I'm really looking forward to being able to interact with wine and food aficionados via the sacbeewineregion.com! What a great way to share thoughts and ideas regarding wine and the things it goes best with: family, food and friends. For me, it's a great way to share the wonderful wines and opportunities of Sacramento's wine regions.
So, let me introduce myself: I'm Justin Boeger, winemaker at Boeger Winery in Placerville. Boeger Winery is a family-run affair, if the names above didn't already give that away, and is the oldest winery in the El Dorado appellation. In the early '70s, my parents were both working for the State, my dad in the Department of Agriculture and my mom as a social worker. They were looking for a change of career. My father, Greg, had spent several summers of his youth at his grandfather's winery in the Napa Valley (Nichelini Winery) and must've remembered it very fondly. He was able to convince my mother, Sue, that they should abandon their jobs and start a winery themselves. So, knowing that land in Napa was already very expensive, even then, and that El Dorado. County had a long wine history itself, they decided to set up shop just east of Placerville at the historic Lombardo-Fossati ranch, which had been a winery during the late 1800s. With a little help from Sue's father they purchased the property and founded Boeger Winery in 1972.
Coincidentally (or prophetically?), I was born that same year in November, right at the time of our first crush. Naturally, I grew up on the winery property and as soon as I could work I began helping out. Not that I was paid much - I specifically recall my mom telling me, when I had asked for a raise, that I worked for room-and-board. Not surprisingly, mom is the CFO and if it wasn't for her my dad and I would've probably bankrupted the place years ago!
By the time I graduated from high school, I had determined that I never wanted anything to do with grapes or wine; however, I promptly decided to re-include wine by the end of my first quarter at UC Davis... I enrolled under the Fermentation Science major, which included winemaking and brewing, but didn't actually take a wine class until my third year there. After my first class I was hooked, and decided that the wine business was where I needed to be. I then realized that in order to have the best education, I should go out and intern for other wineries, to observe other winemaking methods. I ended up going to the Franconia wine region of Germany and did two internships at Staatlicher Hofkellerei Würzburg and Julius-Spital (two of the largest and most prestigious wineries of the region). I chose Germany because of our family history there, and because I've always felt that winemaking is basically the same everywhere - each place just has a unique twist they add. Also, though not so well-known here, Germany produces some exceptional red wines including Pinot Noir (which they call Spätburgunder, translated: "Late Burgundy").
By 1998 I finished up my degree from UC Davis and came back to work with the family. In 2000 my father abdicated the official title of "Winemaker," and dedicated himself to what his greatest passion in the business: grape growing. Today, the three of us work as a team, each with our own area of responsibility. My mom keeps the financial "ship" on course, my dad provides great fruit, and I, as my dad says, just have to take that great fruit and "not screw it up" as I turn it into wine!
So, as the sacbeewineregion.com grows, I hope to be able to cover anything and everything related to wine and winemaking. I know that's a broad range to cover, but I'll just tailor any conversation to fit what I know about it. I can't wait to get going! Zum wohl!
So, let me introduce myself: I'm Justin Boeger, winemaker at Boeger Winery in Placerville. Boeger Winery is a family-run affair, if the names above didn't already give that away, and is the oldest winery in the El Dorado appellation. In the early '70s, my parents were both working for the State, my dad in the Department of Agriculture and my mom as a social worker. They were looking for a change of career. My father, Greg, had spent several summers of his youth at his grandfather's winery in the Napa Valley (Nichelini Winery) and must've remembered it very fondly. He was able to convince my mother, Sue, that they should abandon their jobs and start a winery themselves. So, knowing that land in Napa was already very expensive, even then, and that El Dorado. County had a long wine history itself, they decided to set up shop just east of Placerville at the historic Lombardo-Fossati ranch, which had been a winery during the late 1800s. With a little help from Sue's father they purchased the property and founded Boeger Winery in 1972.
Coincidentally (or prophetically?), I was born that same year in November, right at the time of our first crush. Naturally, I grew up on the winery property and as soon as I could work I began helping out. Not that I was paid much - I specifically recall my mom telling me, when I had asked for a raise, that I worked for room-and-board. Not surprisingly, mom is the CFO and if it wasn't for her my dad and I would've probably bankrupted the place years ago!
By the time I graduated from high school, I had determined that I never wanted anything to do with grapes or wine; however, I promptly decided to re-include wine by the end of my first quarter at UC Davis... I enrolled under the Fermentation Science major, which included winemaking and brewing, but didn't actually take a wine class until my third year there. After my first class I was hooked, and decided that the wine business was where I needed to be. I then realized that in order to have the best education, I should go out and intern for other wineries, to observe other winemaking methods. I ended up going to the Franconia wine region of Germany and did two internships at Staatlicher Hofkellerei Würzburg and Julius-Spital (two of the largest and most prestigious wineries of the region). I chose Germany because of our family history there, and because I've always felt that winemaking is basically the same everywhere - each place just has a unique twist they add. Also, though not so well-known here, Germany produces some exceptional red wines including Pinot Noir (which they call Spätburgunder, translated: "Late Burgundy").
By 1998 I finished up my degree from UC Davis and came back to work with the family. In 2000 my father abdicated the official title of "Winemaker," and dedicated himself to what his greatest passion in the business: grape growing. Today, the three of us work as a team, each with our own area of responsibility. My mom keeps the financial "ship" on course, my dad provides great fruit, and I, as my dad says, just have to take that great fruit and "not screw it up" as I turn it into wine!
So, as the sacbeewineregion.com grows, I hope to be able to cover anything and everything related to wine and winemaking. I know that's a broad range to cover, but I'll just tailor any conversation to fit what I know about it. I can't wait to get going! Zum wohl!