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W i n e s & V i n e s J U ly 2 0 1 4 41 to thoroughly understand the crush pad and estate grapes. Family background in winemaking Ortman, who is now also the winery's chief operating officer, came to Villa San- Juliette following the closure of Ortman Family Wines in November 2011. Matt Ortman had started the business with his father, Chuck Ortman, who founded Meridian Vineyards and sold that winery to Beringer Vineyards in 1988. A graduate of California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, Matt Ortman had a degree in construction management and an interest in fermenta- tion. Friends encouraged him to turn his homebrewing hobby into a profession after college, and he studied brewing at the University of California, Davis. He found few prospects in the late 1990s, however, as the beer industry contracted following the boom of microbreweries during the first half of the decade. Ort- man worked in construction in the San Francisco Bay Area for a few years before he decided to move back to the Central Coast and help his father launch the fam- ily brand. Ortman said it was hard to close the family winery, but he sees his work at Villa San-Juliette as a means to maintain a legacy in winemaking. He also occa- sionally asks his father for winemaking advice. Focusing on making wine with estate grapes is also a bit easier than run- ning one's own winery. "It's hard to wear a sales hat and a marketing hat and a winemaker's hat," Ortman said. The tasting room at Villa San-Juliette is decorated with photos of Lythgoe and Warwick in sessions with musicians such as Elton John, Mariah Carey, Dolly Par- ton, Gwen Stefani and others, but aside from the photos, the owners' celebrity appears to have a minimal presence at the winery. Both Lythgoe and Warwick have residences on the estate and visit the win- ery regularly, yet they have given Ortman free rein in the cellar, saying, "We like the wines that he makes, so we're not going to tell him how to make them." Getting to know the vines Ortman's first experience with the estate came in winter 2012, when as a consul- tant he ran blending trials on that year's wines. The 2013 vintage gave him invaluable insights into the estate and its potential. Situated at 1,000 to 1,200 feet in elevation, the property consists of roll- ing hills with about 3-4 feet of loose, sandy topsoil. The vineyard is certified through Sustainability in Practice (SIP) and managed by Tim Lindquist of Vine- yard Professional Services in nearby Templeton, Calif. While he's still getting to know the vine- yards, Ortman said his initial impression is that the grapes tend to reach maturity without getting overly fruity. Fruit flavors are balanced by a mineral quality he attri- butes to a good skin-to-juice ratio. "What I see is our berry size is really small, our cluster size is really small and compact," he said. The estate vineyard is 129 acres, and 48 of those are Cabernet Sauvignon planted in 2008, after Lythgoe and Warwick pur- chased the property in 2005. Ortman said Highlights • Winemaker Matt Ortman guided a major expansion at Villa San-Juliette winery near Paso Robles, Calif. • Fermentation is managed by a com- pressed air system from Pulsair. • The winery is owned by TV producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick, who developed television shows including "So You Think You Can Dance" and "American Idol." Winemaker Matt Ortman has been with the winery since 2012. Villa San-Juliette produces a line of estate wines as well as its second label Fat Monk, which is made with estate and purchased grapes. G R A P E G R O W I N G W I N E M A K I N G