Our Roots, Our Values, and Our Vision Moving Forward

Our beginnings trace back to Mike Temple’s Berkeley garage in 1975, where he and a group of self-professed “food and wine geeks” with a tasting club stored their wine and met regularly to drink it. Within months Mike and his friends went “deep” and began purchasing wine at auction in England. Such activity required an import license, and after several years and many bottles of Grand Cru Burgundy the group became official by incorporating in 1977. Players in the then-emerging Berkeley farm-to-table restaurant scene wanted “in,” as there were precious few quality-minded wine importers operating in California at this time. A company was born.

In 1987 President Alan Pricco joined Grape, providing the additional capital and energy to expand the company’s distribution into Oregon and Washington. By the late 1980’s Mike and Alan had salespeople and trucks covering the coast from Los Angeles all the way to Seattle, establishing early leadership when it came to integrated multi-state wine importation and distribution. Netherlands-based Frank Poot, a long time industry leader in Europe, joined Grape in 2015 after the untimely passing of Founder Mike Temple. Mike and Frank, always close friends, collaborated on many fronts over the years and Frank’s formal integration into the company now provides Grape with a stronger than ever foundation in Europe. Frank’s extensive relationships and logistics acumen are second to nobody in this business.

More so than any of his Bay Area peers our late Founder Mike Temple placed tremendous emphasis on delivering value, and forty years later it goes without saying that most everyone in this industry thinks of “Grape” and “value” synonymously. Whether dealing in humble Touraine Sauvignon or Cru Barolo, Mike took heartfelt pride in providing unbeatable value to you, Grape’s clients.

Bodegas LAN
Domaine de Thulon
Domaine Moutard
Henri Bourgeois
Joseph Cattin
Lamblin et Fils
Montelliana
Nathalie & Gilles Fèvre
O+T
Vignamato
Weingut Felsner