In his twenty-plus years of winemaking, Mike Callahan has solely focused on showcasing unique vineyard sites. Quality above all else. Many of these vineyards exist today thanks to pioneering Californians of the Central Coast. Mike began his winemaking career producing acclaimed Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays while working with Ken Volk, Testarossa Winery, Southern Right/Hamilton Russell, and Chamisal Vineyards/Crimson Wine Group. Maidenstoen was launched in 2013 to focus on dry Riesling from great vineyards.
In the cellar, Mike emphasizes classic technique and minimal input winemaking to create wines that are delicious and accessible but also have longevity to age in the bottle. Based in San Luis Obispo, Maidenstoen is part of the emerging SLO Coast AVA and works with unique & treasured vineyards across the entire Central Coast. Media Inquiries mike@maidenstoenwine.com | https://www.maidenstoenwine.com/
What’s the ONE THING most unique, authentic, & memorable about your winery brand?
Maidenstoen was founded with intention to produce wines of provenance. Site-specific Riesling has been the vision for this brand, and Riesling has an intensity to show the place it was grown. It also has the dynamism to be enjoyed in its youth or to cellar and age better than most wines due to its inherent chemistry. I work with many iconic & historic vineyards that should be recognized and appreciated for the generational farmers that were pioneers for our industry and conjured international recognition for California wines and their quality. Their impacts can not be over-estimated. As far as challenges are concerned we like to say, “there is no such thing as despair, just a lack of imagination” Maidenstoen does not lament what could be, we embrace things and chisel away at one goal, QUALITY.
Describe how and what you’d do with your winemaking career or winery business if you were not constrained. Sky’s the limit!
Maidenstoen is completely unconstrained. We intend to moderately grow the brand while keeping our ethos and continuing to foster relationships with like-minded industry professionals, consumers & comrades.
What is the One Wine most emblematic of your brand and/or winemaking style? Tell us its story.
The Maidenstoen 2020 Lafond Vineyard Riesling, Santa Rita Hills. While David Allen Coe may have written “the perfect country-western song”, it has been my mission to produce the “perfect wine”. While perfection can be a score or trophy, true perfection is inward, self-realizing, and most importantly it is obvious. While it is not broadcast at max volume, it is more subtle yet pervasive in its spread of infectious pleasures. This wine is dynamic, and curiosity abounds with it (degenerates beware). Hateful birds will grow weak in the presence of Lafond Riesling. Open the bottle, and encouragement will surpass judgment. Loneliness will be murdered, and empathy rediscovered. The 2020 Lafond Riesling is the handsome flawless truth. Hopelessness dies and relentless inspiration is born with this magical elixir. There is no weakness in the absence of force. The lines in the sand are finally washed away and a wave has finally broke and crashed. There is no more competition. This is the perfect wine.
What are your wholehearted convictions related to the wine business?
This is what I think of the ‘broader’ industry that I’ve spent my life working in.
At the end of any wine event I’ve ever attended, there is a point at the end when folks will swap bottles with other wineries. I like to think people aren’t “trading up” on these occasions but swapping for some wines they’re keen on & wish to share with their family & friends. If you’ve ever seen World Cup soccer, you may sometimes see two footballers trading jerseys after a great match. It is with mutual respect, and I like to think they want that moment to stay with them forever. All trade & commerce used to be based on this mutual respect. In Valencia, Spain at the Lonja de Sada Merchant building, where since 1482 Spanish merchants exchanged goods, these are the words engraved at the trading floor: “I am a proud house. Taste. See my friends. That is good business. One that does not deal deceitfully with the tongue or that swears its neighbor. One that does not give money only to his own interest. A merchant acting in this way will overflow with riches eternal life will be fruitful.”
Trade is in fact community. There is something sacred & honorable about the exchange of goods & services when “community” is served & not exploited. So I ask you my dear wine consumer… Where do you buy your wine, your food, your services? Do you have a community? Do you feel belonging & have connections with your purchases? What are you bringing home & sharing with your family? Where does it come from? Do you have connections and relationships with the things you carve out for enjoyment and celebration?
This tangent is not in support of small wineries (many could go away). Don’t support small wineries, even mine. Support vineyards. Most “boutique” wineries fleece their consumers with promises of exclusivity, or dupe them with shallowed “experiences” & sell overpriced wines. On the other end of the spectrum, you have swimming pools of wine made for grocery stores that have no ties or affiliation to the land or the people involved. Somewhere in between, some wines extend beyond marketing & commodity. They triumph in preserving culture, generational farming & the nuance of what vineyards and wine can deliver. A vintage, a place, a time, something that transcends beyond a marketing campaign or a good value. In short, You can tap into a community that would love to have you as a comrade & friend. Buy wine from people. The wineshop owner, the small distributor, the wine grower, the estate that puts the vineyard name on the label… because it matters. Wines of provenance. Drink these wines. Enjoy them & the people who you meet along the way. Please enjoy responsibly.