HEIMAT |abroad PEOPLE Leute Rubrik
WENTE VINEYARDS
NIKI WENTE We had the opportunity to speak to Niki Wente, the viticultural manager and upcoming wine host of a AmaWaterways cruise. Wente Vineyards is the country’s longest, continuously operated family-owned winery in the United States, founded in 1883. Today, the winery is owned and managed by the fourth and fifth generations of the Wente family. Blending traditional and innovative winemaking practices, the winery draws from nearly 3,000 acres of sustainably farmed estate vineyards. Located just East of San Francisco in the historic Livermore Valley, Wente Vineyards is recognized as one of California’s premier wine country destinations. Wente Vineyards has many female leaders across the company, working in management, wine tasting rooms, hospitality, winemaking and more. Carolyn Wente is currently the CEO and a 4th generation leader of the Wente family. Her nieces, Christine, Jordan, Niki and Aly Wente are all 5th generation of winegrowers and serve in leadership roles throughout the company. Finally, Amy Hoopes serves as the current president of Wente Family Estates.
Your family history in the U.S. dates back to 1883 when Carl H. Wente, a German immigrant, arrived in Livermore, purchased 48 acres of land and established the Wente winery. How much do you know about Carl Wente? Where was he from and was he a winemaker back in Germany before he purchased the vineyard? Carl arrived in the United States in 1881, from a village called Emren in Lower Saxony where the Wente family raised livestock and were no vintners . He was the second son of his father’s second marriage. Carl had two half-brothers from his father’s first marriage who immigrated to the U.S. in the late 1850’s when he was still young. Carl came to the U.S. looking for his two half-brothers when he was 30, only to discover they had passed away years before. He decided to continue his journey and ended up in California. Carl moved to Livermore in 1883, taking a job as resident manager and became a 50% owner of the vineyard. Is your family still connected to their German roots? Do you have any family reci22 | HEIMAT abroad | FALL 2019
pes or celebrate any traditions? My Uncle Eric is still in touch with the Wente’s in the same region who are descendants of Carl’s brothers. We have very simple traditions which are focused on family gatherings and wine, but it is the strong sense of family that Carl passed down, allowing us all to share equitably which I believe is the reason we’re still here. The work ethic of the family is similar throughout. We all are quite disciplined and have very long full days in our industry which is at its core, agricultural. The Wente family is known for its significant work with Chardonnay and all your vineyards are “Certified California Sustainable”. Can you explain what that means and why this is important for you? Being certified sustainable is so important to us because we have been raised with the ideals of building a business and community, that will not only be here for the next generation but will be better for the next generation. We want to create an environment where continuous improvement is encouraged and we want to protect the land at the
same time. These are the principles that the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance follows. The certification for vineyards and wineries was formalized in 2010 and our winery was one of the pilot wineries credited for helping get the program codified. You grew up in the vineyards and knew you wanted to be in the family business when you were about 13 years old. Can you tell us about the moment when you knew you wanted to be in the wine industry? Did you have an epiphany? I have always idolized my father; he has been such an incredible role model for me since I was a little girl. Watching him work the land and hearing his passion for the vineyards and our business could make anyone passionate about this line of work – his enthusiasm is seriously infectious! When I understood that in this line of work I would be able to be outdoors most of the time, that’s when it really clicked together for me. I had my first internship when I was 14 years old, shadowing our viticultural manager, and I absolutely loved every part of it! From that point forward I
