A Chat with Jack Galante from Galante Vineyards

Recently BevX had the opportunity to examine all of the current releases from Galante Vineyards from California's Carmel Valley. Galante is famous for their Cabernet Sauvignon both in the bottle and on the vine as they provide fruit to a select list of California's top winemakers.

While we had a great appreciation for the wine, I had a great respect for the work and passion of proprietor Jack Galante since our first meeting in Monterey last year. Jack is a passionate vintner with a great love of the land, the region, and his wines. He is also passionately involved in the issue of fair and free trade in the wine business. While a board member of Monterey County of the Family Winemakers of California, Jack was very involved with the direct shipping lawsuit that made its way to the Supreme Court of the United States. Running a small winery is more than a full-time job so when someone uses their precious little free time to work on behalf of all vintners, we salute them.

BEVX: Take us through the transition from grower to vintner.

Galante: My father, Clement Galante, initially planted the grapes on our property starting in 1983. I had recently graduated college with a degree in Geology and was heading to graduate school to get my MS in Geography with an emphasis in International Agriculture Development. I worked in the summer to help my Dad plant and develop the vineyards. He ran the growing business from 1983 until 1991 when I took over full time. Soon after I took over the vineyards I started thinking about developing an estate winery since our grapes were being made into excellent, award-winning wines by others. So, I started the planning process in 1993 and built the winery in 1994. It felt like more of a growing than a transition since we had been making “home” wines for some time and my original team, Eliud, our vineyard manager, and Greg, our winemaker, were working with me on the project.

BEVX:How did your family react when you determined to open a family winery?

Galante: I have received nothing but positive reinforcement and support, which remains true to this day. Opening a winery and attempting to make a living from the business are not easy tasks. It takes a lot of very hard work and patience, and there is never a dull moment. My parents have always supported me and encouraged me through difficult and good times and I am tremendously thankful to them.

BEVX: Your Cabernet is in great demand by local winemakers. Do you find it interesting to taste the wines made from your fruit and do you find yourself comparing these wines to your own?

Galante: For the most part, we stopped selling our grapes several years ago but I still have many of the wines that were made from the ‘80’s and ‘90’s by other winemakers from Monterey to Napa. I wouldn’t say that I compare the wines but I can taste the similarities in our products immediately and I am extremely happy to see that the wines from our grapes have tremendous longevity.

BEVX: Your great-grandfather, Frank Devendorf, founded the town of Carmel. Did you find that being from a well-known local family made your venture more comforting or was a bit of pressure?

Galante: The greatest expectations and the most pressure I have comes from myself. I am a perfectionist and I am always striving to do better. I do feel that I have a tremendous duty and responsibility to carry forth the family name in the best way possible and I feel that it is important to be a steward of the land that was provided to me. The Carmel area is one of those great places where everyone is friendly and welcoming. I have never felt any pressure from others but then again I do try and keep my wines to the highest standards possible and I refuse to cut corners and settle for mediocrity.

BEVX: How did you meet and hire Greg Vita as your winemaker?

Galante: My Dad originally met Greg through contacts at UC Davis where Greg did his enology studies. Greg is also a six generation resident of the Carmel region and he was commuting from Carmel to Napa every week where he was the General Manager for Spring Mountain Winery. Greg has a vast knowledge in winery operations and he helped me plan the winery building and we have been working together ever since. Greg and I enjoy the same philosophy in wine making – grow the finest grapes and let the fruit speak for itself through the wine.  

BEVX:What do you see in both the near term and long term for Galante Vineyards?

Galante: Right now we are focused on maintaining our production levels of our own wines but we are increasing our custom crush operations. We have recently removed a few acres of older vineyards and are preparing some land at our higher elevations to replant. We will continue to focus on small handmade lots of wines and are having fun with new varietals such as Petit Verdot, Malbec and Petite Sirah, all of which have shown to be very promising.

BEVX:Anything else we should know?

Galante: I am pleased to announce that I just got married Saturday to my love of the past 11 years, Dawn, who has also been working with me as the winery CFO.

Congrats to Jack & Dawn. We wish you both an endless string of vintage years.