Salinas Winery Pays Tribute to Mother’s Dream – Rustiqué Winery

When Robert and Rusti Silacci were getting ready to settle down and retire, they hatched a plan to launch an estate winery near California’s Central Coast. Led by Rusti, a retired Monterey County school teacher, Rustiqué Winery was a project that started simply as a way to share wine with friends, family and neighbors.

The winery soon expanded under Rusti’s leadership and, along with the family’s Silacci Vineyards, was designed to bring her children Chad and Sara into the business as they reached new markets and opened a tasting room.

In 2019, Rusti died from ovarian cancer. Her winery is now led by Chad and Sara, who say that running the business and tasting room are ways of paying tribute to their mother.

“She and my dad came up with the name back in 2005 when they were getting the label started,” said Sara. “It’s a cool way to keep her story alive. We dedicate all of our vintages to her now. We keep the tradition alive because that was her dream, and we’re making it happen.”

Chad discovered his passion for winemaking while working on the family’s Silacci Vineyards, which was first planted in the late ‘90s. He said the journey to launching Rustiqué as a commercial winery has been a labor of love.

“We started the Rustiqué label for family and friends, just a little bit of wine from the estate,” he said. “As my sister and I grew up in the industry, we both fell in love with it. And in 2021, we opened the doors and made Rustiqué wine a commercial label.”

The name Rustiqué is also a nod to the estate’s rural and rustic nature. This land in the fertile Salinas River valley has been a farm and ranch dating back to the early 20th century.

“You have this real rustic nature to the property,” said Chad. “I mean, we’re in a barn that’s over 100 years old, and it’s a working farm and ranch. So [Rustiqué] is a perfect name for us.”

Fog feeds world-class grapes in Monterey AVA

Rustiqué Winery is known for its estate pinot noir and chardonnay, both of which have earned rave reviews from wine lovers and high marks from Wine Enthusiast. Located in the Monterey American Viticultural Area (AVA), Rustiqué has a climate that is ideal for pinot noir and chardonnay.

Chris Bitter is the senior wine and grape analyst for Terrain, a leading agriculture research hub offered by American AgCredit, Farm Credit Services of America and Frontier Farm Credit. He said the Monterey AVA’s cooler climate echoes the renowned wine regions of France.

“What happens every day is the ocean breeze and fog roll into this area through the Monterey Bay and down the Santa Lucia Highland Mountains,” said Chris. “What that does is it cools the grapes at the end of the day, and it slows the ripening process for those grapes. So, the grapes end up staying on the vine longer.”

With a climate similar to Burgundy, France, the Monterey AVA’s weather has made it possible to grow world-class chardonnays and pinot noir at wineries like Rustiqué.

Making a space for weddings and culture

Chad is the winemaker at Rustiqué through the bottling and aging process, then hands off to his sister Sara who markets the wine, manages events and engages with their community of wine lovers online and via social media.

The winery has drawn thousands of visitors for tastings, weddings, concerts and a host of other events at the winery. Sara said the winery now serves an important role as a source for cultural activities in a rural part of California’s Central Coast.

“Aside from our tasting room, we host a wide range of events,” she said. “We do anything from public to private: comedy shows, concerts, workout classes, yoga, sound baths, you name it. We get the community out here for a variety of events that I really think this region is needing.”

Growing up, Sara said the family would drive up to San Jose for dinner or a show, but she wished there were more local venues to hear live music or catch a comedy show.

“I am really proud of the diverse range of events we have out here,” she said. “To have everything in the community now and a spot where you can find a wide range [of events] is pretty cool, and I’m proud of making that happen for people who live out here.”

For Sara and Chad, running a successful winery has been part of their education as the children of grape growers in the Salinas Valley. Chad said the long-planted vines lend a taste to the wine that is complex and full-bodied, telling a story about this place and the climate.

“What makes our winery unique is that we have some well-established vineyards planted in ‘99,” said Chad. “We’ve had a lot of time to hone our cultivation practices to really grow and produce grapes that we feel best represent our property and our family. And we’re excited to share that with our customers.”