Wine Named After a Horse

Horses are very important to the Kingston Family and have been on our farm for generations.  Half working horses, half wild horses, the Kingston caballos are beloved by all on the Farm.  Most of the time they’re occupied with reducing our risk of wildfires by gobbling up all the dry grass in the hills.  Other times we take them on rides around the Farm to soak in the natural landscapes of the Casablanca Valley, stirring them from their resting place down next to the Old Corral for which we named our Old Corral Club. Sometimes they surprise us, emerging from the fog, right above the winery.  Allowing us a peek of them as they amble about the hills munching diligently.

While growing up on the farm, my uncle Peter had a favorite horse named Alazan de Paso, for the characteristic deep red--almost burgundy--color of his coat and mane.  Years later, when we were deciding what to name our flagship wine, similarly deep red in color, we decided Alazan was the perfect fit.  We soon discovered that other names inspired by our Chilean horses' coats worked for our other wines and embodied the Kingston farm and our love of horses.  We continued the theme with all our wines, not just Alazan but also Bayo Oscuro, Tobiano, Lucero, Cariblanco and Sabino.

We're often asked by guests at our winery to point out a descendant of Alazan and other horses on our farm.  Below are some pictures taken by our friend and photographer, Elisabeth Calmes.  On the day Liz visited, a pack of our horses had come down from the hills and was grazing within a stone's throw of the winery.

Alazan - Referred to as a chestnut horse in English, it simply means the horse is  brown in color and completely devoid of any black hairs, the Spanish meaning assumes a more copper or reddish color coat.

Bayo Oscuro - With the same characteristics of a bay horse, the Bayo Oscuro or Dark Bay in English, has the unique quality of a very dark red or dark brown coat.

Tobiano - A pinto or painted horse whose coat is a patchwork of large brown and white spots. Typical characteristics include legs which are white from about the knees and down, a brown face and a white tail.

Sabino - Sadly unphotographed at the time of this publishing, a Sabino is another variety of painted horse characterized by a relatively solid colored coat which is mottled or speckled in some places, especially the belly.

Lucero - Referring not to the color of the horse’s coat in this instance, a Lucero is a horse which has a white star or diamond shaped marking on its forehead.

Cariblanco - As with the Sabino horse, unfortunately, we could not find a Cariblanco horse on the Farm the day Liz visited. Its name means “White faced horse”.