Clautiere Vineyard pairs wine & wigs

Wines & Vines, Jan, 2005 by Tina Caputo

The atmosphere at Paso Robles' Clautiere Vineyard is best described by owner Claudine Blackwell: "Edward Scissorhands meets the Mad Hatter at the Moulin Rouge."

The inspired creation of Blackwell and partner Terry Brady, Clautiere's tasting room announces its uniqueness from the outside in. The winery grounds feature a whimsical wrought-iron fence--designed by Blackwell, a former furniture and fashion designer--and an attention-getting crimson tasting room building.

Inside, visitors are greeted with periwinkle walls, black and white checkerboard floors and a selection of outrageous wigs to wear while tasting wine. Wigs and wine? Why?

According to Blackwell, the idea took "root" when California's motorcycle helmet law was first passed. Fellow Paso Robles winery owner John Munch, of Le Cuvier, recruited Blackwell and Brady to help him find a wig to attach to his motorcycle helmet--a little joke for the benefit of local highway patrolmen. After their wig-buying spree, they wore their purchases to a Paso Robles bar--and had a riotous good time. "We were amazed at how people's personalities change when they put on wigs," Brady recalls.

Blackwell and Brady continued the wig theme during the annual Paso Robles Wine Festival, when they brought in friends from L.A. to stage a drag performance at the winery. The show's success inspired the pair to make wigs a permanent part of Clautiere's tasting room experience. Blackwell says visitors--including men, women and even kids--love trying on the wigs. "It takes the whole intimidation factor out of tasting wine."

Follicle follies aside, Blackwell and Brady are serious about their wines.

When the couple moved to Paso Robles from Los Angeles in 1999, they knew nothing about farming. They had just become part owners of a new Santa Monica restaurant called The Lobster, and wanted to find a second project that would bring them closer to the land. "We came to Paso to have an outside project, so we wouldn't hang around the restaurant and become drunks," Blackwell jokes.

Their idea was to grow trees for a nursery, but the couple decided on a whim to buy a vineyard instead. Brady immersed himself in the vineyard, and with the help of John Munch and other local winemakers, he learned how to farm vineyards and make wine. Today Brady makes Clautiere wines with the help of a master blender/consultant.

Though Brady has learned a lot about farming, he says that some of the terminology still sounds foreign to him. "Nematodes," he jokes, "they sound so cool I almost feel like I want to have some."

The Clautiere estate includes 57 acres of vineyards, from which all of the wines are made. (The couple also sells grapes to other Paso Robles wineries.) Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon account for most of the acreage, and the winery also produces a no-oak Viognier, Grenache Rose, port and an impressive Rhone-style blend called Mon Beau Rouge. (Retail prices range from $23 for the Viognier to $39 for the port.) Clautiere's total production was 2,700 cases in 2004, and Brady plans to increase that number to 5,000 in 2005.

"It's an enormous amount of work, but it's the kind you get up and really enjoy," Brady says.

Clautiere's label design features a black background with a stylized gold "C" in the center. On the left side of the label is a bold diamond design; on the right are stripes, accented with a different color for each varietal or blend. The effect is both whimsical and stylish. Not surprisingly, the creative Blackwell had a hand in the label design.

When asked if she ever tires of the slow pace of living in Paso Robles, Blackwell is quick to answer, "We don't miss L.A. at all."