Vine Wise
Patz & Hall version 3.0… [is] a different, more focused, and structured business.
Patz & Hall founder returns to a very different wine industry By Adam Lee
T he 1990s and early 2000s were a heady time in the wine business. Wine was growing in the American consciousness and critics were handing out higher and higher scores as wine quality consistently improved. Then, movies such as Sideways pushed wine’s profile even further in the early 2000s. Most importantly, consumers were paying attention to all these things— and they were in the mood to buy wine. It was during this time that I came to know James Hall, Anne Moses, Donald and Heather Patz. They had started Patz & Hall Winery back in 1988 producing mainly chardonnay. Six years later, Dianna Novy and I started Siduri Wines, producing exclusively pinot noir. As wine grew, I’d often find myself at events with James and we became friends. Sideways created a boon in pinot noir sales and before you knew it James and I—along with many other talented winemakers—were in demand. We happily shared the spotlight. I remember one “pinot tour” where an entire group of us had grown tired of talking about our own wines so we decided to take on the role of salesperson for another winemaker’s wine. Next thing we knew, I was introducing another winemaker’s wine and fielding questions about it as if it was my own. Someone did the same for my Siduri Pinot Noir. That’s how well we knew each other’s wines and stories. As time went by our business grew and matured and things changed. I don’t remember who sold first, but in 2009 Michael Browne and Dan Kosta, part of our group, sold Kosta-Browne Winery. Others followed—including my sale of Siduri Wines in 2015 and Patz & Hall’s sale to St. Michelle Wine Estates in 2016. Fast forward to today and, in a scene reminiscent of The Godfather Part III , many of us have found ourselves pulled back in with new ventures—the allure of the wine business apparently being too strong. Just last month, James Hall made news by doing something that none of the rest of us fathomed doing: He bought his winery back. “Patz & Hall back in the hands of its founder” is a paraphrase of many of the headlines. Writers love a feel-good story, and the taking back of a winery from the “giant conglomerate” seemed like the best story one could hope for in the wine world these days. Many of us look back longingly at those heady days of yore and it’s very easy to paint James Hall taking back Patz & Hall as a return to a time when wine was easy. I imagined, however, that the real story was a bit more complicated than David triumphing over Goliath, so I reached out to my friend James, and we chatted for almost an hour. I left with some valuable insight into what actually occurred, and what the future holds for Patz & Hall. For starters, James portrays the sale to—and time spent under the ownership of—St. Michelle in a very positive light. During its ownership, Patz & Hall was
able to grow and achieve market penetration in a way it most likely couldn’t have on its own. And James purchasing Patz & Hall back from St. Michelle wasn’t David taking down Goliath with a rock; it was a well-thought-out and planned business decision that achieved St. Michelle’s goals and let James continue to do what he loves. James told me that he “still can’t believe that he has this incredible job.” The job, however, is a bit different than in the old days. James has a winemaker now—James McCeney—and much of the crafting of the wines will be in the hands of this other James. (James Hall calls James McCeney “a treat to work with.”) Patz & Hall also has (or will have) a GM, a VP of sales, a VP of marketing and an entire management team and a group of investors. These days, successfully running a winery and selling wines requires more than just a couple of enthusiastic owners. Like it or not, it is a business, and James is doing all he can to assemble a team that will make certain that the business of Patz & Hall will be well run in this challenging market environment. Patz & Hall will focus on chardonnay. Truly that was always the case—but for a while there when pinot noir took the wine world’s spotlight, the attention was focused on their pinots. Now, the focus will clearly be on chardonnay, with pinot noir remaining a player—albeit a minor one. They’ll continue to purchase grapes rather than own vineyards although a vineyard acquisition down the line is not out of the question. But that would only be a supplement to the grapes they buy. And as far as James himself goes, his self-described role is as “founder and winemaker emeritus.” He jokes that his autobiography will be titled, “The Art of Hanging Around.” Most importantly, he seems energized for the future. In a time when much of the wine world is “doom and gloom,” his excitement for the challenges ahead is contagious. When I hung up the phone with James, I reflected back on all that we’ve been through over the last few decades. Patz & Hall version 3.0 isn’t a return to the heady-but-rather-naïve days of the 1990s. It’s a different, more-focused and structured business. But it is also exciting and inspiring and maybe just what the California wine world needs right now. . d
Adam Lee co-founded Siduri Wines in 1994, selling it to Jackson Family Winery in 2015. He now produces and owns Clarice Wine Company, and consults with numerous different wineries, including Rombauer Vineyards on their Pinot Noir project.
May 2024
NorthBaybiz 43
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter maker