Nine North Wine Co
Chris Nickolopoulos and Elijah Pfister were approached by a high-end winemaker friend who had some extra Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: could they do anything with it? Samples were sent and both were greatly impressed with the quality. Moreover, given the recession at the time, it was available for pennies on the dollar. They took it all. Desiring a fruitier character in the finished wine, they also purchased several lots of Merlot and spent two weeks experimenting with blends until they hit the sweet spot.
Word quickly spread among winemaking estates that there was a discreet home to be found for the glut of wine that was in the market, and hundreds of samples came their way. Concurrently, retailers seeking proprietary blends learned of their efforts and they began to fulfill requests for them. It was an excellent business model in that stellar juice was obtained for a fraction of the cost and the consumer received appellation-specific wines that over-delivered at the price point. Nine North was now established as a premium negotiant brand.
Philosophy
We’re not regional specialists, rather we carefully select the best one or two producers from each great wine producing region resulting in a well-rounded and focused international wine portfolio. Most of our producers are sustainably certified and adhere to the thinking, ‘less is more.’ This approach allows them to let grapes develop in the vineyard with minimal intervention. As a result, most of our producers farm hillside vineyards and therefore require few to no additions in the winery: they use little oak and their wines have lower alcohol. We hope you enjoy their stories and their wines as much as we do at the dinner table with friends and family.
Biography
Proprietor-négociants, Chris Nickolopoulos and Elijah Pfister work with a handful of California's most respected grape growers and wineries selecting the finest rows, plots, barrels, and lots from each vintage. They strive to blend these selections into finished wines which carefully balance ripeness and acidity to achieve both regional typicity and unique, expressive flavor profiles.
This is a story of two friends who started a wine company over many barbecues and countless bottles of wine. As their wives had been roommates in college and best friends since, Chris Nickolopoulos and Elijah Pfister had known each other for over decade. As Chris was in the wine trade and Elijah’s beloved uncle owned one of largest wine and liquor retailers in North America, the conversations inevitably gravitated towards wine.
Wines from Nine North Wine Co
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