It is true that some entrepreneurs find their passion unexpectedly. That is true for winemaker Daniel Bryant of Running Tigers Wines. Bryant is one of a dozen African-American vintners in the country. 

Bryant was introduced to the wine country shortly after moving to Northern California from his home state of Alabama.  While living in Walnut Creek, the frequent requests from family and friends to go wine tasting allowed him to develop a palette for both red and white wines.  Bryant soon turned his new found hobby and knowledge into an educational business called A Color Grape Wine Tours & Education. 

Through A Color Grape,Bryant provides customized tours, wine tastings, and hosts seminars for clients to experience wine in a relaxing and enjoyable environment.  He quickly coined the saying “Let us help you take the mystery out of a bottle of wine and discover the pleasures within.”  This slogan along with his unique and unintimidating style has produced a variety of events and seminars allowing Bryant to seduce wine lovers across the country.

A corporate move placed him in the city of Windsor where there are easily 70 wineries on his way home.  Shortly after, a friend mentioned an article in Black Enterprise about Mac McDonald of Vision Cellars. It was not long before the two would meet and to this day they are the best of friends. 

McDonald, who is the co-founder of the Association of African-American Vintners (AAAV) took Bryant under his wing as a mentor.   Bryant noticed that none of the members within the association produced one of his favorite wines, a Syrah or Shiraz and soon Running Tigers Wine as born.

Bryant wanted to produce a wine that like the name of his new company, was smooth, graceful and demanded the attention of anyone who came in contact with it.   The 2004 Vintage was his first release and received rave reviews.  Since becoming available, Bryant and Running Tigers has been featured in national publications such as the Wine Spectator, Urban Influence and the Texas Inform. Clients include celebrities as well as the Governor of Nigeria.

It is currently a part of the wine list in various four and five star establishments in Sacramento such as The Waterboy Restaurant and The Firehouse.  His 2006 release is due out this October.

When asked about the success of his two businesses that were not part of his plan when he moved to California, Bryant noted that he comes from a strong family of business men.  His grandfather owned three successful businesses in Birmingham which provided for his family and sent his kids to college.  And his dad followed in line with a successful business of his own.  So it was only natural for Bryant to inherit his business sense from such strong role models.

But even with success comes challenges.  It is no secret that African-American vintners must work twice as hard and produce wine that is comparable or surpasses that of their White counterparts.  Bryant notes that unfortunately wine produced by African-Americans is sometimes thought of as being of less quality and therefore many, even African-Americans, don’t trust it.

However, Cuisine Noir can say from experience after tasting Bryant’s wine as well as others from the AAAV, that there is no truth to this negative notion.   We got a chance to experience RunningTigers’ Syrah at a Greens Cook-Off event this past August hosted by McDonald.  We paired a cool glass with  a helping of beef brisket prepared by the local restaurant Zin Garden and the result was so unbelievable that we did it again and again and had an amazing time.

To order your bottle of Running Tiger’s Syrah, go to www.runningtigerswine.com.  To schedule a tour or seminar with Bryant,call 707.888.1574 or visit www.acolorgrape.com.