At Hamel Family Wines, we strive to make great wine and to have fun doing so. We value quality over quantity, enjoyment over tedium and fostering long-term recurring relationships with our guests.
A simple rationale for the badger in Hamel Family Wines’ (HFW) logo would be that the Hamels have three generations of alums from the University of Wisconsin. It would also be an oversimplification. Another explanation might be destiny.
While trying to envision the ideal image to brand the family business, the Hamels encountered the same problem many businesses do in trying to find something distinctive. They had several different opinions, found many good ideas taken, had their share of brain-freeze, etc. During this time, while badger signs began to reveal themselves, no one saw them as such.
For example, while in San Francisco on Valentine’s Day in 2010 with son John, Pam happened upon a rock store and went in. Oddly, in addition to rocks, it also sold taxidermy. Pam noticed a familiar animal posed regally on a shelf. Confirming it was for sale, she purchased the badger to surprise George, Jr. Once home, she placed it in the master bathroom closing the door, figuring he was bound to discover it that evening. The surprise almost backfired when Pam heard a scream as George discovered it.
Ultimately, that badger became the muse that inspired the image that today adorns the HFW brand. But that is still jumping ahead in the story, as it had yet to dawn on the Hamels that a badger might make an ideal image.
The family continued to experience dead ends trying to agree. Even so, what might be considered omens/signs continued to randomly appear. One day, George, Jr. noticed this article in the San Francisco Chronicle with an interesting subject matter. He found it a tad ironic that badgers are native in Sonoma County, yet not so in Wisconsin where his affinity for badgers first began.
Then, a YouTube sensation of a day in the life of a honey badger became all the rage. Still, even with the strange coincidence of the clip’s narrator being named Randall (the UW Badgers play football at Camp Randall), the family had not yet realized its ultimate brand destiny.
George, Jr.’s affinity for newspapers yielded yet another random badger sign. While in Telluride, Colorado for a wine festival, he noted this story in the local paper about badgers being relocated to the Telluride valley floor.
In addition, Pam added to the family’s growing collection of stuffed badgers with two more, including one in an “action” pose.
By this point, it probably seems obvious how this story ends. But it had still yet to dawn on the family. Finally, after months of disagreement and with deadlines looming, John noted that the one thing the family seems to share is an affinity for badgers. He suggested that the noble badger become the image to adorn our brand. The Hamels finally coalesced and embraced their badger destiny.
A male badger is a boar (but never boring), a female is a sow (yet rarely seen sewing), and a young badger is a cub (definitely not a scout). Badger colonies or communities are often called clans. With that in mind, we created our own wine community called the Badger Clan Wine Club. It’s a way to remain connected to Hamel Family Wines, fellow HFW devotees, and to ensure continued access to the latest releases of our wines.
A Badger Clan membership is an ideal way to ensure continued access to HFW’s latest releases while remaining connected to the Badger Clan community. Through signature wine club-only events, including Camp Hamel and Badger Grab, the desirability, intimacy, and sense of community multiplies each year. These events feature a medley of HFW favorites like great wine, scrumptious food, distinctive music and creative entertainment. Members also have priority access to Lighting of the Vines, HFW’s annual community holiday gathering featuring a vineyard lighting orchestrated to holiday music.
Each Experience is privately led by an Estate Ambassador, includes a tour, and wine tasting, and can include food pairings. In addition, a “dry” tasting is offered for non-wine drinkers who are enjoying the Experience with others.
Please CALLcall 707.996.5800 or to request a reservation.
You may also book through CellarPass by signing in to your account.
All tours are appointment only, and are available Thursday at 1pm and 3pm, and Friday through Monday at 10am, 1pm and 3pm.
Hamel Family Wines
15401 Sonoma Highway
Sonoma, CA 95476
Phone: 707.996.5800
Fax: 707.996.5801
Email: info@hamelfamilywines.com
Industry Contact: giii@hamelfamilywines.com
For press inquiries please contact Rachelle Mesheau
Phone: 707.996.5800
Email: rachelle@hamelfamilywines.com
George, III, aka GIII, is a Managing Director of Hamel Family Wines (HFW), overseeing sales, financial and business operations.
George has a B.A. from Bard College, and an M.B.A. from Sonoma State University’s Wine Business Institute. He is currently the Vice President of the Board of the Wine Business Institute and a former member of Bard College’s Board of Governors. Prior to joining HFW, GIII was a Financial Advisor with the Private Wealth Management group of Wells Fargo Advisors in New York City and Palm Beach.
GIII spends what little spare time he has with family, friends and his dog, coaches youth basketball, and fervently supports the San Francisco Giants, Wisconsin Badgers, Golden State Warriors and San Francisco 49ers.
John is a Managing Director of Hamel Family Wines (HFW), overseeing the winegrowing and winemaking operations.
John received a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating with academic distinction and Phi Beta Kappa honors, and subsequently earned a Winemaking Certificate from the University of California-Davis. Prior to HFW, John’s interest in Slow Food and wine landed him at an organic farm in Napa Valley. After a brief agricultural walkabout there, he worked at a public relations firm supporting several Napa winery clients.
When he is not at the winery or in the vineyards, John spends as much time as he can with his wife and their twin girls. He also enjoys cooking, running, music and hanging with their two chocolate labs.
Martha McClellan is one of the most renowned winemakers in the world. Robert Parker describes her as having an “extraordinary resume, limitless talent, and a perfectionist, nearly obsessive, attitude toward making world-class wines.”
Martha earned her B.A. in political science at the University of Michigan. After a stint in banking, Martha shifted gears, becoming the only American woman to graduate from Geisenheim University in Germany with a degree in Oenology and Viticulture. She ultimately made her way to Napa Valley, where her resume/client list includes such notable projects as Merryvale Vineyards, Harlan Estate, Sloan Estate, Checkerboard Vineyards, Vineyard 7 & 8, Toymaker and a personal label Levy & McClellan.
Martha loves being outdoors, traveling and spending time with her three children and dogs.
Amanda is the Director of Vineyard Operations at Hamel Family Wines (HFW). After growing up in the Midwest, studying in the South and spending time in the Pacific Northwest, Amanda now considers California home and HFW is the beneficiary of her wise decision. At HFW, Amanda gets to combine her love of science along with her affinity for the great outdoors.
Amanda earned her B.S. in environmental horticulture from Clemson University and an M.S. degree in horticulture and agronomy with a focus on viticulture and soil science from the University of California at Davis.
When she’s not out and about in HFW’s estate vineyards, Amanda loves spending time with her new husband and their dog. Rumor has it that she can also hula-hoop for hours on end.
Dawn brings 30 years of experience in food, beverage and hospitality to her position as Director of Hospitality at Hamel Family Wines (HFW).
Dawn received her B.A. in journalism and public relations from Central State University in Oklahoma. Prior to HFW, Dawn joined Chef Gary Danko in the opening of Restaurant Gary Danko, where she was instrumental in implementing the impeccable service and hospitality program. Her career began as an F&B manager with the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco. Dawn brings her attention to detail, flawless guest service and genuine knack for throwing a great party to HFW’s hospitality program.
When Dawn is not at HFW, or commuting there and back, she enjoys being home in Stinson Beach with her husband and two daughters.
Rachelle brings nearly 20 years of successful experience growing “greenfield” retail and wine brands to her position of Director of Marketing at Hamel Family Wines.
Rachelle received her B.A. in Graphic Design and Communications from the Collège Communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick à Dieppe, and in addition has earned a Level 2 Award in Wine and Spirits certificate from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust. A proud French-Canadian, Rachelle relocated to California to immerse herself in wine culture (and better weather) and follow her interest in marketing small production, organically-farmed, wines.
In her spare time, Rachelle enjoys eating her husband’s home-cooked meals and then walking it off with their Great Dane.
Elke Humphreys is the Office Manager at Hamel Family Wines (HFW). Her primary responsibilities include human resources—specifically payroll and benefits administration, accounting, reconciliation, reporting and inventory management.
Elke holds an Associate Degree in Small Business Management from Santa Rosa Junior College. Prior to joining HFW, Elke worked at PCAS-Nanosyn (formerly Serres Laboratories, Inc.), a small contract research organization in the pharmaceutical industry, for 18 years. Her business experience, strong organizational skills, attention to detail and multi-tasking capabilities make Elke an invaluable part of the HFW team.
When not keeping everyone in line at HFW, Elke enjoys spending time with her husband, gardening and learning to knit.
Pam and George, Jr. met in high school in VA. Both had military fathers, who had retired after stints at the Pentagon. At the beginning of their junior year, Pam transferred to the school George was attending. They double-dated to their junior prom (each with different dates).
George’s initial wine memory with Pam occurred while courting her. Seeking to impress her, he took Pam to an Italian restaurant above his pay grade as a high school JV basketball coach. George looked around at the bottles of wine displayed that served as the wine list, and selected an Italian white, simply because it was in a bottle shaped like a fish. Pam eventually married him anyway.
Pam and George have lived in the Bay Area for 20+ years. In 2006 they bought a house in Kenwood in Sonoma Valley, primarily to escape summers in San Francisco. That house, where they now reside, came with an acre of Cabernet Sauvignon vines. That began their family wine odyssey.
Located in the town of Kenwood in Sonoma Valley, seven miles northwest of Hamel Family Ranch, is Tres Palmas Vineyard, a six-acre Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon vineyard. Sonoma Valley is typically cooled from north to south, so this vineyard experiences a cooler climate throughout the growing season than Hamel Family Ranch that is ideal for white wine varietals. The southerly afternoon winds sweep down into the valley, drawing in the cool Pacific Ocean influence and allowing the grapes to retain their natural acidity. Located on a gentle slope on a foothill of Sugarloaf Ridge, the vineyard is predominantly set in well-drained, dark, cobbly, volcanic soils.
Located on the western slope of the Mayacamas Mountains, six miles northeast of Hamel Family Ranch, is Nuns Canyon Vineyard (NCV). This mountain vineyard has elevations ranging from 1,300 to 1,700 feet, and is defined by steep slopes with soil profiles of red clay loam underlain with gravel and fractured basalt. NCV has primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, but also Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Grenache. It looks directly across Sonoma Valley at Bennett Valley to the west, and receives a moderating influence from this coastal gap to keep daytime temperatures warm but not extreme during the growing season. With much of the heat that amasses daily on the valley floor being pushed up and out by the cool marine layer coming into the valley in the evening, NCV sees warmer nighttime temperatures than lower elevation vineyards.
Located at the western base of the Mayacamas Mountains, situated adjacent to Hamel Family Ranch’s northwest corner, Armor Plate (AP) is similarly a valley floor vineyard. The five-acre vineyard features colluvial and alluvial basalt-derived soil, and was planted as a Zinfandel field blend in the 1890s. Aside from a one-acre block redeveloped in the 1990s, the remaining old vine vineyard is primarily Zinfandel, interplanted with several varietals including Syrah, Grenache, Carignan, Petite Sirah, Semillon and Chasselas. With extremely deep and established roots, the older blocks are completely dry-farmed. Like Hamel Family Ranch, AP features very warm afternoon temperatures due to its Sonoma Mountain protection from the cool Pacific influence.
The Demonstration Vineyard (DV) is a small Bordeaux varietal field blend on Hamel Family Ranch, planted to four Bordeaux varietals used in HFW’s Cabernet Sauvignon-based red wine blends: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. The 1.5-acre vineyard was planted in 2014 and will produce a single bottling exclusively from the DV once the vines reach full maturity.
Located at the western base of the Mayacamas Mountains, Hamel Family Ranch (HFR) is a valley floor property of 124 acres at the foot of Whitman Canyon with elevations ranging up to 400 feet. Its vineyards contain Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Grenache, Petite Sirah and Zinfandel. The oldest vines are 20 years old. The soil/topographical profile of HFR finds its origin in the erosion of the canyon and the distribution of the eroded volcanic material. With undulating slopes, the soils are primarily iron rich red clay loam underlain by meta-volcanic gravel and bedrock. Sonoma Mountain, lying due west, protects HFR from the cool Pacific influence into the late afternoon. HFR enjoys very warm afternoon temperatures refreshed by cooler evening fog throughout the growing season.
The 7,000-square-foot winery is home to a combination of stainless steel and concrete tanks with different capacities, used for red wine fermentation. The tanks allow for different sized vineyard blocks to be fermented separately. The green-growing “living” roof of the winery also expresses an emphasis on sustainability.
The 12,000-square-foot cave provides an ideal climate for elevage–the period in which wine ages in barrel. Barrel fermentations and fermentation in concrete “eggs” also happen in the cave. Additional features include the Reserve Room, a wine library, and three walls of exposed earth and rock, showcasing the subsurface terroir.
The Estate House hospitality center, consisting of two pavilions, sits on a stone plinth just west of the winery, and provides guests with dramatic views of gently-rolling vineyards and the beauty of Sonoma Valley. The Library, between the pavilions, provides a private oasis to support functions with seating for up to 12 guests.
The former owners’ house, the four bedroom, three and one-half bath, open floorplan, country-inspired Ranch House has been renovated and is available as a perquisite for Badger Clan members. Idyllically set amidst vineyards, oak meadows, chaparral, with ample outdoor space, it is located across Whitman Creek from the Estate House.
With a goal of optimizing terroir expression and each property’s potential for agriculture self-sufficiency, biodynamic farming practices are utilized. This entails raising livestock, varying agriculture, natural biodiversity and compost production. Three of the four HFW properties are certified biodynamic and all four are certified organic.
