Common Thread: Reading the Miracle of Hands 

November 22, 2022 – Folktale winemaker David Baird has so many reasons to be doing his own wine label. First and foremost is his son Colin, who was born with Down syndrome 7 years ago. “I wanted to spotlight individuals like Colin and make people more aware of the challenges they face, while also showing how capable and amazing they are. Part of the proceeds from these wines will benefit the Special Olympics of Northern California,” he says.

The idea for “Common Thread” came from two sources: the first was a tasting at a winery in the Adelaide Hills of Australia called Murdoch Hill, where they had a project called “Pinot x Three,” and the second was looking at his sons’ palms and realizing that they had a commonality in the lines of their left hands. It’s fairly common for someone with Down syndrome to have a single palmar crease, whereas most people have two—think head and heart lines. Colin has one crease on his left hand and two on his right, as does his son Jack, as well as David himself. The idea of using the outline of their hands, but ending at their special line, became the driving force for the label, which depicts Colin’s hand on the left, David’s in the middle and Jack’s on the right.

The “Pinot x Three” experiment at Murdoch Hill combined both red and white grapes: Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier and Pinot Noir, all from the same family, but rarely blended together. “I loved this idea and decided to test it myself,” Baird says. “It’s approachable and easy enough to make. Take three varieties and see how many different wines you can produce. I picked the Pinot Meunier for sparkling and used the Pinot Gris for rosé.” He used the Pinot Noir for a standalone red as well as in a blend of all three.

Baird admits he spent a lot of time working on the label as he wanted to get it just right. The design had to be flexible enough to work in a number of colors, and it had to look more “personal” than “business.” What resulted is both classic and whimsical.

“Some people look at the label and they may see crowns,” says Baird. “But to me it’s more personal: this is my family. We can easily do different background colors and different hand colors to distinguish vintages and wines. It’s interpretive. My common thread is my kids and for this particular year, 2021, the wine’s common thread is the Pinot family.”

Focusing on making people aware of the challenges of those with disabilities has garnered lots of attention and interest among other families whose children have similar needs. He hopes that Colin will participate in the Special Olympics when he turns 8. Now, at age 7, he is very active, has tremendous energy and loves to share his big heart. While living in Pacific Grove, Baird sat on the Recreation Board in part to help expand ADA access in the parks for kids with special needs. He admits the glacial pace of government was daunting, but he enjoyed contributing, even in a small way.

Baird is extremely grateful to Folktale founder and serial entrepreneur Greg Ahn for allowing him the flexibility to pursue his own passion and for also being supportive of causes dear to his heart. Folktale recently hosted an event that benefited the Special Olympics, an organization that Ahn very much supports. The Common Thread wines are available for sale via the Folktale website.

The debut vintage of Common Thread wines, 2021, is certainly compelling, beginning with the 2021 Petillant Pinot Meunier, sourced from the Riverbench Vineyard in Santa Maria. Starting with its simply gorgeous color of blood orange and hibiscus, it presents a nice alternative to the typical pet nat. It’s a bit more like a true sparkling, which means it’s a lot cleaner, and presents nice bubbles and a brisk palate with rhubarb, orange zest, kumquat and Comice pear. It’s 12% alcohol and retails for $40, as do all the Common Thread wines.

The 2021 Common Thread “Three Strands” Red Wine is a combination of all three Pinot family members playing nicely together after 8 months in neutral French barrels. Opening with a perfumey nose of rose petals and orange peel, it reveals rosemary, lavender and nutmeg spun around a bright and graceful core of cranberry, red raspberry and rhubarb, with a hint of marzipan from the Pinot Meunier. Pinot Noir, clones 667 and 115, sourced from the Pelio Vineyard that is attentively farmed with organic practices by Chris and Greg Vita, whom he calls “salt of the earth,” adds grip and depth. It’s like the key at the end of the kite string, providing just enough weight to keep from sailing off into the stratosphere.

Just bottled last week, the 2021 Common Thread Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, entirely from Pelio Vineyard fruit, glows in the glass with its translucent salmon and magenta with a touch of saffron color, practically creating its own aura. Clocking in at a Pelio-perfect 12.5%, it was picked at 23 Brix, at the end of September with fully lignified stems. “Whole cluster can be difficult,” says Baird. “But this vineyard has a very long growing season, which is good for stems.” He didn’t press at total dryness, but instead at 2 Brix, a style that works well with lower alcohol wines that need to mellow tannins before bottling early—at 16 months instead of 24—in a fresh and approachable style. The aromas here are perfume and rosehip tea, and the flavors are cranberry, raspberry and pomegranate on a lithe and glassy pond smooth palate.

Baird recently placed his first wine at Apero Club in Santa Cruz and hopes to place the wines at a few wine shops, including a spot in the Willow Glen area of San Jose, 20Twenty Cheese Bar, whose owner also has a child with Down syndrome. They are already planning a wine dinner around the Common Thread wines.

For 2022, Baird expanded his varietal horizon to include Syrah, from a relatively new vineyard (6 years old) in the Cupertino Hills above Ridge, managed by the Muhly’s of Coastal Range. He did 100% whole cluster on the lot for 16 days before pressing into two neutral barrels. He’s thinking of bottling it in mid-summer.

Pinot Noir for 2022 came from the Lawson Vineyard in Santa Cruz off Old Santa Cruz Highway, where he sourced 667 and Swan clones. Again, he got Pinot Meunier from Riverbench, this year at a bit lower Brix. Baird fermented the destemmed Meunier on top of dried stems from a separate Pinot Noir lot that was destemmed at the crush pad. The 2022 Pinot Gris was procured from Regan Vineyard, on which he did a two-week skin contact to make an “orange wine” that happens to be just a fabulous rose color.

Lastly, Chenin Blanc from the Massa Vineyard (formerly Heller Estate) was left on its skins for 4 days before being pressed and barrel fermented. This wine will be bottled in early spring with no SO2.

Baird says there will be 7 Common Thread wines in total for 2022, each one a micro lot. “They are very small,” says Baird. “But filled with passion.”

A passion you can see on the bottle and taste in the glass.

www.commonthreadwines.com

Laura Ness is a longtime wine journalist, columnist and judge who contributes regularly to Edible Monterey Bay, Spirited, WineOh.Tv, Los Gatos Magazine and Wine Industry Network, and a variety of consumer publications. Her passion is telling stories about the intriguing characters who inhabit the fascinating world of wine and food.