Two Papas Wines From the Vine to Your Dinner Table
The story of Two Papas Wines is a long and inspiring one, as told by its founding duo, Rick and Teresa Pratt. It started back in 1978, when Rick took on a second job at Trader Joe’s and ended up working alongside Captain Tim Bekins and venturing into the intricately detailed world of winemaking. That’s how it all got started – just a man taking his first steps into the world of wine.
Rick learned much from his time with Tim, and later on at his 40th high school reunion, another opportunity to expand upon his winemaking knowledge and interest arose. An old classmate, Mike Morrealle, mentioned that he made wine in his own garage as a hobby, and lo and behold, Rick was struck with the inspiration to do the same. This time, he had a designated winemaking partner, Doug Curran, and the pair spent six years perfecting the formulas that would later be picked up by an investor to help Rick’s wines make it big.
After opening his first official facility in Lompoc, California, Rick spent time crafting the perfect wine formulas, until he cut ties with the previous investor in 2017. Regardless of this setback, Rick was able to reach out to Flying Goat, a wine store owned by Norm Yost, who happened to operate a wine facility next door to Rick’s Lompoc location.
Now, with Norm’s facility and a strong dedication to keeping the wine machine operating, Rick was finally ready to solidify himself in the world of wine. Out of his partnership with Norm came the birth of their new label under which Two Papas Wines was to operate – Entourage.
As for the company’s name, “Two Papas” was inspired by his partner Doug’s grandson, who, on a trip to the beach, came running out of the surf yelling, “papa, papa!”, and the rest is history.
Two Papas Wines exclusively contracts grapes with Thompson Vineyard, located deep in the Aliso Canyon. Here, the grapes hang for 3-4 weeks longer than in other canyons and counties, which makes a huge difference in the quality of the wine produced.
“The greater the hang time, the sweeter the fruit,” says Rick. “As a result, we’re able to produce wines with big, rich flavors.”
Of course, going commercial and growing the company hasn’t been without its challenges in latter years. The wine industry is very difficult to break into, and the success of Two Papas Wines comes down to the little things that set them apart from all other wineries.
“Part of who we are is our commitment to our customers and our labels,” says Rick. “That and the quality of our Thompson grapes, of course.”
Behind the scenes, Teresa’s oil paintings are the magic behind their wine bottle labels, which all feature relatives, friends, and models.
You can enjoy Two Papas Wines at Marston’s Restaurant here in Santa Clarita, and they also offer online sales and a club membership to keep yourself in the loop with all things wine.
“We’re dedicated to producing high end wines and offering them at reasonable prices – and that’ll always be our priority, now and in the future,” says Rick.
You can find Two Papas Wines on Facebook and online at http://twopapaswines.com to enjoy their personalized service and expertise any time you’re craving the best of the best that the wine industry has to offer.
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