Salamandre Wine Cellars

Owner and winemaker Wells Shoemaker is a pediatrician with an interest in fine wine. When he began Salamandre in 1985 with partner Dave South, his focus was Chardonnay from small vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Arroyo Seco. He has since delved into a number of red varieties including Merlot and Pinot Noir. His wines are sensibly priced for as he says, "Don't pay ridiculous dollars for Ego Noir that's still trying to draft on Sideways."

Tucked into a shaded redwood canyon two miles from the beaches of Aptos, Salamandre Wine Cellars crafts wines with old fashioned hand labor. Because of Salamandre's small scale, the wines are hard to find East of the Santa Cruz Mountain ridge line. Shoemaker has written and lectured on the physiological effects of phenols and alcohol in wine (The French Paradox and Beyond, Perdue, Shoemaker and Marton, Renaissance Press, 1992).

The wines are produced in very small quantities and are sold through a mailing list and on the website. The winery is not open to the public but periodic open houses and invitational tastings are held at the winery which is carved into the hillside next to Shoemaker's home. A newsletter on various topics of great interest is published three times a year.