Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/138003
Wente. "He wanted to make sure that he would establish a family legacy where everybody could share equally and be treated fairly." Today the business is run by the Wente's fourth and fifth generations. The fourth generation includes Carolyn Wente, CEO; Eric Wente, chairman of the board; and Phil Wente, winegrower. Fifthgeneration vintner Karl D. Wente is head winemaker and senior vice president of winemaking operations, and his sister, Christine, is director of the board and president of the Wente Family Foundation for Arts Education. GENERATIONAL MOMENTUM Each successive generation has done its part not only to uphold family traditions, but to move the business forward through innovation. Perhaps the most significant contribution came in 1912, when second-generation winegrower Ernest Wente and Leon Bonnet of UC Davis convinced Ernest's father to import chardonnay cuttings from the vine nursery at the University of Montpellier, in France. Ernest also sourced budwood from the Gier Vineyard in Pleasanton, Calif., and planted the two sources in Wente's Livermore Valley vineyard. Through decades of careful vine selection, the vineyard became the source of the now-famous "Wente clone," from which 80% of today's California chardonnay plantings derive. When Ernest's son, Karl L. Wente, joined the business in 1949, he focused on expanding Wente's distribution both nationally and internationally, and took important steps to modernize production. "My dad saw the advent of modern farming practices, stainless steel cooperage, enhanced bottling technology, and a greater ability to run a clean and high-tech winery," Phil said. "That really set the table for my generation." In addition to switching from head-trained vines to modern trellis systems and adopting tighter vine spacing, Phil's father worked with suppliers to develop mechanical harvesters. 40 V I N E YARD & WINERY MANAGEMENT | Third-generation winegrower Karl L. Wente brought modern farming and winemaking practices to the winery. When he died in 1977 – an only child – the fourth-generation siblings stepped in. "By the time Eric, Carolyn and I took over in the late '70s, we had a modern winery," Phil said. PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE This left the fourth generation to focus on other factors that would affect the future of the business. July - Aug 2013 "The California wine industry changed dramatically between 1975 and 1985," Phil said. "Prior to 1975 there were maybe a dozen well-known premium California wineries in the Napa, Sonoma, Livermore and Santa Clara valleys. Then there was this California wine business explosion and from '75 to '85, there was a dramatic influx of WENTE VINEYARDS + Founded: 1883 + Brands/Annual Case Production: Wente Vineyards (400,000), Murrieta's Well (15,000-20,000), Tamás Estates (50,000-60,000), The Nth Degree (1,200), Entwine (150,000-200,000). + Retail Pricing: Wente wines range from $13 for the Vineyard Selection wines to $80 for The Nth Degree Pinot Noir. + Estate Vineyard Acres: 2,000 in Livermore Valley, 1,000 in Arroyo Seco, in Monterey County. + Main Varieties Planted: Chardonnay (900 acres), cabernet sauvignon (600 acres) and merlot (210 acres). w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m