Mendocino wine ‘doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.’ This trio is trying to change that (2024)

Growing up in the small, wind-swept town of Mendocino, Brad Jonas spent much of his childhood diving off the coast for abalone, a delicacy of the sea.

While a typical dive took him 20 feet below the surface to reach the jeweled mollusks, a minus tide — an ultralow tide caused by the moon’s gravitational pull — exposed the abalone much closer to shore.

“A minus tide really exposes the bounty of the sea. Sometimes you don’t even have to go into the water to find the abalone — they might be in a tide pool with mussels and sea urchin,” said Jonas. “Minus Tide felt like the perfect name for our winery. We want to expose the hidden gems of the vineyard while evoking the feeling of the Mendocino Coast.”

Founded in 2017, Minus Tide Wines is a partnership between Jonas, his wife, Miriam, and their friend Kyle Jeffrey, who all met as students at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.

Brad Jonas and Jeffrey, who met during freshman orientation at Cal Poly, share winemaking duties, while Miriam Jonas, an account director at J.A.M. Public Relations, leads the PR and marketing charge.

At a time when the future of the wine industry remains uncertain, the owners of Minus Tide have purposely placed their eggs in multiple income baskets. Jonas is the winemaker at Toulouse Vineyards in Philo, while Jeffrey makes wine for Woods Beer & Wine Co. in San Francisco.

“If Minus Tide were our only source of income, I think it would be a lot more stressful and some of the joy and excitement would go away,” said Jonas. “We all have day jobs, so it takes all three of us to make it work. We’re all involved in every aspect of the business, but not in an overwhelming way. It’s just right.”

A love letter to Mendocino

Producing about 600-700 cases of wine per year, Minus Tide is a love letter to Mendocino County — a region Jonas believes “doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.”

“We made a conscious decision to make Mendocino County a key part of our identity to help build the Mendocino brand,” said Jonas. “A lot of the region’s premium fruit gets trucked down to Sonoma County. We want to keep it local and showcase all Mendocino County can do.”

Currently, Minus Tide sources fruit from six different vineyards, including Syrah from Perli Vineyard in Mendocino Ridge, Carignan from Hopland’s more than 100-year-old Feliz Creek Vineyard, and high-elevation Pinot Noir from Manchester Ridge.

Admittedly, their agreed-upon favorite is the Syrah from Valenti Vineyard ($42) in Mendocino Ridge, a cool, high-elevation appellation nicknamed “Islands in the Sky.”

Located six miles from the coast, the wind-whipped location is among the last to ripen in the appellation, resulting in deeply complex wines that are both alive and balanced.

“It’s an incredible site that produces Syrah with tons of black pepper and this meaty, spicy flavor we just love,” said Jonas. “But it also has this elegant, restrained power to it. It’s one of our favorites.”

Among Minus Tide’s most thought-provoking wines is its cool-climate study of Cabernet Sauvignon ($60), with fruit sourced from Vine View Ranch in the Yorkville Highlands. Resting at 1,500 feet in elevation, the site produces a remarkably bright expression of the Bordeaux varietal, which is grounded by healthy tannins and notes of plum and garrigue (dried herbs).

Another standout is Minus Tide’s 2023 Chenin Blanc ($32) from Sterling Ranch — a boon for dry, aromatic white wine lovers (like myself) — with loads of pear, Golden Delicious apple, bright quince and mouthwatering acidity.

The value of staying small

Despite the challenges affecting some areas of the wine industry, Minus Tide has found a way to thrive. Even without a tasting room, the brand regularly sells out of its wines and just launched a wine club.

“We’re small enough and nimble enough to easily pivot if an area of the market isn’t working,” said Jonas. “We feel really comfortable at this size, so for now, we’re not planning on getting enormous anytime soon.”

You can reach Staff Writer Sarah Doyle at 707-521-5478 or sarah.doyle@pressdemocrat.com. Follow Sarah on Instagram at @whiskymuse.