Lichen Estate

01/03/2026

FOUND! Belgian Malenoise wandering on Highway 128 in front of Lichen. Our employee took him home but can be back tomorrow. If you know this hound, call Jay: ‭(707) 889-8747‬

11/08/2024

Color Trials for Lichen Estate 2019 Grand Cuvée Rose! Which % red wine addition do you think will win?

10/21/2024

https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/anderson-valley-pinots-soar?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0c5pzKec1JWjvMWtoeA0eZv-85gN5qVQrL_lX8rOkgzWmamfv___HgZ3A_aem_D2jHNB4xyMjUODnCH7-7mQ

Anderson Valley Pinots soar

02/23/2024

https://radiomisfits.com/twm310/
The Wine Makers podcast interview with Lichen Estate's Proprietor/Winegrower just dropped... all two hours of it!

Doug Stewart grew up in Sonoma and had no connection to the wine business. At some point during his time developing several truly sustainable companies wine and grapes started to come into focus. In 2000 they bought a historic sheep farm in Anderson Valley. Eventually a winery named Breggo was […]

08/31/2022

I rarely post, especially political posts, but here goes.

Tonight is the second night of harvest at Lichen Estate. We only have four full-time, year-round vineyard workers, who are all amazing. But a giant crew showed up tonight to help us harvest. When we bottle and during harvest our full-time vineyard crew are on the bottling line and they are on the crush pad and in the cellar working harvest. All of them were born in Mexico. Our amazing cleaning lady was also born in Mexico. Our Cellar Master was born in Wales (and got his PhD in the UK). Our Assistant Winemaker and GM (a U.C. Davis grad) was born in the United States. So our crew is largely foreign born. They are all highly skilled, and we wouldn't exist without them. We thrive with the help of immigrants. I am a child of immigrants. My lovely wife is the child of immigrants.

I wish this weren't a political statement but it is: We wouldn't have a business, a family farm, if it weren't for them. Most farms, most restaurants, most meat packing plants, virtually all food and wine produced in the United States would not get made without them.

We try to pay them well, meaning $20 an hour and above for our full time employees, plus housing for our foreman. During harvest they are paid by the bucket of grapes, and they earn $50 to $80 an hour by the bucket. Our employees get vacation pay and federal holidays off. But we can't afford health insurance. I'm ashamed that we can't cover health insurance. But that shame is on all of us. Their health care would be covered in almost any other industrialized country. Our health care system is broken and that has little to do with our broken immigration system. We are thankful for our Anderson Valley Community Health Center (http://www.avhc.org/) that takes care of people here. And we direct a huge percentage of our charitable donations to the health center.

I am thankful that we have these incredible human beings, incredibly skilled human beings, working for us. It's an honor to work with them.

Our foreman raised three kids here. His oldest has a graduate degree in architecture from U.C. Berkeley. Yet his immigration status is in limbo. He's been paying taxes in the United States for more than 30 years. He's 65. His immigration status is in limbo. After 30 years of paying into social security, it's not clear that he can claim the benefits from social security.

Our immigration system is broken. Please let's fix it.

I am hopeful that our immigration laws will soon start to reflect the incredible contribution that these folks contribute.

Sending love,
Doug

Specialized Diabetes Education now offered by AVHC! Click above for more information on one-on-one health coaching or group learning.

02/27/2022

Rams, resting in Lichen Estate's vineyard after their big win.

02/27/2022

Don Max Ochoa early morning, harvest 2021.

10/25/2021

Due to all this delicious rain — racing past 10" in the last seven days, and six inches just in the last 24 hours — we will be closed tomorrow, MONDAY October 25th, due to likely flooding and hazardous road conditions tomorrow. We will also be doing a dance to the rain gods thanking them for an "early" end to fire season.

03/05/2021

Thank you, Chris, for always stopping by when you’re around 🍷 Friday funday! 🤗

03/04/2021

Feeling a lot like spring around here! Visit us, relax, enjoy the view.. and the wine of course 🌸☺️

01/21/2021

Moonglow Pinot Noir; ALWAYS the perfect go-to for us 😎🤟🏽