Cellar 13 may not be in the front of everyone’s mind when thinking of where to taste in the Livermore Valley, but I can tell you, that won’t last too long.
At this point, I can say Cellar 13 is the best hidden gem of wine in the Livermore Valley.
Here’s the kicker – we loved every wine we tried as there wasn’t a bad one in the bunch.
Almost always when wine tasting, my wife and I will look at each other and say, “not my favorite.” It didn’t happen this time. Imagine that – wine tasting and never finding a bad one.
Cellar 13 is the child of winemaker Darin Winton and his fiancé Gail Henderson.
Cellar 13 can trace back to 2017 and the San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition where Winton entered one barrel of Cabernet Sauvignon and one barrel od Chardonnay.
Both took Double Gold and away they went.
We first ran into Cellar 13 at a wine festival during the one meet of Golden State Racing at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. We had a nice visit with Henderson and at that point we planned on writing a story.
Cellar 13 was pouring once a month a Swirl on the Square and there had always seemed to be a conflict, and we could not get free.
The name Cellar 13 comes from the soccer jersey number Winton wore when growing up.
Recently my wife and I and a nice Saturday afternoon decided to check out Swirl, a business we had yet to visit. Walking in the door, we looked to left and saw Winton and Henderson pouring their wine.
Somethings are just meant to be.
It didn’t take long to see the passion in Winton making the wine, and Henderson drawing on her marketing and sales expertise, to promote and spread the word of Cellar 13.
He took enology classes, volunteered during several harvests, and was finally hired as an assistant winemaker at a local winery. He worked for several years under the tutelage of Steve Burman from 3 Steves Winery fame.
We spent some time at 3 Steves and have always enjoyed the vibe. After learning from Burman, you can see the same fun vibe in Winton.
Winton is ¼ American Cherokee and is one of the few Native American Professional Winemakers in the United States. He got into the wine business after retiring from running a local water department.
He honors his heritage with the naming of Cellar 13’s Bordeaux blends with works from the Cherokee language.
The Right Bank Bordeaux blend is called Aliheliga which means “Grateful,” in Cherokee The Left Bank blend is known as Tsogadu which is “13” in Cherokee. Finally, the white blend is named Sidanely, which means “family,” in Cherokee.
The artwork on the back of the labels are original works created by Cherokee artist John Balloue, an uncle of Winton.
The wine club, known as “First in Line” wine club is one heck of deal, involving only two wines, twice a year and you customize the shipment.
There are free tastings for the member and a guest, as well as special events. The membership is getting close to filling up so get out if you haven’t, taste some wine, and join the wine club.
Even though they are using a space in Swirl to pour their wines, they put their own stamp on it. When a brick-and-mortar location finally happens for Cellar 13, count on it being a very chill spot that will be a sensational place to visit, relax and enjoy some quality wines.
Winton and Handerson are currently heading up the Cellar 13 Rome to Venice Cruise and should return in mid-to-late May.
After that check www.cellar13winery.com for a schedule of when they will be pouring at Swirl!
By Dennis Miller