HUZZAH! One of many firsts for the podcast! We are stoked to announce our collaboration with Longboard Vineyards for our January episode featuring When We Believed in Mermaids: a Novel. This surf-centric brand is a perfect pairing and we can't wait to share what we have up our sleeve for you all this month.
Stay tuned for a mini-episode drop on January 23, 2021 to listen to Georgianna & Laura "hang 10" (questions that is) with Oded Shakked, Owner & Winemaker for Longboard Vineyards. Read on to learn more about the vineyard and it's equally interesting owner!
ABOUT US
Longboard Vineyards was established in 1998 by Oded Shakked. A walking melting pot, Oded was born in Israel and has lived and worked (and surfed) on four continents. He fell in love with northern Sonoma County in the late 1980's and in his words: "I felt roots growing from the bottom of my feet." With more than thirty years, spent making wine - Oded is as stoked as ever every time a harvest approaches. To him, winemaking is a perfect combination of Art, Science and Agriculture; a craft that keeps you on your toes and never ceases to teach you something new - just like surfing does. At Longboard we believe that great-tasting wines are those that are true to the people and place that grew them. Thus, we extend the notion of “terroir” to include the human aspect, not just the soils, climate and weather. As much as possible we’d rather work with a handshake instead of a legal contract, mutual respect in place of greed for another dollar. We do not agree that “bigger is better” and we certainly do not think that we know it all. Whether from our Estate Vineyards just south of Healdsburg or from neighboring growers, we grow and seek the highest-quality grapes and make minimal intervention wines that reflect our love for the little things that matter in life: family, friends, community and humility.
ODED SHAKKED – OWNER & WINEMAKER
Born in Israel to a family of German and Czech origins, Oded grew up absorbing a multitude of cultures. As a child, he spent two years in South America (Uruguay) and a year in France. By the age of 12 years, he spoke Hebrew, Spanish and French fluently, later adding English to the mix.
Following his three years of mandatory military service in the IDF, Oded built surfboards for a living while taking numerous surf trips to the Atlantic coast of Europe (France, Spain and Portugal). These trips and a family friend exposed him to grape growing and winemaking and eventually led him to enroll in the winemaking program at UC Davis, California,
graduating with a BSc in Fermentation Science in 1988. Oded interned at Domain Chandon in Napa and with Chateau Lafite-Rothschild in Bordeaux before accepting a position at Jordan Vineyards and Winery in Healdsburg (Sonoma County). In 1990, he became
head winemaker for “J Vineyards & Winery” where is stayed for eighteen years, developing their sparkling wine, Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris programs.
Oded established Longboard Vineyards in 1998, specializing in the production of premium wines mainly from the Russian River Valley appellation, he
owns and lives on a vineyard on Westside Road just outside Healdsburg, where he grows Merlot, Malbec, Syrah and a few rows of other red varieties that go
into the “DAKINE” Syrah blend.
Oded takes great pride in being a family man, a farmer, a scientist, an artist and an (old) surfer and loves to put his “Sabra” can-do attitude to good use when consulting with other wineries around the globe.
Read more about Longboard Vineyards on their website https://www.longboardvineyards.com/
We have great things planned for this month so keep checking back for more bonus content!
Bottoms up and stay weird,
Georgianna & Laura