Wine with Terroir & Transparency
Donkey & Goat is Berkeley's first natural winery — one of California's true pioneers of the natural wine movement, founded in 2004 by Jared and Tracey Brandt. [^67^] [^69^] What sets them apart is their ecological principles: they extend natural farming philosophies into the cellar, working with organic and biodynamically farmed vineyards in the Sierra Nevada, Mendocino County, and Napa Valley to make wines that are as true to the earth as possible. [^71^] [^77^] They were among the first in California to make and name orange wines (Stone Crusher, 2009), sparkling pétillant-naturel wines (Lily's Pet Nat, 2011), and chillable red wines (Twinkle, 2015) — and they continue to push boundaries while making delicious, honest, transparent wines. [^67^]
From Internet Start-Up to the Northern Rhône
Jared Brandt was working for an internet start-up in the Bay Area in 2001 when the downturn hit. [^74^] He found himself laying people off — a miserable experience that made him realise it was time for a career change. He had met Tracey at work, and together they decided to follow their passion for wine. In 2002, they travelled to the northern Rhône to work a vintage with Eric Texier — one of France's most respected natural winemakers. It was the worst vintage in living memory in the region, but the experience was transformative. [^74^]
They returned to California and Jared searched for winemaking jobs, but couldn't find anything that paid well. So, with Tracey, he started Donkey & Goat. [^74^] The first vintage was in 2003 — "a hybrid of big flavour meets natural France," as Jared describes it. [^74^] The wines got great reviews, but the style was too big for their vision. Since 2004, they have been making the sorts of wines they are known for today: lighter, more transparent, more site-specific — from leased vineyards in Napa, Mendocino, Sonoma, and the Sierra Nevada. [^74^]
The name Donkey & Goat comes from the two animals that traditionally worked vineyards in the old world — the donkey for ploughing, the goat for grazing between rows. [^74^] It is a nod to the pre-industrial, pre-chemical approach that defines their philosophy. They chose Berkeley as their base because of the fog — "we don't have an air conditioner because we get fog for free" — and because they wanted to be in a community that valued sustainability, transparency, and innovation. [^74^]
Jared and Tracey have two children, and their approach to farming is deeply personal. "If you are going to spray the vineyard with something, if I took my kids there the next day they should be able to go into the vineyard and not have a health risk," Jared says. [^74^] This makes them non-standard in the organic world — they avoid copper sulfate, which is permitted in biodynamic and organic farming but which they consider too toxic. They know only one other grower in the Anderson Valley who is biodynamic and doesn't use copper sulfate. That is the guy they buy fruit from. [^74^]
"I have a friend who does PR in Napa, and he tells me that natural wine is BS. I say, yes, the second that every one of your clients labels exactly what they put in their wine, I'll never use the term natural again. He goes quiet."
— Jared Brandt
Ingredients Lists, Clay Amphorae & No Copper Sulfate
Donkey & Goat's commitment to transparency is radical. They put an ingredients list on every label — in their case, it is short. [^74^] "One of our old interns was a chemical engineer," Jared explains. "Now he's a winemaker for Gallo in Australia, and he averages 28 ingredients in his Cabernet. It's actually a nice wine, it's just not a wine that I am interested in from a winemaking perspective." [^74^] This transparency extends to every aspect of their operation: they pick by hand, sort by hand, and don't pump anything until it is wine. Grapes are put into tanks using a conveyor they call "the giraffe." [^74^]
The cellar is a study in minimal intervention. They don't do lees stirring, don't add things to the wine, and don't use things to take things away — no fining, and they tend not to filter. [^74^] The barrels are all used, sourced from Helen Turley at Marcassin. [^74^] For different wines, they match elevage to need: older oak for wines that need rounding, newer oak or clay for wines that need acid taming. They are "big fans of Italian clay" — terracotta amphorae made just outside Florence, with pores slightly bigger than oak. [^74^] They also use amphorae from Bordeaux (sandstone clay, less oxygen ingress) and foudres — 3,000-litre French oak tanks where the surface-area-to-volume ratio reduces oxygen impact. [^74^]
Jared's philosophy on oxygen is precise: "Oxygen ingress impacts how the sharpness of the acid is perceived, much more than anything else. We use newer oak or clay to round down acid." [^74^] Until 2012, they pressed everything in a basket press. They found a press in Italy with a central bladder that operates at much lower pressure — gentler on the grapes, preserving more of the fruit's integrity. [^74^] Every decision is about letting the vineyard speak, not about imposing a house style.
Water use is another concern. California's overabundance/underabundance cycle means Donkey & Goat seeks out dry-farmed or minimally watered vineyards. [^74^] They experimented with "untended" farming — inspired by Fukuoka's One Straw Revolution — on an abandoned vineyard for five years. "It kind of works and kind of doesn't," Jared admits. "There were some ups and downs. But we are super-interested in keeping our environmental impact as minimal as possible." [^74^]
Every bottle carries an ingredients list. [^74^] "One of our old interns averages 28 ingredients in his Cabernet... it's just not a wine that I am interested in from a winemaking perspective." Transparency as activism.
Italian terracotta amphorae (Florence), Bordeaux sandstone clay, 3,000-litre French oak foudres, and used barrels from Marcassin. [^74^] Each vessel matched to the wine's need for oxygen and acid management.
Jared avoids copper sulfate, permitted in organic/biodynamic farming but considered too toxic. [^74^] "If I took my kids there the next day they should be able to go into the vineyard and not have a health risk."
Preference for dry-farmed or minimally watered vineyards. [^74^] Five-year experiment with "untended" farming inspired by Fukuoka. Keeping environmental impact minimal — "we don't have an air conditioner because we get fog for free."
First Orange Wine, First Pét-Nat & First Chillable Red
Donkey & Goat was among the very first in California to make and name an orange wine: Stone Crusher, first released in 2009, a skin-fermented Roussanne that became a benchmark for the style. [^67^] They were among the first to make a pétillant-naturel: Lily's Pet Nat, released in 2011, a sparkling wine made by bottling before fermentation is complete — ancestral method, no dosage, no disgorgement. [^67^] And they were among the first to popularise the chillable red: Twinkle, released in 2015, a light, juicy red designed to be served cool — the kind of wine that belongs on a picnic table, not in a cellar. [^67^]
These were not gimmicks. They were natural extensions of a philosophy that says wine should be alive, transparent, and true to its source. The Stone Crusher proved that California Roussanne — a variety usually made into rich, oaky whites — could be textured, savoury, and complex when fermented on its skins. [^74^] The Lily's Pet Nat proved that sparkling wine didn't need Champagne methods to be delicious. The Twinkle proved that red wine didn't need to be heavy and extracted to be satisfying. Each was a small revolution, and each opened doors for the generation of natural winemakers that followed.
Jared has mixed emotions about the term "natural wine." When they started, there was no term for it. [^74^] Now, he worries that the label has been co-opted by wines that are undrinkable — "a good friend of mine owns a wine bar, and he likes to serve me this Georgian wine over and over again that is the ultimate natural wine — they did absolutely nothing — to me it is like the ultimate vinegar." [^74^] But he also knows that the term is necessary because the alternative — industrial wine with 28 ingredients and no transparency — is worse. "I think there is a lack of transparency in the wine business," he says. "The second that every one of your clients labels exactly what they put in their wine, I'll never use the term natural again." [^74^]
Today, Donkey & Goat continues to operate from their urban winery in Berkeley, with a tasting room open Tuesday through Sunday, hosting private gatherings, pop-up chef dinners, and weddings. [^67^] [^70^] They remain committed to innovation, to transparency, and to the belief that the best wines are the ones that tell you exactly where they came from and exactly what went into them. "You can taste the vintages in our wines relatively well," Jared says. "Because we are not trying to manipulate them, a 2018 and a 2019 will taste different." [^74^] That difference — that honesty — is the whole point.
Stone Crusher Roussanne — El Dorado, 14 Days on Skins, 95/100
"Elen Ridge vineyard, 2,400 feet. 14 days on skins then ageing in neutral oak. 12.1%. Such a beautiful nose: perfumed and exotic with floral tangerine and orange peel, as well as some apricot skin. Very delicate and exotic on the palate with nice grip and really pretty, perfumed apricot fruit. Such a thrilling wine. 95/100." [^74^] The Stone Crusher is Donkey & Goat's signature orange wine — the one that proved California could do skin-contact whites with the same finesse as Georgia or Friuli. Made from Roussanne, a variety usually relegated to rich, oaky expressions, it is fermented on its skins for two weeks and aged in neutral oak. The result is a wine of extraordinary delicacy: floral, spicy, and savoury, with a grip that speaks to its skin contact and a freshness that speaks to its altitude. It is a wine for those who want to understand what orange wine can be when it is made with care rather than shock value. ~$28–$32.
The Donkey & Goat Range
Donkey & Goat produces a diverse portfolio of natural wines from organic and biodynamically farmed vineyards across California — from the Sierra Nevada to Mendocino Ridge, El Dorado to Napa Valley. [^71^] [^77^] All wines are made with minimal intervention: hand-picked, hand-sorted, native yeast fermentation, no fining, minimal filtering, and only minimal sulfur dioxide for some wines. [^74^] The range spans skin-fermented whites, pétillant-naturels, chillable reds, and serious single-vineyard expressions — all with ingredients lists on the labels and a commitment to transparency that is rare in the wine world. [^74^] Prices are approximate and in USD.