At the heart of Humanitas Winery is a dedication to making honorable wines (let’s hope all wineries have that mission!) and to helping those less fortunate.  We care, as the North Bay Bohemian so succinctly put it,  ”…not only where the grapes come from, but where they go” — meaning we clearly care about the quality in the bottle — but also to the quality of life our wine may contribute to in order to make the world a better place.

The sources of this inspiration are the various charities that are really doing the hard work – the physical charitable activities that make our communities better places and us as individuals better people.  As a result, we give back a full 7% of our Revenues (equivalent to 100% of our profits – called our ‘7% Solution’) to charities local to where the wine is sold.  It is our ’spiritual terroir’ so to speak. 

In general, we pick one charity per market in order to provide a more substantial and focused contribution rather than spread the money thinly across several charities.  And we try to pick charities that are dealing with very fundamental and primary needs such as hunger, affordable housing and education.  Our philosophy is that if these primary needs are addressed locally, perhaps some other issues can be thwarted down the line.  We also tend to gravitate to charities that are less of a ‘hand out’ and more of a ‘leg up’.  Sort of the ‘teach a man to fish’ school of thought.

In Napa Valley, there is a model operation that perfectly fits the Humanitas criteria – Cope Family Center.  Mandy Page (an avid Humanitas fan!) works for Cope and has drafted a beautiful description of the operation:

“When most people think of Napa, they envision sweeping vineyard vistas and those “rich and famous” lifestyles portrayed in the press. The truth is that in Napa County, at least one in seven children lives in poverty. Based on the cost of living in Napa County, a two-parent two-child family would need to earn $57,728 annually to be considered self-sufficient.

Cope Family Center is a family resource center in Napa whose mission is to prevent child abuse and neglect, educate and support parents, and help build self-sufficient families – families who don’t have to depend on government handouts and supports.

Recognizing that family poverty is the strongest known factor proven to correlate with child abuse and neglect, Cope added a Family Economic Success program in 2003 to address the need in our families – restaurant, hospitality and vineyard workers – for financial education and access to financial institutions.

We recruited professionals from banks and other financial institutions to teach classes and workshops – free of charge – to clients in need of education about everything from how to open a bank account to cleaning up their credit report.

We offer Individual Development Accounts, which are 2-for-1 matched savings accounts for families saving for their first house, higher education or to start a small business.

Right now it’s tax season, and we’re holding volunteer-staffed income tax preparation and filing clinics, here at Cope and at the Napa City-County Library and Napa Valley College. Families whose 2008 income was under $45,000 can get their tax returns prepared and filed free of charge. Tax preparers help families get the Earned Income Tax Credit, which can mean up to $4,800 per family.

All this helps to give local families a way to stay afloat in this tough economy. Getting a refund, and not having to pay a preparer, can often mean the difference between dependence and self-sufficiency. The money that families save can then be pumped back into the local economy, in the form of rent, groceries, gas, etc.

It’s hard to work on being a good parent when you’re just one paycheck away from homelessness, or trying to find a way to feed your family. Cope’s FES program helps lessen that stress by helping families learn to help themselves.”

What a fantastic service they provide and what a strong example of helping those in need get a leg up.  Humanitas is proud to have Cope Family Center as our preferred charity in Napa Valley and encourage you to donate to their service.  In these hard times, it is even more important to help.  And if you want another wonderful way to contribute to the wonderful work of Cope, simply enjoy Humanitas!  You can find the wines at Zuzu’s, Back Room Wines (who are also graciously contributing to Cope for every bottle the sell of Humanitas) and the Oxbow Wine Merchant.  Or of course, you can also order on-line at Humanitas Wines. 

And I really encourage you, if you live in Napa Valley, to share this post with other restaurants and wine shops to encourage them to support Cope by offering Humanitas.  For that matter, no matter where you live, encourage your favorite wine shops and restaurants to carry Humanitas and help your own community…one sip at a time…as we donate to a local charities in your neighborhood.  Nothing better than drinking charitably!  Pass it on!!!

As I was driving along today I heard that it was George Harrison’s birthday, and that although he often celebrated his birthday on February 24, in truth he was born a few minutes after midnight on the 25th.  Kind of cool — I’m pretty sure I’d celebrate both days…or the whole week as I do anyway!

I always loved George in the Beatles — always the ‘quiet one’ but oh so cool on guitar.  And I love how he got a song or two per album — and those songs were always so excellent.  I think he brought a great dimension to the band.  And of course his solo career and his work with others (Traveling Wilburys) was fantastic.

And to tie this back to Humanitas and Drink Charitably, some of you will remember that Harrison was a principal organizer of the Concert for Bangledesh — an amazing fund-raising concert in 1971 (and to me, the model for similar concerts such as Band-Aid that followed), and a truly wonderful album.

George Harrison was a bit of a rennaissance man as well.  Musician, producer, philanthropist…he was also a film producer and collaborated with the Monty Python gang amongst others.  I can’t remember, but I’m pretty sure he was involved with Life of Brian, and I know he was behind Time Bandits — fun stuff.  I guess to me, the quiet Beatle, was maybe the most diverse…and…well, complete.  I mean, didn’t he even do the ‘Basketball Jones’ thing with Cheech & Chong?  How cool is that?

Unfortunately, George Harrison died all too young.  But he sure left a wonderful legacy.  And it does prompt one of my favorite questions – if George Harrison were a wine, what would he be?  Clearly complex, decidedly layered, yet friendly, approachable and with a nice sense of humor…in a quiet way.  Any thoughts? I wonder if George was into wine…my guess is yes. 

“Give me hope, help me cope
With this heavy load.”

Regardless, George Harrison was cool.  If he were a wine, I’d savor him.  And I’d drink charitably!