A Conversation with Redwood Creek Winemaker Cal Dennison
Shared from Travel Lady magazine from the article A taste of Adventure – [ Rattlesnake or Scorpion anyone???]
Cal Dennison, winemaker for Redwood Creek, is a native of the Bay Area who has been making rich, flavorful California wines for more than two decades. A rancher, rodeo organizer and avid outdoorsman, Cal has always been passionate about nature and the amazing foods and wines of his state. His taste for adventure and the best California has to offer is reflected in the outgoing, satisfying wines he creates for Redwood Creek. What follows are excerpts from a brief conversation with Cal about his profession and his passions.
Q: Tell us your favorite part of a day in the life of Cal Dennison.
A: The drive into work. My job lets me spend every day of my life doing something I really love: making wines that taste exceptional and aren’t expensive so that people can enjoy them as a part of their daily lives. I consider myself one of the lucky ones.
Q: What’s the best part about making wine?
A: Most definitely the harvest. Nothing compares to getting in there and getting your hands dirty, so to speak. It’s really the culmination of what I love about winemaking; the connection to the earth, the smell of the fall air and the picking of the grapes. This is also the time when everyone works together in the field, the winemaker, the viticulturists, the cellar masters…That sense of community is really unique to the wine business, I think.
Q: What do you like to do when you’re not making wine?
A: It’s funny because I don’t see that much separation between my work and the rest of my life. In fact, it sounds strange to me to even make that differentiation because I feel like the two complement each other so well. What I mean is, I draw a lot on my real-life experience to inspire me to create Redwood Creek.
I really believe in pursuing life to the fullest. I raise Paint horses on my ranch with my wife and son. I’m something of a cowboy, too, and I organize rodeos in my hometown of Oakdale, CA – we call it the “Cowboy Capital of the World.” I like to get out there and whitewater raft whenever I can and I also love mountain biking in the Sierra Nevadas. I just basically love the outdoors; and here in California we have access to so much of it, it’s amazing.
I think wine fits really nicely into all of that, whether it’s at a campfire cookout at the end of a day of mountain biking or at the dinner table with my wife. It’s all about pursuing those rich, flavorful moments for me and I’m glad if I can help other people do that too in a small way by making Redwood Creek.
Q: Which is your favorite of the Redwood Creek wines?
A: Well, now that’s a real tough one! I think they all have their perfect times and places. How’s that for a diplomatic answer!
I’ll tell you, my favorite thing about all of them is that we’ve made great, quality wines that are affordable. Something that’s accessible, that you can have on your table everyday that will add a little something extra to life.
Dennison joined the winemaking industry in 1983 as a UC Davis graduate with a degree in Viticulture and Enology. Having worked with grapes from some of the finest vines of the Coastal, Central and Southern regions of California, Dennison brings a comprehensive and intimate understanding of the subtle gradations of climate and soil throughout the state to create these award-winning, single varietal wines.
