Their winemaking is old world style – applied to Napa fruit. Vellum’s primary focus is on producing a Bordeaux styled wine with ageability, yet be approachable upon release, containing lower alcohol and a palate that has mouth watering acidity. Vellum Wine Craft was founded in 2006 and their first release was from 2007.
VELLUM WINE FULL
Jeff has certainly come full circle – from living out of a backpack and trying to enjoy sometimes palatable food at insane heights during his days mountain climbing to living in wine country surrounded by good food – and now a part of its premium wine industry. If you are making premium wine it takes time to get noticed by critics, the public, build a wine club/mailing list or build distribution, if that is your business model. It takes time – from speaking to vintners on this project it usually takes at least 10 years to create a viable wine brand. Another quote of wisdom came from a president of a Napa winery who Jeff met on one of his climbs – he simply said “do not die” – wisdom that makes sense considering their time together on the mountain, but he was actually referring to a building a new wine brand. “Be the cheapest or be the best” – it is Napa of course and their wines are all hand crafted with the goal to produce a premium product. Jeff received a number of wine related advice when he and Karl started their brand. These are characteristics that are essential to starting, building and growing a successful wine brand. The dedication and perseverance that Jeff demonstrated during his mountain climbing career is something you cannot teach. Like their wines that are built to improve and can handle significant aging, Jeff and his partner did not enter the wine industry as a short term business. After 200 phone calls he finally received his first returned phone call which ultimately turned into a successful sponsorship. Climbing the world’s tallest mountains is no easy feat but seeking corporate sponsorship as a 22 year old posed a challenge in its own right.
He decided to enlist the help of corporate sponsorship – this was not easy: after targeting and researching potential companies for sponsorship – he started calling them directly. He quickly realized that climbing tall mountains boasting a serious pedigree required some serious cash. Jeff enjoyed a career mountain climbing for a number of years and has reached the summit of six of seven of the world’s highest mountains on every continent. Davis Viticulture and Enology program) and Jeffrey Mathy who has an advanced certification from the Wine & Spirits Education Trust in London and has managed wine programs for the American Center for Wine Food and the Arts. Vellum Wines is run by two individuals with a passion for wine – winemaker, Karl Lehmann (graduate of U.C.
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