“Sugarloaf Crush offers a top-of-the-line production environment, but the added hospitality services are the clincher,” says winemaker Ted Weisser, who makes his Satyre brand at Sugarloaf and is now spearheading the new Sonoma Vintners Studio at Sugarloaf Crush.
Set to open June 1, the Sonoma Vintners Studio is a 2,800-square-foot tasting lounge featuring clean, modern lines and a sought-after selection of pours from premium labels crushing at the facility. Guests will be invited to sample featured client wines in a variety of formats. “The focus will be on seated reserve tastings,” says Weisser, “but we will be open for walk-ins as well.”
The Studio is equipped with a state-of-the-art wine preservation system that allows hosts to pour a variety of artisan wines from Sugarloaf Crush’s participating clients at any time. A Sonoma Vintners Studio Wine Club will package a curated selection of wines from participating brands for a truly unique offering for visitors.
In addition to the tasting lounge, the hospitality center comes equipped with private event rooms for entertaining VIP guest, writers, and wine club members, or for meeting with distributors. The facility also includes a commercial-grade kitchen allowing for food- and wine-pairing possibilities.
“The Sonoma Vintners Studio gives the growing, premium brands at Sugarloaf a chance to expand their direct-to-consumer sales channel,” says Weisser. “We contemplated building a tasting room for Satyre, but the costs were prohibitive, so being part of the collective tasting room is a great opportunity.”
Once opened, the Studio will offer guests the full luxury winery experience on the doorstep of Santa Rosa, and will be open for regular tasting-room hours. Its location—set amidst a three-acre vineyard, landscaped lawn and terrace area—is also adjacent to the production facility, making winery tours possible, as well.
Sugarloaf Crush is currently home to 26 artisan wine brands, and those with separate tasting rooms may use the Studio as a second location or for special events or tastings. Sugarloaf Crush will manage all staffing and promotion for the Sonoma Vintners Studio.
“It’s difficult to sell consumers on the kind of premium wines made at Sugarloaf Crush without offering the full winery experience they’ve become accustomed to,” notes Weisser. “The Sonoma Vintners Studio gives our clients the opportunity to make that connection with consumers without having to build, manage, and promote their own destination.”
Sugarloaf Crush recently expanded its capacity, installing additional tanks. The winery currently has limited space to take on additional clients for 2018 crush. To learn more visit www.sugarloafcrush.com or contact General Manager Ronald Du Preez at info@slcrush.com.
