Beekeeper Cellars
Sonoma County region
Crafting beautiful vineyard expressions from premier vineyard sites in Sonoma County
Beekeeper Cellars is the vision of best friends and co-winemakers Ian Blackburn and Clay Mauritson. The two collaborated after adventurous individual careers in the wine business, and at last, decided to work together on a project of their own.
Ian and Clay have very different backgrounds in the wine industry, but it is their vast experience and knowledge that has made Beekeeper Cellars the successful winery it is today. Clay Mauritson, a seventh generation grape grower, was born and raised in the Dry Creek Valley and early on, was destined for the wine business. He worked for several years at such esteemed wineries as Kenwood Vineyards, Taft Street Vineyards, and Dry Creek Vineyards, honing his winemaking skills at each location and gaining additional knowledge of winery operations. In 1998, he formed his own label, Mauritson Wines, and is now well on his way to becoming one of California’s foremost young winemakers. He was also a principle in creating the Rockpile AVA in 2002 and owns hundreds of acres of estate vineyards, which Beekeeper Cellars now has direct access to.
Ian Blackburn, on the other hand, operates a specialty wine marketing organization known as wineLA and has pioneered wine education for the past twenty years through www.learnaboutwine.com and www.wineLA.com. When he’s not busy planning luxury wine trips for his audience, hosting corporate events, and maintaining his two businesses, Ian is also studying for his Master of Wine certification.
Ian and Clay met and became friends in the 1990’s and always knew they wanted to make wine together. In 2009, despite the challenges of the new economy, Ian and Clay found that opportunity and joined forces to create Beekeeper Cellars. The name of the winery is a nod to Ian’s family history as beekeepers, and the winery also supports local bee oriented charities.
The mission at Beekeeper Cellars is to craft beautiful vineyard expressions from premier vineyard sites, while reintroducing the quality wine audience to Zinfandel. Each vintage, Beekeeper releases a handful of small lot, vineyard-designate Zinfandels that are consistently praised and awarded as some of the best Zins in the industry. We hope you enjoy this special selection from Beekeeper Cellars, a Zinfandel that is sure to impress the palates of our Platinum Plus! members.
