<< Previous   of   Next >> Snohomish County Business Journal/Rebecca Bailey  (click to enlarge) Since changing the winery’s name last year, Max and Jennifer Jensen, owners of Sojen Cellars, have made a lot of changes including a move to a larger facility on Hewitt Ave. The couple plan to nearly double their current production to meet increasing demand. Their new tasting room will host winemakers dinners and be available for event rental.

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New Everett location for Sojen Cellars offers increased production space and a tasting room

By Rebecca Bailey
Scbj Freelance Writer

When starting a business, every business guru says to base it on something you love.
In many ways, Max and Jennifer Jensen took that advice to heart when they started Sojen Cellars. Their business was born out of their love for wine and each other.

Sojen Cellars, which began as a home-based business with its wine making equipment in a 300-square-foot garage — and an off-site tasting room — in Lake Stevens, opened in Everett at 2818 Hewitt Ave. in December.

The new location will give Sojen Cellars more visibility with its own storefront and the 2,000-square-foot building will enable them to increase production as well.

That’s important because so far the boutique winery has not been able to meet the growing demand for its wine, selling out its entire production every year.

“We anticipate producing 800 to 1,000 cases in the next two to three years,” Max said. That equates to about 40 barrels of wine, which will nearly double their current production.

Presently, Sojen Cellars produces five moderately priced varieties of red and white wines. Wine sales breakdown at approximately 30 percent retail and 70 percent wholesale. The winery distributes to multiple restaurants and grocery stores in Snohomish County.

Max wants to expand the wholesale operation, first locally, then beyond the county lines. The business also produces custom wines for restaurants such as Terracotta Red, which is a modern Asian-style restaurant next door to the winery.

To grow retail sales, the tasting room is open Tuesday through Saturday with variable hours. Its décor is welcoming and comfortable with over-sized leather furniture, bistro tables and a fireplace.

The winery also has plans to offer food and wine pairings with small plates provided by Terracotta Red. Other tasting options will expand into winemaker dinners for up to 20 people, along with events such as wedding rehearsal dinners.

Sojen Cellars’ tasting room, which accommodates nearly 100 people, will soon be available to rent on Sundays for special events.

Max and Jennifer have been making wine together for nearly six years. Their mutual passion for wine drew them together when they met on-line about 10 years ago. They each bring a unique history and talent into their business of wine making.

“I ate and drank my way across Europe,” Max said, as he described how his love of wine started when traveling after college. Intrigued, he returned and worked at Silver Lake and DiStefano wineries for 10 years, learning how to make wine.

Eventually he developed his own style of winemaking and moved on to make his own. He favors wines that are drinkable now, rather than five to ten years from now.

“All of our wines, with the exception of our reserve, are ready to drink as soon as they are released,” he said.

Jennifer’s wine expertise comes from her years of working in the restaurant and catering business. “I’m the foodie. I’ll tell you what to eat with wine,” she said.

She has extensive experience of pairing food with wine, which lends itself to blending wine. Blending is vital in professional winemaking and not easy. And it’s rare to find a wine made from one grape variety. Knowing how wine stands up to food is critical to blending the wine.

“I call myself the blender,” she said. “Our wines have a more sassy, approachable friendliness to them than some others wines that are made solely to drink with food or by themselves.”

Running a winery has not been without its hurdles. Sojen Cellars was originally called Griffins Crossing, but last April that all changed. Another winery in Oregon had trademarked its second label with the same name. The winery had to change its name or risk a lawsuit.

“The hurdle was in the mind and heart and just getting your head around something new,” Jennifer said. The business had been Griffins Crossing for nearly six years, and they had based the name Griffins on a love story that symbolized their relationship.

In the end, it all worked out. Sojen Cellars is still very much a part of Jennifer and Max. Early on in their relationship when Max was a little tongue-tied on the phone, he would often fill a lull in conversation with ‘so….Jen.’

“We are the winery. We are always going to be the winery,” Jennifer said.

“I think that’s a key reason why we do what we do,” Max added.

More information about wine, events or facility rental is available by calling 425-876-2396 or by contacting the winery through their Web site http://sojencellars.com.