Eric Mohseni - Founder, Osseus Wine
Eric Mohseni is the founder of Osseus Wine, located in California’s Santa Ynez Valley. Osseus Wine was established in 2004 and maintains an artisan-style approach to winemaking, with minimal intervention and a focus on small lot, hand-crafted wines.
Raised in Los Angeles, Mohseni graduated from California State University at Long Beach with a degree in food science and a minor in chemistry. His career began as a wine buyer at the Wine County, a noted retailer of estate wines from California, south of France, Alsace and the Loire Valley.
Mohseni aided in managing an extensive collection of wines while honing his knowledge of the winemaking process. As a buyer, he was able to interact with icons of the winemaking industry, such as Kermit Lynch, Louis Martini, and Antonio Gaja.
In 1999, he traveled to Hawkes Bay, New Zealand, to serve as a member of the harvest crew of Esk Valley Estate, the country's fifth largest vineyard. Mohseni credits the region will spawning his love for sauvignon blanc and igniting his passion for artisan-style winemaking.
Upon his return to the States, Mohseni was recruited by winemaker Clay Brock to serve as enologist for Zaca Mesa, an estate vineyard known for producing the #6 wine in the world, the 1993 Syrah. Several years later, Mohseni was elevated to Assistant Winemaker, and then to Associate Winemaker where he currently resides. Mohseni and Brock together helped fine-tune and elevate the wine quality, overhauling the winery's style, changing cellar operations and experimenting with barrel types. The result was inventive and creative blends that reflected the confluence of the soil, climate, aromatic plants and fruit.
Mohseni was keen to develop a sauvignon blanc that reflected his travels and his respect for old-style winemaking. Fortuitously, he was able to gain access to a coveted fruit source in Happy Canyon, a region that is an emerging area of interest for California winemakers. In addition, Mohseni was able to procure fruit from the prized Valley View Vineyard.
The 2007 harvest will be the fourth vintage for Osseus. Since it’s inception in 2004, Osseus strives to be California’s finest Sauvignon Blanc producer. With a focus on Sauvignon Blanc, Osseus believes in the old world approach to winemaking: one varietal from one region. Winemakers always love the challenge of producing wines other than their flagship wine. Osseus does play with red varietal(s). The result is a barrel or two of a limited wine.