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Three years ago, in September 2022, Mike Kohne and Maura Cooper unveiled their vision for Crave Wine Co. at the Kinship Wine & Food Tasting event at Paicines Ranch. It was another four months before they could open their shop, but, helped by that event, they had already woven Crave into the fabric of the local wine community through soft-opening events, four themed wine clubs, and an extensive inventory leaning heavily on local wineries and vineyards.
“It was significant in getting the name out,” Kohne said, “because nobody knew who we were. So it was the opportunity to talk to 600 people about what we were going to be offering, as well as do our part for Kinship by being there.”
Kohne describes the time before they received approval to open as “ground zero,” when the business relied on friends, family, and colleagues to establish itself.
“We didn’t always have the answer as to when we were going to open,” he said. “We couldn’t tell people a date. So their support meant everything to us and kept us going.”
The first wine club was the Crave Club, which offers two bottles every other month at a standardized price of $45. The second, the “20” Club, focuses on local wines, with three or four bottles at $115 issued quarterly. The third was the Atlas Club, which issues six bottles from around the world at $200 three times a year.
Keeping the prices for all the clubs at a dependable amount was a key idea from the start. Kohne said that he had experienced being part of wine clubs that had fluctuating prices depending on the selections. This means, he said, that a club that might regularly be $250 a shipment could magically rocket up to $500 based on the whim of the winery.
“We wanted to curate to those price points,” he said. “And it’s grown because we have a little bit more buying power, so we’re able to get wines that far exceed value-wise what the price point of the club shipment would be.”
(The current 20 Club release includes a merlot from Twice Tyger, a new winery that Kohne is working with. Twice Tyger wines are also being featured at Hideaway in San Juan Bautista.)
Mike Kohne at Twice Tyger event at Hideaway in San Juan Bautista. Photo by Robert Eliason.
The recently formed Bubbles Club—six bottles three times a year for $200—was a response to overwhelming customer demand.
“One of the things we found at Crave,” Kohne said, “was just how many people adore sparkling wines. Obviously, we love them too, but we didn’t realize the ferocity of people’s admiration for bubbles.”
Crave is also continuing a collaboration with Hollister’s Chef David Jamrock, of the Jamrock Culinary Arts Center, with the next event, an Oct. 4 Dinner Club presentation of a five-course mushroom-based meal paired with “a spectrum of pinot noirs.”
“We always have fun with these,” Kohne said. “David’s such a great chef and he has so much experience that he can make anything. We are looking forward to several dinners with him this fall.”
One of the first events ever held at Crave was an “Old World vs. New World” tasting event, intended to showcase the depth of its inventory by comparing different varietals from around the world—such as Bordeaux from France, Argentina, and the Carmel Valley, for example.
The most recent event, on Jan. 25, revisited Old World wines, with five selections presented by Jannae Lizza from Northern California Wine Sales and Elevage Wine, the former wine director for Pacific Grove’s Passionfish restaurant.
“We are a distributor,” she said, “that focuses on everyone who is farming organically, if not biodynamically. Very hands-off, very traditional, and very small growers.”
We tasted three white wines and two reds, each fitting into a greater theme of small production wineries, old vine fruit, and rocks-and-gravel geography
Thevenet & Fils Blanc de Blancs Brut NV – This sparkling wine from the Mâcon region of Southern Burgundy is 100% chardonnay and spent six months on the lees before being bottled. “We should always start any meal with bubbles,” Lizza said. “I think it’s a great way of just opening your palette, before starting on the next course or getting other wines flowing. And this is a great go-to value.” The wine is bone-dry and has only modest hints of toast and yeast, which keeps it clean, bright and light. Delightful.
Casa Setaro 2024 “Campanelle” Falanghina – Owned by Massimo Setaro, the wine is named for one of the shapes of his family’s famous Italian Setaro brand pastas. The vineyards and winery are located in Campania, on the slopes of Vesuvius, and the wine is 100% falanghina. The grapes are drained from the must and fermented for 20 days before being transferred to steel for six months, followed by two months in the bottle.
Lizza describes the aroma as “melon and grapefruit and those white decorator rocks you see in someone’s yard,” but I got a much stronger scent of peeled orange and spring blossoms. The ripe lemon and pear flavors are enhanced by that white rock minerality of Lizza’s, and its straightforward crisp juiciness makes it a perfect picnic wine.
Romain Chamoit 2022 Apremont – “This is what you want after skiing,” Lizza said, “It definitely has a more floral kind of waxy quality to it. It smells like it’s going to be lighter, but it really does sit on your palette.” A 100% Jacquère wine from Romain Chamiot, the light stony aroma belies a panoply of flavor notes from green apple to fresh herbs. Lizza mentions just the tiniest hint of caramel, as if someone “brûléed a grapefruit,” and, bless the power of suggestion, I have to say she is right.
2022 Ψ (“Psi”) Tempranillo Ribera del Duero – Dutch winemaker Peter Sisseck gathers grapes from over 100 growers in high-altitude regions in northern Spain that are known for limestone and clay soils. This project has given growers an incentive to maintain these old vines in the ground rather than replace them with new, more productive ones.
This tempranillo is blended with a bit of grenache, cabernet and syrah, making it a bit huskier and a bit more aromatic. The tannins are there, but are light rather than exhausting, and they are integrated nicely with the wine’s cherry, plum and fig notes. It’s robust with a high acidity, but has a very long and pleasant finish. It is definitely a mealtime wine, with a bit of time to breathe ahead of the meal and Lizza suggested pairing it with red meat and grilled mushrooms
Alvaro Palacios 2023 Camins del Priorat – Primarily a blend of grenache and carignan, Wine Spectator gave this splendid wine 91 points and was the star of the tasting. Kohne said this wine was one of the standouts for him as well, praising its aromatic and textual components that “punch above its weight class and overdeliver.”
Lizza said the grapes benefit from being grown in the unusual ‘llicorella” soil of the Priorat region of Spain, a mix of slate, mica, and quartz, which gives the wine a distinctive minerality and complexity. Palacios also harvests from more than 90 small parcels, working directly with the families to get the results he wants.
“Your grandma could have grapes in her backyard,” she said, “and he’s going to teach her how to farm organically and biodynamically. So he’s leaving the community a better place, teaching everyone how to farm in a better way.”
You can’t argue with the results: from the dusty pinot-like aroma to the ephemeral tannins to the note of dark currents and berries with a bit of licorice and star anise thrown in, the wine resolves in a melt-in-your-mouth finish that makes you start thinking about picking up a bottle and grilling up some steaks. Crave is going to stock a small quantity of this one—it is one of the best grenaches I have had recently.
Crave Wine Co.
616 San Benito Street, Hollister
Hours:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday: Closed (open for Book Club – Events)
Wednesday- Saturday 1:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Sundays: Noon-6:30 p.m.
Crave is on Instagram and Facebook and has an upcoming events page.
Recommendations for future Eat, Drink, Savor articles can be emailed to roberteliason@benitolink.com.
BenitoLink thanks our underwriters, Hollister Super and Windmill Market, for helping to expand the Eat, Drink, Savor series and give our readers the stories that interest them. Hollister Super (two stores in Hollister) and Windmill Market (in San Juan Bautista) support reporting on the inspired and creative people behind the many delicious food and drink products made in San Benito County. All editorial decisions are made by BenitoLink.
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