Claiborne & Churchill's Thirty-Year Evolution

October 24, 2014

Edna Valley Pioneers Reflect on Struggle, Stubbornness, and Serendipity

(San Luis Obispo, CA) - Looking back over the last 30 years, Clay Thompson and Fredericka Churchill, owners of Claiborne & Churchill Winery (C&C), marvel at how stubborn they’ve been.

“We were always told ‘Don’t make wine for yourselves - make wine for the market,” said Clay, who was C&C’s winemaker until Coby Parker-Garcia took over in 2007. “But we just decided not to do that.”

Clay and Fredericka met while teaching Old Norse and German, respectively, at the University of Michigan in the late 1970s – a profession that became dull after 12 years. “When I was starting to make wine, I’d already had one career and been disappointed,” said Clay. “Integrity became very important to me after all the soul-searching I’d done. And it’s not integrity if you pander to the market. That’s business.”

Fredericka laughed. “Even though we struggled, it was a good move.”...

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