Winemaker

Christopher Nicolson

Discipline: Winemaker
Based in: Brooklyn, New York, United States
Venue: Red Hook Barrel Yard · Winery

i. Biography

Christopher Nicolson has been managing winemaker at The Red Hook Winery in Brooklyn, New York since 2008. Born and raised in Montana, he came into wine through farm work, coastal California cellar experience, and a long-running post in Brooklyn; the route reads less like a tidy progression than a workable apprenticeship across field, cellar, and city.

The Path

That placement put the pace of the seasons and the demands of the land at the center of the work. From there, his experience moved through coastal California cellar work and then to Brooklyn, where the job became anchored. Since 2008, managing winemaker at Red Hook Winery has been the stable point in that arc.

The Work Today

The Brooklyn winery is the current frame for the work, and the material conditions inside it are part of the job. The press of equipment, the weight of barrels, and the aftermath of fermentations all sit inside the same practical reality: order has to be maintained, and the work goes on around disruption. Christopher Nicolson describes that reality without polish: "There was a carpet of grapes from fermentations that had overturned, three planters—which weigh a couple hundred pounds each—in the center of the winery, and barrels overturned everywhere." The line gives a clear view of the ground-level conditions behind the finished wine.

Career - managing winemaker — Red Hook Winery, Brooklyn, New York (2008–present) - farm intern — a small organic commune near Siena, near Siena (from 2000)

Signature

Christopher's signature wines include 2019 McCall Vineyards Pinot Noir. In the context of his work, the bottling sits as a concrete marker of the cellar side of the job: place, timing, and follow-through made visible in a named wine.

In Their Words “There was a carpet of grapes from fermentations that had overturned, three planters—which weigh a couple hundred pounds each—in the center of the winery, and barrels overturned everywhere.”

Acclaim

The career line runs from Montana to Tuscany, then through the Sonoma Coast and into New York winemaking. That span shows a working education shaped by different landscapes, but grounded in the repeat work of harvest, fermentation, and cellar discipline. The durable distinction is the managing winemaker role he has held since 2008, which keeps him tied to The Red Hook Winery as a steady presence rather than a passing figure.

FAQ What is Christopher Nicolson's current role? Christopher Nicolson is Managing Winemaker. Where did Christopher Nicolson work before? Earlier in their career, Christopher Nicolson worked at a small organic commune near Siena.