Frey organic and biodynamic wines have lovely labels

“When we say that we are pioneers in organics, we’re not just paying lip service to our pioneer status. We’re actually situating ourselves as the fundamental players that brought organics into the wine industry,” says Molly Frey in conversation with her mother Katrina Frey, her sister Eliza, and Derek Dahlen vineyard manager. Organic and biodynamic pioneers Frey Vineyards Ranch became a bonded winery forty five years ago yesterday March 24— making them Mendocino’s winery number twelve. This year, they’re opening up their new winery facilities and making more plans for a green future with their extended family.

Back on March 24, 1980, Frey officially became a resale winery, but they were organic from the beginning when the family planted the vines in the 1960s. Demeter certified them biodynamic in 1996, and USDA certification came in 2003.

Frey family: assistant winemaker Eliza Frey and husband vineyard manager and biodynamic specialist Derrick Dahlen in a Texas kitchen following the eclipse

Today, multiple generations of Frey women live on the ranch and work with the winery including 100 year old matriarch Beba Frey, her daughter in law marketing maven executive director aka CEO Katrina Frey who married Beba’s son winemaker Jonathan Frey, their daughters Molly Frey who handles social media, and Eliza Frey who is on the winemaking team. Many more of Beba’s extended family are involved in all aspects of their operation on the slopes of Redwood Valley, in Mendocino County, California.

And as today March 25 is National Women in Wine Day,

we thought we’d take a minute to express our gratitude to the Frey family and so many other women shaping the wine industry—especially those facing the challenges of growing grapes organically. Founded in 2021 by Renae Perry and Yolanda Papapietro, co-owners and co-founders of Papapietro Perry Winery in California, National Women in Wine Day highlights stories of women in the wine industry.  They also have a donations and scholarships page.

In 1962, Paul and Beba Frey, two doctors from New York, bought a 95 acre ranch in Mendocino. In 1967, the couple and their 12 children planted vineyards farmed organically. In the 1970s, the family started making their own wine. In 2017, the Redwood Complex Fire destroyed their historic redwood office buildings, their winery with its new bottling line, twelve of fourteen family homes, and killing many of their four legged family. Today Frey has a new, eco-friendly, fire resistant metal winery on the 1000 acre ranch with 250 acres of biodynamically farmed wine grapes, with the rest of the land preserved as woodlands which provide natural biodiversity and a refuge for beneficial insects, plants, birds, and animals.

While Jonathan Frey may be the main winemaker, it is Beba who made all of this grow first, it is Katrina out in the world selling the wine, Molly making the words that tell the world about their wine, and Eliza helping to make the wine. And more women who make the Frey wine world work…

Jonathan and Katrina Frey while waiting with me to see the eclipse in Texas April 2024; read more here

Katrina isn’t just a spouse who followed her farmer winemaker husband to join the business. After college, Katrina studied Biodynamic farming under Alan Chadwick which is where she met Jonathan. They thought they’d grow organic vegetables but realized quickly that it did not pencil out while making wine might. The rest is history and this history making woman has continued to be an important figure in organics. In addition to being CEO,  Katrina tends honeybees, gardens, runs after her many grandchildren— and chases eclipses with her extended family and friends as I know from joining them in Texas for the 2024 eclipse! 

A few Frey highlights:

• Frey ferments their organic wines with the nation’s first certified organic yeast.
• Frey ferments their biodynamic wines with native yeast.
• Frey never adds sulfites or preservatives.
• Frey focuses on premium organic grapes that are GMO free.
• Frey recycles water using worm composters.
• Frey purchases half of the organic grapes grown in California including organic grapes from 30 local growers.
• Frey produces 200,000 cases making them one of the largest organic, biodynamic certified wineries in the west.
• Frey wines are widely available and even better, affordable compared to many other comparable biodynamic wines.

Frey biodynamic wines with burgers