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Y&T rocker takes winemaking curtain call

Writer's picture: Big Rick StuartBig Rick Stuart

Updated: Oct 7, 2021


Blame it on the pandemic, but Meniketti Wines—the second act of Dave Meniketti of the heavy metal band Y&T and his wife Jill—is coming to a close.


The Menikettis had been planning to open a tasting room in Saratoga or Campbell, but those dreams were dashed by the pandemic and fires, and they made the painful decision to not make any more wine.


Winemaking may seem a strange sideline for a rock musician who credits his longevity to avoiding potent potables and other vices that did in so many of his contemporaries. Dave Meniketti is the last surviving member of the original band, which started in Oakland in 1974.


“I was the sober, responsible one,” he says. “I wasn’t into partying. We really got into wine by spending time in Europe on tour.”


“In 2001, we went to Italy on vacation, and found ourselves drinking the local wines, eating this great food,” his wife adds. “Friends in the wine biz kept touting Dave’s great palate and telling us we should make our own.


“We’re really proud of every vintage. Sabrine is so very talented. She and Dave have created such excellent wines for us.”


The Menikettis are offering all their wines at 50% off at menikettiwines.com, using code MERC50

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