An Interview with Little Raven Vineyards

Today’s topic is wine, wine, and more wine!

Urbanites are social. We throw our dinner parties, our martini balls, our football get togethers, and our impromptu late nights with friends. So what do we consider a bare essential…. our wine store and having a great selection available for us.

So join me in getting to know Little Raven Vineyards and Peter Klann, Proprietor.

Peter, can you tell me what first attracted you to wine, what you love about it and a little bit about your background?

Shortly after moving to Colorado in 1976 my wine adventure began in the cellar of a neighbor who had an extensive collection of French and German wine. I have traveled to several of the major wine regions in the world to further my education. My formal wine education includes advanced Sommelier and Advanced Wine and Food paring certificates from the IWG.

What was your inspiration for Little Raven Vineyards and the wines you select?
The exploration of wine is a journey and we would like to be the tour guides. At Little Raven Vineyards we focus on smaller production wines from all over the world in all price points. Some old favorites, some new and undiscovered

Lets start with Reds. What’s hot right now?

Since the movie Sideways Pinot Noir has been red of choice. Girardet, Umpaqua Valley Oregon, and Cooper Mountain Willamette valley Oregon are both outstanding wines.

Now whites, any unique finds you would recommend people stop by and pick up.

Mormoraia’s Vernaccia from Tuscany is a great wine to match with Seafood. I really enjoy Chateau Felice Chalk Hill Chardonnay, it is fermented in stainless steel and has a clean crisp style not often seen in California chardonnay.

There are so many great wines around the world, how do you know which ones are the best?

Taste, taste, taste, and taste some more each of the wines we select for placement is personally checked for quality. It is one of the really enjoyable parts of the job. I also read several wine journals on a regular basis.

(My note, that doesn’t sound like a bad job now does it!)

Talk about locating in Riverfront Park and the Central Platte Valley and what attracted you to this location. Are there unique elements to this location?

Riverfront Park is an excellent blend of quality people, open space, diverse architecture. I have been here two years and I enjoy all the elements that make this great community. The people who live and work here make it unique.

You have more than just wine. Can you tell us what other items you provide?

We carry spirits, beer,mixers, gift bags as well as a small amount of glassware.

You were open during the blizzard. How was business?

We were open and did a landoffice business. It was really fun all the neighbors stopped by to stock up.

Does Little Raven hold any special events? Are there any dates we should mark in our calendar?

We have wine tastings in store on Wednesdays from 4PM to 7PM and on Saturdays from 2PM to 7PM

We would love to have other recommendations, would you like to give us periodic wine recommendations and keep our taste buds happy.

I would be happy to.

Anything else we should have asked?

We offer a frequent buyers program, and discounts on 1/2 case, full case, and multi case purchases. I can also help out with food and wine paring if you are planning a special meal.

Know of a business or individual we should interview, just email me!