The Hobo Wine Company | Santa Rosa, California
What should we know about the team at Hobo Wines?
We’re a small, family-owned business. Behind every bottle of our wines is real people doing all the work. We have three full time employees and have achieved enough balance to keep us busy.
We launched The Hobo Wine Company in 2002 and our businesses has grown annually each year up until 2020 given all that has come our way. During the Glass Fire this fall, we lost approximately 40-50% of our red wine production due to smoke taint. But, we remain optimistic about what we can produce and are focused on the future.
We release wine under six labels. Our Camp wines began in 2013 and showcase Sonoma’s quality. We produce a Sonoma County Cabernet, Merlot, Cab Franc, Chardonnay and Zinfandel. Under Folk Machine, we release our popular Pinot Noirs and, more recently, some of our esoteric varietals.
Banyan is one of my personal favorite lines, which was created back in 2002 as an homage to my Thai roots with a Gewurztraminer that pairs well with Southeast Asian Cuisine. And Ghostwriter features rich wines from the Santa Cruz Mountains, including a Cabernet, Syrah and Pinot Noirs.
What sets your wines apart?
We produce a lot of interesting and nontraditional varietals from the northern California region. I started experimenting with buying and blending them 20 years ago, but they’ve been underutilized as blends. California wineries are beginning to feature more diverse varietal-specific wines, but because we’ve always believed in bucking the norm, we have access to grapes that others are on lengthy wait lists to get their hands on.
Right now, I am most excited about our Charbono, which is drinking the best it has in the last 7-8 years. We also planted Aglianico 6-7 years ago and believe 2019 is our best vintage.
While we think we produce some pretty great wine, what sets us apart is our value. We overdeliver as an artisan and boutique producer at our price point. We’re also stewards of the environment and help our customers in their efforts to become greener businesses. We proudly participate in 1% for the Planet, giving one percent of our gross (not net) revenue to vetted environmental nonprofits. This is an appeal that customers can pass on to their customers – every purchase is contributing to a larger mission. You’ll see the 1% logo on every bottle.