Frog’s Tooth’s spacious tasting room is just off Main Street in downtown Murphys. The banner over the entrance truthfully proclaims that Frog’s Tooth is “not just another tasting room.” The fun begins when visitors are enthusiastically greeted by Gary and Sue Grant or partners Larry and Pam Aderman. “We want Frog’s Tooth to be a place where people can relax and enjoy tasting and talking about wine,” Gary says. “Sometimes it’s hard to shut us up.” This is not a problem given the Frog’s Tooth story.

“I was a city boy who wanted to be a farmer, and my wife (Sue) was a country girl who wanted to live in the city,” Gary smiles. “For the first 30 years, she got her way and now it’s my turn.” Gary was born in San Francisco and raised in the bay area while Sue was born and raised in Yuba City. Gary’s background is in the telecommunications business and Sue is in the medical field. “We bought an almond orchard in Escalon about 10 years ago and what sealed the deal was that the owner threw in his 1965 Massy-Ferguson tractor so I felt like a real farmer. But my real desire was to grow grapes.”

After a couple of years searching for that “just right” location, Gary and Sue settled on a 67 acre piece of an old 5,000 acre cattle ranch in Salt Springs Valley, about 8 west miles from Copperopolis in Calaveras County. By 2003, the couple had planted 9.2 acres of Petite Sirah, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, and Grenache. “Dave Olson from Black Sheep Winery really helped us get started with his encouragement and advice. We specifically planted Sauvignon Blanc for him. He even provided some of the cuttings.” The first harvest was in 2004 with all of the grapes going to other Calaveras County wineries.

Gary picked up his wine making experience as a volunteer working with neighbor Rich Gilpin at Lavender Ridge winery. While at Lavender Ridge, Gary struck-up a close friendship with another volunteer, Larry Aderman and his wife Pam. With some hands-on experience and a few extension classes through U. C. Davis, Gary and Larry decided “we could do this” and the winery partnership was established. Their first (2005) vintage of Frog’s Tooth wine was 750 cases from their vineyard and grapes purchased from other foothill growers. By 2007 production had grown to 1,400 cases. When the new Frog’s Tooth facility opens in Salt Springs Valley later this year, about 2,000 case of

handcrafted Sierra foothills wine will be ready to enjoy.

Gary, Larry and third partners Marc (“Harry”) and Angelique Dalderup agree that they want to make wines that are easy to drink. “We want to make balanced wines without too much alcohol or rough tannins. We want to make the type of wines we like to drink,” Gary says. “All of our wines are dry and we like to do a few unusual and interesting things.” One example is the 2007 Marsanne, a light, delicate white wine that is fermented in neutral oak barrels to gain a bit more fullness without adding a “woody” character. Frog’s Tooth Grenache is similarly aged in neutral French oak for about 18 months to soften the tannins and develop complexity.

Pinot Grigio from Stevenot Vineyards and Fume Blanc from the Salt Springs vineyard round out the Frog’s Tooth white wine selections. Frog’s Tooth reds include an unusual foothills-grown Malbec, a 100% Tempranillo with typically Spanish earthy quality, and a deeply flavored Petite Sirah. The 2005 Frog’s Tooth Meritage celebrates 20 years of the Meritage Association with a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, and Petite Verdot faithfully aged in 25% new French oak barrels.

Frog’s Tooth? “I guess I’m the culprit for that,” muses Gary. I had a certain ‘fondness’ for frogs when I was a kid and was always bringing home tadpoles. I also had a fairly deep voice as a youngster and was called “froggie” – which I didn’t particularly like. It all kind of fit with the Calaveras County frog theme and Mark Twain’s story so I said frogs had to be our icon.”

Don’t be a toad. Come to Murphy’s and take a bite of Frog’s Tooth wines. The Frog’s Tooth Vineyards Tasting Room at 380 Main Street Suite 5 is open Fridays from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Checkout their website at www.FrogsTooth.com or phone (209) 728-2700 for information on their wines and wine clubs.