as it relates to
the wine business especially, is try everything. You don't have
to like everything, try everything. I used it on my
preschoolers because I would cook them lunch. We would have
a prepared lunch, and you know, they'd look at me
and say, oh, I don't I.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
Don't like that.
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Have you tried that? No, then you need to try it.
But I don't like it, I said, all you need
to do is try it. If you don't like it,
you do not have to eat it. And you know,
I find myself telling people at the wine bar sometimes
when I'm there the same thing. Well, I only drink this, this,
and this, but have you tried this? Have you tried
(29:36):
primativo before? No, but you like Zimfandel it's the same thing,
so try it and if you don't like it, you
never have to drink it again, right, And they're like, oh, okay,
I mean I go on that same vein.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
I mean when someone says I don't like white wine,
I'm like, you know, there are like a thousand grapes
out there that are white. It's hard to say you
don't like any. Up to the challenge. I'll find one
for you. But also it is that thing that even
if you don't like one wine, like, someone tries your
primitive and they don't like it, doesn't mean they won't
like your nextdoor neighbors, or they haven't had a good experience,
but they haven't tried yours, and yours is grown in
(30:13):
different soil with a different wine maker. They should give
yours a chance because who knows.
Speaker 3 (30:18):
Which I think is the beauty of a wine club.
You know, join a wine club and you get a
variety of things. I love it when people stick with
our package that we have for that club's release, rather
than oh can I change this because I don't like
da da da da da. You know, I think it's
I think that's the reason to join, is to be
(30:39):
exposed to those other varietals or that year or that
style or whatever it is, and then try it.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
With food, and it may be a totally different experience. Exactly, exactly,
absolutely so complete this sentence. For me, A table without
wine is like.
Speaker 3 (30:58):
A diet, That's true. I mean, what do they let
you have on a diet, like three ounces of wine?
You might as well just say, have the table without
the wine.
Speaker 2 (31:14):
Let's go back to that table. There's wine on it. Okay,
We've got your bottles of wine on a table, we're
sitting around it. There's an empty seat next to it.
Who from any walk of life living or deceased. Do
you wish you could sit down and share a bottle
of your wine with Oh?
Speaker 3 (31:34):
Well, I think my grandfather when I knew him, he
no longer drank wine, but he loved growing, and he
was alive when we started the winery, and so my
dad had brought him out to the vineyard a few times.
(31:55):
But he said, you know, you just couldn't grow grapes
in California. It's not hilly enough. So my grandfather grew
up in a small providence outside of Venice, and so there,
he said, the hillsides where you grew the best grapes,
(32:16):
and so they weren't going to grow here. So we
didn't really get a lot of time with him once
we had started this, And it would have been so
great and so much fun now to sit with him
if he were to drink the wine especially and try
the wine and just be able to give us the
nuggets of knowledge that he had from from all of
(32:38):
his time growing. When he came to California, that's what
he did, was he went to work in the farms.
He grew gladiolas.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
And I don't remember what else, but yeah and yeah,
and he would see that a valley floor is okay, yes, yeah, exactly,
it makes wine exactly, drinkable wine, drinkable wine exactly.
Speaker 2 (32:58):
Yeah. Do you have any what you said you're you're
into creative. Do you have any favorite you know, musicians
or groups that you like to listen to, any certain
performers or do you have any favorite films dedicated to wine?
(33:20):
Anything wine related in that way? Maybe not music, music's
not wine related, but.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
No, I know not one that I can think of.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
No. And with your preschoolers, you have the school a
while ago, right before you started wine, so they're not
all grown up and they're able to drink right.
Speaker 3 (33:37):
Yes, absolutely, I've seen a few of them.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Oh yeah. So if your whole preschool class from the
nineteen eighties nineties were to walk in here today and
you could give them one wine to say welcome guys,
and I'm so glad you're grown up and old enough. Now,
which why did you want to show their share with them?
Speaker 3 (33:55):
Well, I would have to pick probably Cabne franc I
love Caberne franc and, so I think i'd pick Caberne
franc It's pretty consistent with us here in the valley, So.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
I think i'd pick that okay, And they've come in here,
so they've probably tried it, so I would hope. Yes.
Is it a little scary when you fed them when
they were like four and now they drink your wine? Yes?
Speaker 3 (34:24):
Very much, so very much. So.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
So if if I, if you were to go out,
I send you off to a deserted island, and you
can only take three wines with you, Any three wines
from anywhere in the world, any producer, any grape. What
three wines would you take with you?
Speaker 3 (34:43):
Hmm, Well, I would take does it have to be specific?
I would take a bubbly. I would take a Peano noir,
I kind of like the well Lamite Valley in Oregon
peanuts And what else would I take? Oh? Probably Luna
(35:03):
del val.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
But see, take one of your own. It's always worse
than wait, I'm not surprised by the champagne.
Speaker 3 (35:12):
So yeah, I know it's really hard, huh. And I'm
not real particular, you know, I like a lot of
them equal opportunists.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
I get it. Well, you know the one thing you
were warned about at the beginning. You know none of
the questions coming, But you do know that we play
a game of wine and music. And it is that time.
And while you think you know, you think you've prepared,
you don't know the wines I'm going to pick. That's
(35:42):
the trick.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
I know that's freaky.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
Now. You know wine, as you talked about drinking wine
and how it works with food, and that wine is
something you drink based on how you feel, the mood,
the weather, everything you talked about that a lot, and
what are you in the mood to drink right now
versus maybe tonight at dinner or in three months when
it's hot, or in five months when it's cold. Music
(36:07):
has that same feeling for us. We listen to what
we listen to based on our moods or it puts
us in a mood. So combining those two things together,
I want to pick a few wines ones you've talked about.
I want to start with what I've been drinking, which
is the rose, this electric cotton candy colored rose of grenache.
(36:29):
So tell me about the wine and what song, genre
or musician you think it represents well.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
The songs have to be very poppy, very fun. Sun
Roof by Nikki Yours and Daisy I think is a
great song for that. It's just you know, something that
play playful, playful. It's playful to me. The wine is playful,
it's you described it to a tea. The cotton candy
color is so pretty and just very vibrant.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
And I might not take that back and say it's
watermelon jelly rancher. I'm kind of between the two. It
kind of fluctuates. Maybe so maybe so not sure. Okay.
Then you talked about the Cabernet Franc, what you would
be giving to your young students now that they're grown up,
and that you say it's consistent every year, and we
know that Cap Franc is now one of the declared
(37:21):
official varieties of the Livermore Valley. So tell me about
that Cap Frank and the song it conjures for you.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
So Cabernet Franc for me is a little bit more
on the elegant side. So I would go with Deep
Smooth by Santana, okay, because I think, although I don't
know that Santana, I would consider him elegant, but he's,
you know, just the music is elegant to me, especially
(37:50):
with featured with Rob Thomas. You know, it's just okay.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
And then let's talk about your kitchen sink Red Blend,
Luna Velle, Lenda del Val, that you give the aliens,
Lena del Val, that I give the aliens.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
Funny enough is I think? Ain't no mountain high enough?
I love it right. It conjures up fun. It's everybody
dancing together and just a lot of fun. I think
for me that and these grapes will have fun together,
and they do. There's enough of them so they're having
a good time.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
And then the last one we're gonna do. I've got
the bottles sitting in front of me, haven't tasted yet.
It doesn't have a label on it. I'm assuming this
is the one you talked about that you have made
two vintages and have a label, but haven't put the
label on yet. So tell me what this one is.
It was made for your father. But what is the varietal?
What are the varieties in it? What is the wine?
Speaker 3 (38:42):
Sure? So again I'll refer to my notes because I
can't remember all these things. I'm old now. But it's
predominantly Kevini franc It's fifty percent cavern and frank which
was a favorite of my dad's as well, thirty percent
caps so of ten percent petitsa ROVs five Sangio and
five Primativo. And you know, it's it's my fault that
(39:04):
it has sat without a label for such a long
time because I agonized for the right words to put
on the on the back label, and I just, you know,
one day sat down and said, Gina, you have to
get this done. There are two vintages now bottled and
they are ready, so get it together. So I finally
got it together. The label is done. We're just waiting
(39:26):
for the foil to be done on the label now
and then it'll it will be linked.
Speaker 2 (39:30):
And what is the official name of the one.
Speaker 3 (39:32):
It's called r JM. My dad's name was Robert Joseph Molnharo.
So you know, I thought it would be fun. You know,
everybody does the the the GSM, and I'm like, oh, well, GSM.
I know it stands for three grapes, but we're gonna
do r JM, just five exactly.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
And what song would you pair with that?
Speaker 3 (39:53):
Well, I my dad loved saxophone music, and he served
in the army and was at Panama and when he
went off in the fifties mid fifties, the perez Parato
was playing cherry Pink and Apple blossom White. Now probably
(40:18):
you wouldn't know it by the title, but if you
heard the music, you would know this music. And every
time we would have musicians come to Del Valle, we
have music here every Friday night. So every time we'd
have musicians come that were saxophone players, he'd ask them,
can you play the song? Can you play the song?
None of them could ever play the song because the
(40:40):
song is from nineteen fifty five, but it's in honor
of him, and it was when they made the music.
It was for young love and you know, just that
wide eyed and that was my dad then when he
was going off to the service.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
So perfect. There you go. Yeah, okay, last question, what
wine region in the world is at the top of
your bucket list to go explore? Domestic, international, anywhere Italy, Italy,
any particular region or just.
Speaker 3 (41:12):
Italy, just Italy, but I'd probably want to go to Tuscany.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
And the second half of that question is for people
who want to come here, come visit, what will they
find when they come here? When you open you say
you have concerts on Fridays, Tell me just a little
bit about what's offered here.
Speaker 3 (41:31):
So our property were open on Mondays, and then we're
open Thursday through Sunday, so we close on Throesday through Monday. Yeah,
some people don't have a hard time with doing that
part of the week through the Monday, but yes, we
are open five consecutive days, and we take Tuesday and
Wednesday when they come here. We have a restaurant, a
(41:54):
food offering. I wouldn't say a restaurant in the traditional
sense of the word. We have many food offerings with
our wines. We've got small plates. We've got soups, salads, sandwiches,
and flat breads, so that type of thing easy to
eat while you're wine tasting. We do weddings here. We
(42:18):
have the music every Friday night. We started the music
every Friday night as soon as we could open after
COVID once we could have things outside, because we thought, okay,
well here's a way to get this, get this gig
rolling right, let's do this, And so we've been very
consistent and our music on Friday nights is amazing.
Speaker 2 (42:38):
Now.
Speaker 3 (42:39):
When we first started, sometimes we were the only ones
in the audience listening to the bands or the musician.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
But and now when a jazz band comes and plays,
you warn them in advance that they have to know
how to play cherry pink and apple blossom.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
No, no, no, not at all, not at all.
Speaker 2 (42:57):
Well you should make sure one does and you have
that label in that bottle. Then you can raise a
glass to your dad. But in the meantime, I'm going
to raise a glass to your dad, to our JM awesome,
and to you Gina, and thank you for joining us
on Wine Soundtrack. I hope you had fun and uh,
let's get.
Speaker 3 (43:14):
It made its.
Speaker 1 (43:19):
Thanks for listening to a new episode of Wine Soundtrack USA.
For details and updates, visit our website windsoundtrack dot com.
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