Frey Family Vineyards

Near the Headwaters of the Russian River watershed, Frey Family Vineyards is growing organic and biodynamic grapes to be made into wine. The Frey Vineyards family has been tending over a thousand acres of land in the heart of Mendocino County. 

For my final episode of Season 1 of “The Positive Fantastic” podcast, I interviewed my aunt Katrina Frey, about the green business model and the roots of why Frey Vineyards became the first organic winery in the country. I moved to Freyland in 2005 when I fell in love with a Frey and joined the family.

I had just finished my time at the University of California in Santa Cruz where I had been radicalized at the Life Lab farm and gardens to want to get my hands dirty. I was looking to slow down my world travels post college and practice living in community. I married Daniel Frey and we dove fully into the world of gardening and farming.  

It was a natural and obvious choice as everyone in the family seemed to have a green thumb and the land was already being stewarded organically. I learned so much those first years through hands on experience. Growing our food and medicine became our shared relationship ambition.  

Over the years I have worked in various capacities at the Frey family winery business. I tried out being a cellar rat during crush and got covered in grape juice. I did a short run in the winery office helping file paperwork for this international enterprise. I’ve always enjoyed pouring wine at festivals, wine tastings, and special events. But by and large, the job that has stayed with me is managing a herd of goats. 

In the Fall after the grapes have been harvested, I take the goats on a daily walk through the vineyards. As they nibble old grapes and wild herbs and all the yummy things, they also pee and poop, fertilizing the fields. I’ve just started walking the goats in the vineyards again, and I can say that their current favorite food is the bounty of fallen acorns.

After the first buds break open on the grape vines in the Spring, the goat walks move to the surrounding wild lands where the goats help maintain trails and offering fertility to the rolling hills. 

For many years we had a small dairy operation for the family that involved milking the goats and sometimes cows and delivering raw dairy products around the home ranch. I was pregnant when we got the first goat program going. Katrina said then that she believed that the winery was ready to have some more food resiliency and that taking care of the goats could be my job. 

I gave birth to my son on May 17th in a spring water fed tub on the homestead surrounded by family. The next morning, babe in arms, I went out to the barn and witnessed our first goat giving birth to twins! For years we raised that line of goats with a lot of love and they gave back so much for our health and the health of the land. 

In 2017 a wildfire claimed our neighborhood. Almost every house on the family land was destroyed as were the homes of our neighbors for several miles around. Daniel and I transitioned our romantic relationship too, and now we are lifelong friends. We’re raising our teenage son together on a homestead at the end of a dirt driveway that fronts up against a mighty forest of bays, madrones, oaks, pines, firs, and redwoods. 

Although our first goat herd died the night of the wildfire storm, and we grieved them for years, I was gifted several goats last year when we moved back to the land. And so, as we rebuild, we’re slowing reintegrating so many of the things that made this place a truly remarkable home to live and grow. 

I’ve been wanting to do this interview since I started the podcast because in earnest, Frey Vineyards is doing something special. I love my job and I love that the Frey family feels that having sustainable animal management on the land is so important. In truth, Katrina and the other Frey family members have consistently made strides to conduct the family business with a passion for sustainability. 

I remember the first time I met Katrina; we were both enjoying a concert on the Frey Ranch and I was filled with excitement after having attended my first Bioneers Conference days before. I immediately felt a kinship with her about environmentalism and tangible eco-stewardship. Over the years we’ve shared so many rich experiences living in this beautiful place. 

For many years we were part of a small coalition of female beekeepers. We would help each other tend to our hives as we learned about the craft, took classes, attended conferences, and experimented with different styles of hive boxes. 

There’s so much more that I want to share about my life living on Frey Vineyards. While this interview represents the final episode in season one of The Positive Fantastic podcast, I’m excited to bring season two to life next year with an increased focus on the magic of my time on this land, and the many things that being an intimate part of a landscape has taught me. 

Check out my channel at YouTube.com/morinatura to see a video from Frey Vineyards about the new waste water eco-treatment called “Bio Filtro.” In the video, Katrina’s husband Jon Frey explains how the system works to transform the waste water from producing wine into compost tea and organic vermi-compost.

I referenced the book “To Speak for the Trees” by Diana Beresford-Kroeger in this podcast episode and highly recommend it for a whimsical and scientific journey into our connection with the trees of the world. 

You can visit the Frey Wine website for more information about the winery and the wine. There’s also a farm and garden blog there that I’ve been contributing to for the last dozen years. 

This 24th episode of the Positive Fantastic completes my first season as a podcaster! Thank you so much for joining me for all these wonderful interviews with local heroes! I hope that you’ll join me next season when I dive more into the eco-stewardship practices that are my daily meditation. 

Cheers and may your journey along the curling vine tendrils be fantastic.