One of the side benefits of the regular sunset sessions at Beacons I attend is the wide range of interesting and creative people I’ve met there.
One is Ray Hoffmann, former US Navy aviator and accomplished winemaker. Turns out his winemaking adventures have taken him to the Mendoza region of Argentina, known for its malbec, and also Michigan wine country.
With that, it was a great opportunity for me to get educated on a wine I knew little about and be treated to a world-class paella dinner with Ray and his family and a fun Lick the Plate interview that can be heard at https://www.lick-the-plate.com.
LTP: Before I get into your amazing wine, you had a fascinating career and family history as aviators in the US Navy. Tell me about that.
RH: Dad was career Navy pilot. Grew up East and West Coast but spent most of my childhood in California. Went to middle school at Twin Peaks in Poway, then dad got relocated to Annapolis, Maryland. When I graduated from Annapolis High School in 1978, my dad retired and moved to Holland, Michigan, to start a new career. He served during Vietnam and my brother and I graduated from US Naval Academy and both went to flight school in Pensacola, Florida.
My brother and I were career Navy pilots, each serving 20-plus years in aircraft carrier naval aviation. My first duty station was at Miramar in the mid-1980s, then I was transferred to Lemoore in the early 1990s where I flew FA-18s for the remainder of my career.
Over six deployments, saw combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, was commanding officer of VFA-146 Blue Diamonds during Operation Enduring Freedom following the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, 4,500 flight hours, 850 carrier arrested landings (traps). I have two older sisters and two younger brothers — I was in the middle.
LTP: How did you get from a family of aviators to the wine business…in Argentina?
RH: During our time in California, my folks frequently visited wineries in Napa and Central Coast areas and developed a love for wine. We were introduced to wine pretty early. While I enjoyed wine, I was much more a beer drinker. I ventured to Paso Robles to the wineries and started making wine in Paso with friends that were getting into the wine business. Of course, I would bring home brew, because as winemakers know, it takes a lot of beer to make a good wine!
In 1994, I made the beer for Tobin James Cellars’ grand opening. Meanwhile, I took many leave periods from from the US Navy and spent weeks in Paso learning to make wine. I developed my winemaking expertise in Paso Robles and used my California style in producing our Hoffmann Vineyards line of wines.
Meanwhile, back in Michigan, my parents would make trips to California and buy wine and eventually, my dad invested in Chateau Chantel (CC), located on the Old Mission Peninsula in Traverse City. He helped CC purchase a vineyard in Mendoza to expand their red wine portfolio and start a wholesale line.
Chateau Chantal eventually sold the vineyard to Hoffmann Vineyards in 2013. CC transported the finished product to Michigan for blending, and Hoffmann Vineyards kept a small portion of the reserve grapes for a new line of wines: Three Boys Rock and Pirates Rock Malbec.
In 2017, I joined the winemaking team and Hoffmann Vineyards partnered with José Girotti and Carolina Colqui, a local Mendoza wine family, to make the wines.
LTP: OK, let’s talk wine. Mendoza is renowned for it’s malbec. Why is that, what are the flavor profiles of this wine and what is it best paired with?
RH: Late 1800s and early 1900, Mendoza was wealthy and wine terroir was perfect for malbec with high altitude for sun exposure, warm, rocky alluvial soil and plenty of Andes mountains spring water. Winemakers, enologist and viticulturists travel from Italy, Spain and France to make wine in Mendoza and developed Mendoza into a world-class, malbec wine-producing region.
Malbec from our vineyard in the Lujan de Cuyo region of Mendoza is characterized by dark berry fruits, pepper, chocolate and soft tannins. Hoffmann Vineyards has won numerous awards for our malbecs and red blend malbec and cabernet. Our first vintage made in 2019 was Hoffmann Vineyards Reserve Malbec and Rufous Malbec & Cabernet and was released in 2022. Hoffmann Vineyards added a cabernet sauvignon to our 2024 vintage of wines.
Some of our awards include 2020 HV Malbec — Platinum (94 points); 2021 HV Malbec — Gold, best of show malbec; 2022/2021 Three Boys Rock Reserve — Platinum (94 points), best of show malbec; and 2021 HV Rufous Malbec & Cabernet — Gold, best of show Bordeaux-style blend.
Of course, malbec goes great with steak and other meaty dishes, Italian food and paella. Our red blend malbec and cabernet and rosé is great by itself and pairs well with just about anything.
LTP: You also have a fabulous rosé. Tell me about the decision to add that to your offerings, and how it is different than others?
RH: My partners in Mendoza wanted to make a rosé in the 2021 harvest, and it’s a rosé of malbec. After we crush, we keep the must on skins for a day or two to get the color we want, then press off the juice before fermentation.
Our 2021 Rosé was a little too dry for me, so I made some adjustments in the 2023 elaboration to bring out more fruit character, and the result is a dry, fruity, balanced and crisp rosé that pairs well with just about anything. Great chilled on a warm day, with appetizers or even a main course like paella.
LTP: What brand names are your wines sold under and where besides your website can folks find them in San Diego?
RH: Original label Three Boys Rock and Pirates Rock. The name Three Boys Rock came from a rock offshore from my folks’ house on Lake Huron that fit three boys during summer “cousins” camp water activities. Hoffmann Vineyards is owned by three brothers in the Hoffmann family.
Hoffmann Vineyards includes Malbec Reserve Especial, Rufous Malbec & Cabernet and Rosé Reserve Especial. I’ll be introducing our first cabernet sauvignon from our 2024 line — should be released in 2027 after aging in French and American oak and bottle-aged two years.
To enable more red blends, we planted cab sav, cab franc, syrah, merlot and petit verdot in the vineyard in 2023. You can buy online at https://www.hoffmannvineyards.com and locally at WineSellar and Brasserie, Napatini Wine Bar and Bistro, SDYC, Del Mar Fair, Giordino, and in Fallbrook at Village Roots, Party Burgers, Major Market and Fallbrook Mission Theater.
LTP: And finally, I had the pleasure of sampling your paella and that was amazing. How did you become so proficient in the preparation of that dish?
RH: About 30 years ago, during one of my winemaking weeks with winemakers Tobin James and Larry Gomez (Via Vega), we decided to make a seafood paella. Larry had made paella and taught me the recipe. Took us half a day to make it, but it was delicious, and I had to learn and master this dish! I bought equipment and pans the following week and that started my 30 years of recipe refinement!
And there you have it, folks, a new wine to try with a very interesting backstory and local connection. Learn more at https://www.hoffmannvineyards.com.
