Who We Are

James Callahan
Cellarmaster

James’ love for wine began in 2005 while working as a busboy at the James Hotel in Scottsdale, AZ. With his eye on being a server at the hotel’s Italian restaurant, he began to study and discover the wines of Italy and beyond. Self discovery eventually turned into passion when he realized he had been studying the regions, styles, and varietals for months, but yet had only scratched the surface of what there was to learn. He became a server, then worked as a sommelier, but ultimately realized he was best suited for making wine. “To me, the grape is the most noble of fruit with its unparalleled ability to showcase the terroir of a given site. I wanted to be involved in the artistry that goes into growing grapes and making unique and terroir driven wines from them. That is my true passion.” 

In 2007, James landed a position with Purvine as a Cellarmaster in his native Arizona.  It was here he received his first introduction to the art of winemaking. The winery, located in Tempe, specialized in crafting site specific Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley.  Under the tutelage of winemaker John Allen Burtner, he learned the importance of attention to detail in both evaluating wine and creating it. 

His next journey led him to the Pacific Northwest, working as a harvest intern at Waters Winery in Walla Walla, Washington.  Living at the winery in his Airstream trailer, James had the opportunity to work alongside winemakers Jamie Brown and Sean Boyd. As the sole intern, James was responsible for every facet of production and was exposed to the vineyard, as well as laboratory work. 

International travel called and James was off to work a southern hemisphere harvest with Paddy Borthwick Vineyards. Located just north of Martinborough in the heart of the Wairarapa, Borthwick Vineyards specialized in crafting Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from their estate vineyards. A typical day involved vineyard, cellar, and laboratory work with just enough time for a quick dip in the river during lunch.

James joined the Kosta Browne team in the 2010 harvest and was offered the Cellarmaster position in January 2011, where he runs the cellar overseeing our Chardonnay and Pinot Noir production.  We are truly lucky to have James on our team!