Every winemaker pours a little bit of their self into their handcrafted wines. From the soil, vineyard, grapes and the actual end product, the wine. Six generations our family has cared for and improved the estate and has heavily shaped what the Fernwood Cellars brand has become today.

Matt Oetinger, the only child of Linda Pond and Lew Oetinger, established Fernwood Cellars and built the winery on Redwood Retreat land. He became the fifth generation of his pioneering family to work on and enhance the land through a successful agri-business. After graduating from U.C. Davis with a degree in Biology, Matt served as vineyard manager at Clos LaChance Winery in Morgan Hill, CA. He continued to pursue his passion for winemaking and eventually dedicated all his time and energy to the evolution of Fernwood Cellars.

In 1987, Parker purchased a 714 acre ranch thirty five miles north of Santa Barbara, in the Santa Ynez Valley, where he promptly set about planning and establishing Fess Parker's Winery & Vineyard. I remember visiting some years ago the Fess Parker Winery and my wife and I having lunch at their Inn. I also remember growing up wearing a coonskin cap and pretending to be Davy Crockett. I never met Mr. Parker in person; however, I just have to admit how sentimental and touched I felt when I heard that he had died. I guess it is safe to say Fess lives on through the family he has left behind and the legacy he has left to his family and indirectly to us, Fess Parker Winery.

Resting unobtrusively on a back road in Madera County is the home of Ficklin Tinta Port. As it was from the beginning, Ficklin's Port is widely acclaimed as one of California's finest port wines created in the Portuguese tradition.

The winery is located in Fiddletown, a picturesque and sleepy town, founded around 1849, during the Gold Rush. Fiddletown is one of California's smallest AVA and is located within the larger Sierra Foothills AVA. At an elevation of 1800 feet, the vineyards have the longest growing season in Amador Country, allowing for maximum flavor concentration and exceptional balance year in and year out.Good wine is like good magic; it always tells a story, paints a picture and creates memories. By balancing the art of winemaking with the science of the craft, our wines are delicious, substantial and memorable.