My passion for winemaking took root in the early 2000s during my undergraduate studies when I was fortunate to spend time in the German wine regions of the Mosel, Baden, and Rheingau. I have had an interest in nature my entire life, but was awed by the steep-sloped vineyards surrounding the small towns I visited. I learned how beautiful and diverse Riesling could be. I learned how differences in terroir or techniques could impact the resulting wine. In short, I caught the “wine bug” like many others before me. 

Fast forward over thirteen years... I still love Riesling, but many other things changed during that time. I married my wife Rachel and we had our daughter.  I also became a home-winemaker, planted a mini hobby vineyard, studied winemaking through UC Davis, and took time away from my corporate day-job to study under Jim Duane at Seavey Vineyard. Along the way I had a dream to craft my own wines and was fortunate to encounter Jim, and other mentors, to help me envision a path forward. After lots of research, crunching numbers, license applications, and late-night brainstorms the model for Terratorium started to materialize.  For me, wine is about creating a craft beverage that is clearly connected to nature. It is about creating a product that brings people together. Wine has inspired me to travel to new places, learn new things, experience different cultures, try new foods, and share a glass with new people. It has taken my wife and me on adventures we will remember forever. It has also given me a goal to pass along lessons of trusting your palate, knowing where your food comes from, and enjoying quality over quantity to my daughter.My hope is that at Terratorium we will create wines that enrich the lives of our consumers and reveal how amazing this beverage can be.

- Ben Matthews

I have three great loves in this world: family, nature, and opportunity.  

My wife and I have two daughters that keep us busy.  Recently we logged four pulled-teeth in a 36-hour period.  We came to Napa because of the grapes.  We’ve stayed here because of our friends that also left their families to make a life around the wine industry. Napa has become the place we set down roots and call home.     

I work in the middle of an oak forest.  I often ask myself, “Do I work out here so that I can make wine, or do I make wine so that I can work out here?” I’m still not sure about the answer. 

Winemaking has always given me an opportunity to be where the forest meets the farm.  Grapevines have given me the opportunity to be outside and to tinker.  Wine has also given me the opportunity to meet incredible people.  

In 2014 I created a podcast about winemaking. Three years later, I met Ben and Cam when they came out to Napa because they were serious about their mutual desire to learn how to make wine professionally and the podcast had given me the opportunity to teach a class.  That following year Ben put his life on hold, worked the 2018 harvest with me at Seavey Vineyard, and Cameron moved to California for good and worked the harvest in Sonoma.  They worked  long, physical hours in the wineries yet still partied almost every night for 70 days straight (Ben’s leave of absence cut-off).  

Ben and Cam can tell the full back-story of Terratorium.  I can tell you that it didn’t come long after that "test-the-waters" harvest in 2018 that they knew winemaking was in their future. 

I’m thrilled about the opportunity to be a part of Terratorium.  My role is fairly simple. I work with Ben and Cam to make sure we can find great vineyards, to stay on top of all the details during the winemaking, and to tell the story of why we are making wines that have a connection through family, nature, and opportunity.

- Jim Duane