Distillation in Soquel, California
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Osocalis is a spirit. An expression of California, philosophy, and excellence in distillation.
These offerings, comprise spirits of varying age and complexion, from blends, or single lots, that are selected based on their singular stylistic profiles. Bottled, coded and released, never to be reproduced.
‘Cellar-work’ season, between distillation and tending our plants, is a reflective moment when we blend, select and hand-bottle these releases.
Osocalis is the vision of Daniel Farber. Viticulture, winemaking, engineering, distilling, barreling, aging… waiting. All converge into a single moment - selected and blended from multiple timelines and curated from single properties; combined by one person’s palate.
The Santa Cruz Mountains is home. Not just to Osocalis, but the biological panoply that make it possible to grow, ferment and distill grapes perfectly suited for the production of this spirit.
SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS; near SOQUEL; forest home of the OSOCALIS
distillery and aging cellar.
SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS; near WATSONVILLE; home vineyard and orchard;
PURISIMA FORMATION
Terroir - ‘The complete natural and social environment in which particular wines are produced', including factors such as the soil, topography and climate, fruit variety and vinification practices.
The Geology of the Santa Cruz Mountains is complex, born of massive plate tectonic interactions and advancing and retreating sea levels from epochs tens of millions years old.
The biome is the synergistic interaction of Earth-systems.
Sandy loam, found on shallower slopes these soils are typically <2m thick and overly highly fractured Purisima Formation bedrock.
Highly-fractured Purisima Formation sandstone; very low yielding and restricted to red-wine production. Forming the steepest slopes in the vineyard.
Thin (<1 m) sandy loam overlying Purisima Formation sandstone, found on moderate hill slopes.
Organic rich silty loam. Planted to our apple orchards these thicker soils provide for good water retention upon which to develop our dry farmed orchards.
Sandy loam, found on shallower slopes these soils are typically <2m thick and overly highly fractured Purisima Formation bedrock.
Highly-fractured Purisima Formation sandstone; very low yielding and restricted to red-wine production. Forming the steepest slopes in the vineyard.
Organic rich silty loam. Planted to our apple orchards these thicker soils provide for good water retention upon which to develop our dry farmed orchards.
We grow over 50 varieties of traditional French cider apples. Our orchards are planted and grown Haute-tige (in three parts. Roots, interstem and fruiting head) on full-size rootstock and as with all our fruit, are dry farmed. While taking decades to establish, our orchards should remain productive for 80 years, require no irrigation and will provide habitat for native plants and animals. A true gift to future generations.
We grow over 50 varieties of traditional French cider apples. Our orchards are planted and grown Haute-tige (in three parts. Roots, interstem and fruiting head) on full-size rootstock and as with all our fruit, are dry farmed. While taking decades to establish, our orchards should remain productive for 80 years, require no irrigation and will provide habitat for native plants and animals. A true gift to future generations.
The select ‘exotic’ grape varieties that become our distilled spirit are grown and vinified by us with fruit from Purism Formation, our vineyard site near Corralitos. We grow both rare and traditional varieties for distillation (Semillon, Folle blanche, etc.) as well as non-traditional (Pinot noir, Viognier etc.) varieties for distillation. While many of these present challenges, folle blanche for instance, is a difficult varietal to mature in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Our selections are ideal for producing fruit at the prime intersection of flavor and acidity required for the the low alcoholic wines of great spirits.
The select ‘exotic’ grape varieties that become our distilled spirit are grown and vinified by us with fruit from Purism Formation, our vineyard site near Corralitos. We grow both rare traditional (Semillon, Folle blanche, etc.) as well as non-traditional (Pinot noir, Viognier) varieties for distillation. However, all our fruit focuses on flavors and acidity for the production of low-alcoholic wines required for great spirits.
A traditional Alambic Charantais still
Barrel maturation: time as an ingredient. Over years of quiet, intentful maturation, the distilled spirit becomes Osocalis. Yet, proper maturation is more than just placing sprit in a barrel and waiting. The space needs to be constructed specifically for the maturation of spirits and the spirits themselves need to be cared for over their lifetime. This means nurturing the spirits through different wood regimes, different cellars (wet and dry) and along their decreasing strength from barrel entry to bottling.
To receive our release schedule enroll below. You will be added to a list with our current offering, and given instructions on how to acquire our rare spirit. Your privacy is our priority, we will not share your information.