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Business & Tech

Stonington Native And Winemaker Geordie Carr Makes A Life On The West Coast

With the Creation of Bump Wine Cellar, Carr Brought the Best of the East to the West and Back Again

Winemaker and Stonington native Geordie Carr has had a big year.  The Deans Mill graduate, now Sonoma resident recently won accolades from Wine Spectator as placing third of 175 Sauvignon Blancs chosen in California – with his very first wine, Bump Wine Cellars. 

Carr spent his days as a boy immersed in Stonington Borough coastal life, fishing and lobstering.  He savored catching his own food, spending time on the water and working summers at Dodson Boatyard.  Although Carr flourished in his tight-knit East Coast life, he was no stranger to wine production before moving to the West Coast.

“My very first attempt at winemaking was in Stonington at 6 years old, we picked grapes in the back yard, squeezed them through coffee filters, put them in wine bottles and corked them.” laughs Geordie.  “Apparently it fermented and a few days later, one of the bottles shot the cork out and left stains all over the wall.  So that was my first attempt at winemaking - pretty unsuccessful.“

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After high school, Carr headed to Colorado for college and an abundance of skiing.  He met wife Mieko, a California native and after securing a BA in Business with an Entrepreneurial emphasis, they decided to give the West Coast a try. 

Carr explored ski apparel sales and banking before revisiting the world of wine in 1999.  He took a position at Matanzas Creek in Sonoma harvesting grapes.  To make a sustainable living in this industry, Carr realized he would eventually need to go into business for himself.

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Carr worked as the cellar master for BR Kohn and in 2006 became the assistant winemaker at Enkidu where he gained most of his winemaking knowledge. 

“I worked on 100 different wines a year and worked with some really good winemakers and that’s where I started my brand in 2007.  Now, I focus only on my wine, Bump Wine Cellars.”

Carr’s rewarding childhood excursions of harvesting and intimate connection with the outdoors, reignites in the vineyard.  The boutique wine industry appeals to Carr on many levels; he does everything from vine to table and is passionate about the finished product. 

“I also started to see that it was an interesting industry.  Quality is appreciated over quantity and the same goes with the size of a business - a small business owner could be held in high regard over a big winery or a major producer with a lot of money.” 

Toss in a good palate and talent - recognition follows. 

Wine Spectator reviewed Bump Wine Cellar’s 2009 Sauvignon Blanc in the most recent article titled Sauvignon Blancs Expanding Horizons.  Bump scored third out of 175 and is also considered a top value wine by the publication. 

“I’ve only been selling my wines for a year now and it’s exciting to see the progress and the acceptance of the wines I’ve been making." says Carr.  "It’s challenging in some ways but, I feel like I’m on the right track and I continue to feel encouraged - so I’m sticking with it.”

And Carr finds the East Coast a receptive market.  Selling locally at Cask and Keg, he hopes to expand his brand here, adding to his list of reasons to return.  Carr’s mother and family still live in the area and he likes to come back and visit often, exposing his daughter to the many facets of Stonington, much of which influenced who Carr is today.

“It’s good to follow your interests.  With hard work, diligence and pursuing what’s true to your heart, you can achieve success.  It’s difficult to believe that that stuff can really happen -- but it does.” says Carr.

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