It's a tradition as the NCAA men's basketball tournament unfolds to root for the underdog, the little guy. For me, in the wine world, that's a year-round pastime. There's something about the small family-run winery, or the two-person distribution operation, that speaks to what's best about wine: the singular experience of tasting something new, or the discovery of a great value.
Even the behemoths of the industry started off that way. Lynn Johnson has built Johnson Brothers from a tiny local operation to a national distributor; Minnesota's own Robert Mondavi and Kent Rosenblum had shoestring outfits at the outset. And while plenty of good juice still emanates from these entities, I retain a soft spot in my heart for the likes of Steve Gaucher and Chris and Justin Hickman, Upper Midwest-based importer/distributors who focus on small wineries and friendly price points.
Chris Hickman is a veteran commercial airline pilot whose "day job" has taken him to some great wine regions. That's how he discovered Chateau De Montmirail, which has been making wine in the Rhône region since 1452. Two years ago, he and his son Justin started Wayzata-based Transend International to import and Belmont Select to distribute Montmirail's delicious unoaked Vacqueyras ($24), a tasty Argentine malbec from Vina Famatina ($12) and a dandy little montrasell called eFe from Spain's Bodegas Los Frailes ($13).
"The business plan was niche wines, hand-crafted wines from small family producers," Chris Hickman said. "We prefer $15-and-under wines. Justin calls them 'wine with a soul.' "
The Hickmans now bring in wines from Argentina, Portugal, Spain and France, plus California's Humanitas, which donates all its profits to charities in the regions where the wines are sold.
Along with Chris' pilot duties, Justin is a part-time graphic designer. So they squeeze in calls to stores and restaurants. "No one will tell you how things work, so you have to learn as you go," Justin said. "Selling the family history of the wineries, and winemakers who practice sustainable agriculture, makes it easier."
That might help explain why such eco-loco-friendly restaurants as Birchwood Cafe, Lucia's and French Meadow carry the Hickmans' wines.
Gaucher's reach is wider, as his Wine Adventures has a foothold in Chicago and has distributed in Minnesota five years. He's based in West Des Moines, Iowa, but spends a lot of time in Italy and France. He, too, focuses on small producers -- one vintner sells him 30 bottles a year -- with a strong quality-to-price ratio. Among his French finds: several rustic Châteauneuf-du-Papes (Chante Cigal, Chateau Beauchene) and a fascinating, flavor-packed wine made from 23 grapes, 1905 Plantation.
Four years ago, Gaucher's travels landed him at an Avignon train station with esteemed wine critic Robert Parker. "I told him I was a wine importer, and he said 'Oh, have I reviewed any of your wines?'" Gaucher recounted. "I happened to have one of his [Wine Advocate] magazines, and I pulled it out and said 'Yes, right here. Mine's the one that says 'No known American importer.' "
Parker smiled and took Gaucher's card. "And every time he's reviewed one of my wines since then," Gaucher said, "it has Wine Adventures in there."
Bill Ward • bill.ward@startribune.com
Read Ward on Wine at www.startribune.com/blogs/wine.
