Sort This Out Cellars: A Unique Wine Experience

Located about 140 miles north of Los Angeles, CA is the small city of Buellton. Here you will find about 5,000 residents, the area where some scenes from Quentin Tarantino’s “Death Proof” was filmed, and of course………Sort This Out Cellars, one of California’s Central Coast’s newest and most unique wine producers.

Founded By Michael Cobb and Jeff Munsey in 2007, they released their first wines: “Money Plays” and “Hardways” and are steadily spreading their brand of wine to the masses. I personally have tasted some of their “Suited” wines and I think wine drinkers will be in for a pleasant surprise.

I had a chance to catch up with co-founder Michael Cobb to talk about his company and future plans for their wines.

The Opening Set: First of all, tell me how did you guys settle on the name and theme of “Sort This Out Cellars”?

Michael Cobb: It’s actually a line from a Vince Vaughn/Jon Favreau movie called “Made”. It really only means something to us, but it made us laugh and when we were filling out our paperwork for our winery bond, we hadn’t settled on a name. We didn’t want to call ourselves Cobb & Munsey Cellars, so we put this down, knowing we could change it later. It stuck and we never did (change it). We also tell people in the Tasting Room that if they don’t like the wine, we’ll go outside and “Sort It Out”. Ha ha ha (laughs)

TOS: Is wine something that you and your partner have always been interested in? Was starting this company a goal that you have always had?

MC: Myself – I’ve been in the restaurant industry all my life. My parents and grandparents owned restaurants and I’ve always gravitated towards the “wet end” of the business. I was a bartender in my 20’s and was around the right people who helped me learn and mentor me. My goal was to do something in the wine industry – but something different. Jeff came to work with me at Club 33 at Disneyland, with little knowledge of wine and quickly became interested in knowing more and was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel and gain knowledge and run the Golden Vine Winery complex at Disney’s new park in Anaheim. He’s very creative and this gives him an outlet to share his creative skills and mix it with his interest – wine.

After leaving Disney, Jeff and I ran a large winery in Santa Ynez for almost 4 years. There we gained the necessary, hands-on experience needed to pull this all together.

TOS: You started as an online retailer and have now expanded and opened your wine tasting room in Buellton,CA. How has that experience been and how has it helped the company?

MC: We’ve done this whole thing step by step, working with a Disney salary and an economy that is hurting everyone. We also, did it smartly. We’re businessmen first and wine guys second. Too many people start wineries and their passions take over and they end up making poor business decisions.
Building our production level, bit by bit and offering our wine in small quantities, helped us get established. Once we had enough product to open a tasting room, we wanted to get the wine in front of more people and made the move. We have now built our wine club to over 100 people and are working on selling our wine to some select retailers. Until now, our wine has pretty much only been available here and from our website.

TOS: How is your wine different from the typical wines of today?

MC: We make our wines to be reflective of the people who are drinking them, rather than a reflection of the area the grapes are grown or the specific vineyard or something. They’re designed to be fun, interactive and approachable. The wines are made to be drank now – not held for 5 or 6 years until they’re ready. We use minimal oak – mostly neutral – and the wines have little tannins and bright fruit flavors.

TOS: I know you launched the company with 2 wines in 2007, “Money Plays” and “Hardways”. How many different wines do you currently produce now?

MC: We make two brands of wine. We have our “Suited” line which features pin-up artwork from gentlemen playing cards of the fifties.

These are the current “Suited” wines:

2007 Pinot Grigio

2006 Sangiovese

2007 Sangiovese Rosato

2005 Holiday Merlot

We also have our wines made under our Sort This Out Cellars label which we call our “Rollers Reserves”. These are a little more complex, smaller production and a little more refined. Usually 2 or 3 barrels each.

The current releases include:

2003 Hardways Cabernet Sauvignon

2005 Money Plays Merlot (sold out)

2005 Parlay red blend

2007 Zin City Zinfandel

TOS: What are your best selling wines?

MC: Right now the Zin City and Sangiovese are the top sellers. In the summer, Pinot Grigio is a hit.

TOS: Tell our readers a little bit about “The List” and the perks that come with it.

MC: “The List” is our wine club. We ship out 2 to 6 bottles quarterly at a discount of approx. 40%. It’s a set fee of $65 and members can buy additional wines or merchandise at 20% throughout the year. We also make some wines exclusively for wine club members. We offer some specials, like ½ off cases at times and free shipping other times. Members can taste for free with a total of 3 other guests when visiting the tasting room. We also are planning a few events or trips this year.

TOS: What do you have planned for the company in 2009 and beyond?

MC: Continue to grow our wine club and wholesale divisions. Continue to offer some unique label designs and solid performers in small quantities, to the lucky ones who come across our little company. Take our annual Vegas retreat to plan for the future. Our tax attorney tells us we can write off a few trips per year for “research and development”. I’m only half kidding Jay. But mostly, work at providing the level of service, quality of wines and uniqueness that you can only find in a small winery like ourselves.

TOS: Where can our readers find more info on your company and wines?

MC: Please visit our Sort This Out Cellars website and while there, sign-up for our mailing list so we can let everyone know of the good times ahead. We have casino nights about once a month where we play blackjack – not for money – only for raffle tickets, but it gets very competitive and visitors walk out with some cool prizes at the end of the night.

TOS: Thanks for your time Mike. I wish you and your company continued growth and success.

MC: Thank You!! It’s very cool of you to do this for us!

Well, there you have it guys and gals. Next time you are in the mood for some wine, give Sort This Out Cellars a try. Look them up on Myspace also!

Sort This Out Cellars - Buellton, CA

**Please Be Of Legal Drinking Age Before Consuming Any Wine Or Other Alcoholic Beverages**