Richard Tauber quit his day job in 2013 following a successful career in milk. That's right. From the dairy sector to the wine business. What could possibly go wrong?

But all that time around the cleanliness and precision needed for pasturization informed Richard well. His winery, a 500 square foot marvel in a small collection of buildings underneath an apartment complex on the outskirts of Brixen (Bressanone in Italian), defies logic.

Anyone wishing to pursue a winery project should look to Richard on how to do it small, and do it right. Our kind of guy. He farms 5 steep (like, REALLY steep) parcels near Brixen, on such a grade that the work cannot be done by tractor, only on foot. There are just about 4 total acres of vines.

He he spends 80% of his year among his vines, a splendid collection of Riesling, Sylvaner, and the local Kerner--and the rest dedicated to making flawless wine, getting it into bottle, then hoping some dudes like us will eventually come around.