1000 Stories is made – like craft spirits and beer – in small lots, each unique and expressive of Winemaker Bob Blue’s interpretation of the fruit, vineyards and barrels whose singular qualities came together to create something new. Each batch offers an opportunity for discovery. Maturing 1000 Stories in new and used bourbon barrels from some of America’s finest bourbon distilleries lends nuance and enhances Zinfandel’s signature red fruit and spice notes. Because Bob knows a balanced wine can only come from a restrained approach to these intensely flavored barrels, he begins the aging process in traditional French and American oak wine barrels before transitioning lots to the bourbon barrels. This small-lot approach, together with insightful sourcing and careful management in the cellar, elicits the polished character, layered flavors and elegantly bold nature 1000 Stories has become known for. 
WHY ZINFANDEL? Celebrated for its nuanced expression when grown in California soils, Zinfandel ultimately is a hearty red grape whose structure and flavors successfully stand up to – and riff on – the intensity of bourbon barrels. For 1000 Stories, fruit from heritage Mendocino Zinfandel vines dating to the 1880s is enhanced in the blend by Zinfandel from some of California’s most exciting emerging AVAs for the variety.
Thanks to strong conservation efforts started in the early 1900s by the American Bison Society (led by pioneering conservationist Theodore Roosevelt), the bison population has grown to about 450,000, yet fewer than 20,000 range freely. Realizing the bison population was still at risk, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) re-launched the American Bison Society in 2005. Wildlife Conservation Society has built a network of experts and strong relationships with ranchers and Native American tribes in an effort to restore natural habitats for the bison population. 1000 Stories proudly supports these efforts and works with WCS to develop programs to reintroduce bison into healthy environments where they may thrive and contribute to the ecosystems once again.