Traditional wine culture is rife with bigotry and snobbery. I once asked a prominent New York importer, whom some called King Bob, why he lacked respect for American wine, and he told me it had ‘no breeding’, as though some combination of proper manners and genetic superiority were inherent only in his prized wines of western Europe. Every day in the United States, Black people are talked down to by wine professionals who assume their lack of knowledge. One of our winemaking friends was called ’the L.A. faggot’ at the Sonoma winery where he worked simply because he wore his pants a little tighter than the locals. And we’ve heard too many stories about French women leaving home to start their own wineries when their families refused to hand the domaine over to a daughter.

What difference does it make if the winemaker is Black or queer or female? It makes no difference in the moment, but historically, race, class, gender, and sexuality have played a huge role in determining who’s had access to shaping and participating in wine culture, and generations of people who didn’t look, or act, or love, exactly like the knowledge keepers and vineyard owners weren’t allowed into the inner circle. Happily, though still too slowly, this is changing, thanks in part to people like Chris Renfro, Liz Rubin, Miguel de Leon, Chris Christensen, and a now sizable list of others dedicated to widening access to the world of wine.

This Saturday from 2 to 6, veteran Sonoma winemaker, Chris Christensen, will be at Oakland Yard pouring tasting flights of four of his current releases. An Iowa native and Stanford graduate with an interest in medieval history and a real passion for wine, Christensen started Bodkin Wines in 2011, and made a name for himself with a groundbreaking sparkling Sauvignon Blanc and still wines from Sonoma and Lake County with refreshingly high acidity and relatively low alcohol. It’s meant to rain all day this Saturday, so you might as well gather your friends, come sample the local juice with Chris, and stay cozy and dry at Oakland Yard.

But first, TONIGHT...THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS: French reds and domestic whites
2022 Domaine de Colette Beaujolais Villages
2021 Delrieu-Ducleux Le Jeau Rouge
2022 Laurent Herlin Tsoin Tsoin Cabernet Franc
2022 Broc Cellars Got Grapes White
2023 Day Wines Vin de Days Blanc
2022 Theopolis Vineyards Symphony White
Flights $15 from 5-9 and wines by the glass until 9pm

SATURDAY 3/2: Winemaker Chris Christensen pours Bodkin Wines and Where’s Linus?
Bodkin Wines Sparkling Sauvignon Blanc
2022 Bodkin Wines The Victor's Spoils Sauvignon Blanc
2021 Bodkin Wines The Hill and the Vale Red
2021 Where’s Linus Red
Flights $18 from 2-6pm and wines by the glass until 9pm!

Cheers,
Max