A livestock brand, the Burnsini Vineyards logo is a nod to the agricultural history of the hills and valleys surrounding the vineyard. This is cowboy country after all.
The lazy B reflects the laid-back attitude at the winery and the intertwined goblets connect the founding of the winery by Tom Burnham and Jim Tomasini to the future crafted by owner and winemaker Brandi Greene.
Burnsini Today…
The Burnsini legacy of high quality red wines and a ruckus good time is now under the ownership and direction of Northstate local, Winemaker, and Environmental Chemist Brandi Greene. Educated in winemaking and viticulture at Oregon State University, and cutting her teeth at wineries throughout California and Oregon, Brandi has dreamed for decades of owning a winery. She now manages nearly eight acres of organic estate vines for Burnsini, slowly but surely progressing towards more sustainable and regenerative practices each year. Currently all of the grapes used in Burnsini Vineyard wines come from the vines on the property. Increasing consistency in red wine making techniques and introducing rosé and sparkling wine are just some of the changes at Burnsini vineyards. The things that haven’t changed are exceptionally smooth red wines, beautiful afternoons tasting and visiting at the winery, and a few times a year we pack the lawns for music, wine, and celebrations!
The ownership and staff at Burnsini Vineyards count the environmental impact of our production practices as a very important aspect to be ever improving and evolving. Some obvious places you can see this effort are in the newly installed solar panels offsetting our energy consumption. Cover crops, organic fungicides and compost teas as well as mulching all of the waste from the grapes after pressing back into the vineyard rows. When we have more than we can use they become snacks for the bulls next door. We choose to make better choices inside the winery buildings too. Using ozone for sanitation significantly reduces water use and keeps harsh chemicals out of our waterways and soils. You will also notice we rarely offer much printed materials and shipped wine comes in recyclable carboard not Styrofoam. Burnsini plans to be ever improving this effort and in 2021 added a solar powered electric car charger for customers but we know it’s diesel that runs our tractors, and that keeps us humble!
The Burnsini Story from the beginning …
Tom & Joy Burnham alongside Jim & Deanna Tomasini established the vineyard and winery in Cottonwood, California commercially in 2000. The name was a mishmash, get it, Burn-sini. Growing grapes and winemaking had been a mutual hobby since the late 1980’s but grew to become an obsession. Their passion, fun loving spirits, and of course the tasty beverages inspiring their family, friends, and community to prune the vines and gather for the vineyard’s Spring Fling celebration. Each Fall, they would return to pick and press grapes and share stories at post picking breakfasts or at the Harvest Festival. The friendships grown at Burnsini Vineyards are commemorated on the label’s top selling Zinfandel, Merlot, and Petite Sirah blend titled Friends. These families and their bigger than life personalities are still a part of what make Burnsini so unique. Community events like Cottonwood Rodeo’s “Ladies Night Out”, Everygreen’s “Music & Merlot”, and the “Back at the Ranch” night started on the vineyards grounds before growing so large a bigger venue had to be found. To be sure, great events with wine, food, and music are still happening every year here. When true retirement came calling for Tom Burnham it was time to sell the vineyards and winery, ushering in change, and even better wine!