Wine Spectator: Sonoma’s Carlisle Winery Calls it Quits
July 17, 2024The owners of Carlisle, California’s leading producer of quality Zinfandels, will call it quits after the 2024 vintage, Wine Spectator has learned. Co-founders Mike and Kendall Officer informed their wine club members of their decision today.
“It was a decision that was a long time in coming,” Mike Officer, 62, said. “Financially, Carlisle is doing wonderfully. It’s just the owners of Carlisle are exhausted. Kendall and I and Jay Maddox, our winemaker—we’re all in our 60s and we all want to retire before we’re 70. Doing business in California and complying with all the idiotic regulations in the states to which we ship have worn us out. We needed an exit strategy.”
The Officers sought out potential buyers. “There was lots of interest, but it’s kind of indicative of the state of the industry. There’s reluctance to take on brands unless they can be had for a bargain,” said Officer. “We also wanted someone who really shared our passion for wine and old vineyards, and also someone who we felt was going to succeed going forward with the brand. Unfortunately, we came up empty on that search.” Wine Spectator has the full story.
Subscribe to Shanken News Daily’s Email Newsletter, delivered to your inbox each morning.Tagged : Carlisle Winery, Wine Spectator
