Friends Ted Osborne and Chuck Custodio are two artisan winemakers that I’ve met through my Suisun Valley Grape Grower connections. Both produce wine in extremely small, handcrafted lots. (Trahan and Olabisi produce roughly 1,300 cases each.) As a result, both winemakers have earned tremendous respect as refined craftsmen.
In November 2008, Ted and Chuck opened a combined wine brand tasting room in downtown Napa, at 974 Franklin Street ~ Olabisi and Trahan wineries.
With the Mustard Festival happening this weekend, it occurred to the two winemakers that they could offer a very special opportunity for those who venture into downtown Napa. The Mustard Festival’s free shuttle service for the Napa garage parking lot on Second and Coombs is just a few blocks away from their 974 Franklin Street location.
The Olabisi Winery and Trahan Winery tasting room is offering complimentary wine tasting for ticket holders of the Napa Valley Mustard Festival Marketplace event. So, if you’re going to be in downtown Napa as part of this event, you need only to present your ticket in order to taste and enjoy their limited production artisan wines.
The Olobisi and Trahan winery tasting room is a place that on most days you’ll find proprietors Ted Osborne and Chuck Custodio behind the tasting bar, pouring their wines, and sharing stories with customers. It’s also doubles as offices for the two family-run wineries. Sadie, the winery dog, is their welcome waggin.’ Custodio considers her the most famous one of them all, because she’s featured in “Winery Dogs of Napa Valley” book.
The Mustard Festival Marketplace will be held at Mondavi Winery on Saturday and Sunday, March 14 and 15, from 11am to 5pm. Olabisi and Trahan will honor the Mustard Festival tickets on those days only. According to Chuck Custodio, “We thought it would be a great opportunity for people to come by and taste what we’re doing, before or after the main event at Mondavi.”
In 2002, Olabisi Winery was started by winemaker Ted Osborne and his wife, Kim Wedlake. Osborne, who’s made wine for high-end producers in Bordeaux, Napa, Australia, and South Africa, makes vineyard-designate wines for his Olabisi label, while consulting on a variety of other Napa wine projects. The Olabisi wines are produced in extremely limited quantities, with some wines totaling fewer than 100 cases. All wines are fermented on wild yeasts. Current releases include Chardonnay, Old Vine Zinfandel, Syrah, and Petite Sirah.
Then in 2003, Trahan Winery was launched by Chuck Custodio, his wife, Janna, and Chuck’s mom, Elizabeth Trahan Berry. They characterize their brand as a small, even micro, family business dedicated to creating incredible wines from high quality fruit. Current releases include Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petite Verdot.
Location: Olabisi Wines and Trahan Winery: 974 Franklin Street, Napa, CA
Phone: 707 257 7477
Hours: Noon – 5:30pm, Mon thru Sun
Tasting Fee: $10 for 5 wines
Wines: Most wine is sold exclusively to mailing list and tasting room customers. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet, Petite Sirah, Petite Verdot.
Mustard Festival: 707.938.1133, www.mustardfestival.org, info@mustardfestival.org
[Both winemakers use Suisun Valley fruit.]
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