Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/708909
WINEMAKING TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT 56 WINES&VINES August 2016 darosa + associates planning + architecture since 1986 475 el camino real, # 308 millbrae, ca 94030 johnnydarosa@post.harvard.edu 650-692-4072 The winery was designed with a tempera- ture-controlled room adjacent to the fermenta- tion cellar to house a bottling line in the future. Currently, Peregrine Mobile Bottling and Ryan Mobile Bottling (both based in Napa) provide onsite bottling services. Materra uses Valley Wine Warehouse in American Canyon for long- term case goods storage. Future plans include adding open-top fermen- tors with automatic punchdown and connecting the winery and barrel buildings with an overhead cover above the concrete pad that is used for barrel operations such as racking and cleaning. Regalia noted that the estate vineyards and the new winemaking facility are both impor- tant quality factors. "This is a really great spot to grow Chardonnay and Merlot," he said. "Our estate white wines retain acid well, so we don't have to do a lot of adjusting to maintain bright- ness and good acidity," he observed. Summariz- ing the benefits of the new winery, Regalia said, "Having complete control over the entire pro- duction was a huge factor for quality control, and being able to do all the work ourselves enabled us to achieve our desired goals." Tasting room and visitor facilities The facade of the tasting room and main visi- tor entrance features French chateau-style architecture. The tasting room interior and visitor space is elegant but simple. As Cunat Heitz explained, "We have few products and accessories for sale in the tasting room com- pared with most wineries, and our décor and artwork are minimal because we want the focus to be on the wine." The hospitality space includes a library room that features glass doors that provide a look into the barrel cellar on one side and a glass-enclosed wine library on the other side. The wine library features a glass floor over an excavation trench to permit a view of the vine- yard's soil layers, the "Materra." The tasting room is open by appointment only, with three different tasting and tour op- tions. Visitors may be taken to the library room for a seated tasting or to an outdoor picnic area. "We like to sit down with visitors and take them through the wines to tell stories about each one, and how our winery came about," Cunat Heitz said. Materra's wine sales goals are to sell 50% through distribution and 50% direct to con- sumer through wine club and tasting room sales. Current distribution is mostly to restaurants and fine wine shops in the Midwest and Florida, with some export to Japan and China. As the wine brand grows in production to an anticipated 25,000 cases, the hospitality program will likely change and grow over time. As Cunat Heitz explained: "Our first priority is to make the best wine we possibly can. How- ever, the customer service experience has to be just as important as the quality of the wine, and it's my job to develop that." Ted Rieger, CSW, is a wine journalist based in Sacra- mento, Calif. He has been a freelance writer and pho- tographer since 1984 and a regular contributor to wine trade media since 1988. The wine library room features a seated tasting area for wine club members and winery tours with a view of the glass-enclosed wine library.