A LETTER FROM OUR WINEMAKER
My paternal grandparents, Zofia and Franciszek, were living in Warsaw, Poland, at the time of World War II on a tiny self-sustaining farm with their two children. Due to an unfortunate series of events, they we’re separated for six years while my grandfather was held as a prisoner of war. Through faith, countless prayers and dedication to each other, they both survived the war. Because of the strong Catholic influence throughout Europe, they were able to discover they were both still alive, as well as my aunt and uncle who had been with my grandmother during that time. After many hard days and much heart ache, they found each other’s arms again and decided to leave war-torn Poland. They made their way to Bristol, England, by boat, where my father was born and raised. The hard work, dedication and endless love that both my paternal grandparents exemplified, played a big role in shaping who I am today. Both Zofia and Franciszek have already left this world, but they will forever be my guiding angels.
My maternal grandparents, Verona and James, met when they were in high school and have been married ever since they were seventeen. They are both such hard workers raising their three daughters in a town outside Sacramento. Their love and dedication to each other is a love that I have always been enamored with. Because of their love and respect for one another, I too, have the same outlook on how I treat my relationships with the ones I love. They are still happily married, retired, and live on a ten-acre hobby vineyard my grandfather planted on their property in 2009.
My father, Andrew, travelled to Los Angeles, California when he was in his thirties to visit his sister for the summer – shortly after arriving for his summer holiday, he decided to stay and get a job in California – not having any idea he was about to build a life and career there. My mother and father met in the late 1980s in Sacramento at my father’s steel manufacturing business. He had used every dime he had to purchase and manage the company all on his own. Living on the bare minimum to make my fathers’ business flourish was the mentality my parents had in order to survive financially and be successful in their future. Both of my parents sacrificed their own passions to give their three children the very best in life. Everything they did was for the love of their children. My father and mother both instilled in me, the hard work, dedication and love that their parents each instilled in them.
When I was a young girl, my paternal grandfather, Franciszek, who I called DziaDzia [Jeh-Jeh] used to speak to me in Polish and I never truly understood what he was saying until I was a little older and learned that ‘Kochana Anie’ meant my ‘Dearest Anie’. He would write me countless letters in his broken English that I still have to this day. My heart is forever warm, remembering him calling me Kochana. The love I have for winemaking is what all my grandparents wanted to instill in all their grandkids. Having passion for something, making it your own and being happy while doing it.
What’s the famous saying?
“Find a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
Kochana Wines is a way for me to honor family members who made it possible for me to be who I truly am and want to be.
Because of my family, the love of winemaking, hard work and dedication, Kochana Wines became tangible.
Here’s to you my Kochana Zofia, Kochany Franciszek, Kochana Verona, Kochany James, Kochana Elizabeth, Kochany Andzrej –
and now my husband, Kochany Andrew Jones -
thank you for making everything possible.
Kocham Cię
Cheers to you,
~Anie Peszynski-Jones
ABOUT OUR WINEMAKER
ANIE PESZYNSKI
Growing up in Sacramento, winemaking was never Anie’s first career choice. When applying to college she knew she wanted to go to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and she was going to do whatever it took to get in. Which meant applying to a major she did not know much about – Agriculture Business. Strongly willed and determined to completely understand what Agriculture and Wine Business entailed, she decided to go all in. Not giving up on learning all aspects of the Wine Business degree, she took classes in all three concentrations – Business, Viticulture and Enology. She ended up loving everything she had to learn in school and needed to apply that knowledge to a career but did not know if it would be Business, Viticulture or Enology.
After successfully graduating Cal Poly, she worked her first harvest in 2012 at Skinner Vineyards in Fair Play, California not far from Sacramento. Working alongside Winemaker, Chris Pittenger, Anie finally realized what wine production was all about. She fell in love with the smell of the early fall mornings, the long hard days in her steel toe boots, red wine stained and callused hands from slinging hoses all day, but most of all, understanding how wine was made. Not just any wine variety but Pinot Noir specifically. She learned quickly how finicky Pinot Noir could be and that challenge made her want to learn more.
Moving to Napa at the end of 2012, Anie found herself working as an intern again at Hunnicutt Winery where she would get hired on full time and learn a lot more than just fermentation management and sanitizing. After two years at Hunnicutt, Anie wanted more. She wanted to travel and learn about winemaking. Connections throughout Napa allowed her to work a harvest at Craggy Range Winery in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. It was only a few months, but Anie was enamored with everything that New Zealand had to offer – the people, the land, the wine – everything there seemed a little sweeter. To her family’s surprise, she moved back to California because she landed an internship with Flowers Winery, a job she was most excited to experience because of their history with true Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir.
At the time, wine production was a very male-dominant side of the industry, however, that didn’t stop Anie from trying to climb up the ladder. Working for a handful of other wineries she finally found a spot that she could grow as a winemaker herself. Starting out as a cellar worker at Mending Wall in 2017, she then made her way to Cellar Master and eventually Head Winemaker. Working alongside Thomas Rivers Brown there is a lot of Cabernet Sauvignon to be made but it has given Anie the opportunity to make Pinot Noir for herself due to the difference in growing seasons of Burgundy varietals and Bordeaux varietals.
It has taken some time and a lot of learning, but Anie’s experiences have given her the ability to finally make wine for herself, as a woman winemaker in California. With her 12th harvest under her belt, there are still things to learn every day about the wine industry. Constant challenges that all winemakers face is something Anie grapples with now – Climate Change, social indifferences, supply chain demands – More reasons why she is thankful every time she gets wine to bottle from each of her vineyard designates. Though creating Kochana Wines has been Anie’s dream come true, she knows it’s not just about the winemaker. It is all about the relationships - the vineyard growers, the cellar workers, the salespersons, the consumers – all these aspects encompass the wine industry, and one would not exist without the other. So when drinking a bottle of great wine, it's good to remind ourselves how much time, hard work and passion goes in to making that bottle!