MUSIC IN A BOTTLE: One Man's Journey from Rock to Wine

By Lisa Snider, findingojai@aol.com

In a small industrial complex behind Big O Tires, and next to an auto glass shop at the corner of Haley and Santa Barbara Streets, sits a hidden gem. A simple sign over the door yields your only clue as to what’s inside. Upon entering Renegade Wines, you’re greeted with the quiet sounds of the local classic rock station and a sheepish grin from owner Frank Crandall, who presides over an impressive inventory of some 5,000 bottles of wine.

From Santa Barbara to Australia, Italy and France, the selection is staggering. Sitting in Crandall’s office, noticing Alex Lichine’s Wine Encyclopedia on a crowded bookshelf, listening to Pink Floyd play in the background and eyeing a photo of a familiar-looking young man with long hair and an electric guitar on a dimly lit stage, this writer can’t help but ask, “Who’s that?”

Again, the sheepish grin. “Oh, that’s me.”

The wine will have to wait. There’s another story here - a story that takes some prodding. Crandall is not someone who relishes bragging
about the glory days.

“So when did you cut your hair?”

“Oh, well, it sort of left on its own,” says Crandall, 58, stroking the few remaining tufts on the back of his head.

Crandall the Rocker
Slowly, the details emerge and Crandall recounts his days as a rock and roll guitarist. It all started when, at age 12, his parents begrudgingly bought him his first guitar. He was self-taught and had the gift of being able to play anything he wanted by ear. “I got pretty good at it.”

In the 70's, his band, Jett Black, played their original rock and roll at major venues – 50,000-seat coliseums – up and down the Eastern seaboard. And they shared the spotlight with remarkably good company: fellow rockers like Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger and Aerosmith. A move to Southern California was a ticket for this star strummer into the band led by Grammy-nominee Tony Childs and onto the famous stages of hot scenes like The Whiskey, The Troubadour and The Roxy. Crandall spent a few months making music with The Motels and reached a career zenith of sorts when he won gold albums for songwriting with legendary American rock icon Alice Cooper. (Cool fact: Crandall’s wife, Nickie, is
Alice Cooper’s sister.)

Making music on stage, before thousands of screaming fans, is a memory still very much alive for Frank. “My heart just about came out of my chest,” he recalls, “It’s just a rush!”

Crandall the Oenophile
While all of this was going on, Crandall was getting his first taste of the wine business. He was doing studio work as a bass player in Los Angeles when disco started to take over, causing him to take a side job as a driver for a Beverly Hills wine store. “I needed money.”

Once a week, the store managers would take him behind the scenes to taste wine, which wasn’t really his beverage of choice at the time. “I kind of wanted beer instead of wine!”

But soon, he started blind tasting and quickly found he had a knack for it. His palate and memory were impeccable and the store ended up promoting him to assistant manager.

Crandall eventually ended up in Santa Barbara, renting 100 square feet of space from Chris Whitcraft of Whitcraft Winery. After just six months, he
decided to strike out on his own and landed at his current facility, where he’s been for 17 years. “It was a fluke,” he says. “I had no intention of ever being in the wine industry.”

He kept his hand in the music business for a while, doing studio work, songwriting with Alice Cooper and playing local wine events with Chris
Whitcraft and Jim Fiolek, Executive Director of the Santa Barbara County Vintners Association. But arthritis would ultimately ravage his hands, and he quit playing guitar about 10 years ago.

“I’m still talented in my head, but it just doesn’t work the same,” he says while looking at his damaged hands.

Over the years, his wine business has grown, and he has tripled his space from one suite to three, offering more than 3000 square feet of wine storage with the capacity to hold as many as 250,000 bottles in personal wine lockers meticulously maintained at temperatures of 58-59 degrees and humidity at 65%.

What really sets Crandall’s store apart may be the selection and the prices. On one hand, you can find a delicious local Santa Barbara County Chardonnay for under $20, and on the other, you can reach deep into your pockets and splurge on a fine French Burgundy for $140. “I really enjoy being able to hand-pick the entire store,” he admits.

Crandall has found great satisfaction in the wine business, getting the same kind of satisfaction from pleasing his wine customers as he got from audiences while playing guitar. “It’s self-satisfying to be able to help people. Wine can be confusing and intimidating. It’s more beneficial to educate [customers] because they’ll come back to you. For me, that’s the most fun.”

Frank’s Picks For Fall and the Holidays:
Local:
Melville Santa Barbara County 2006 Verna’s Estate Pinot Noir ($24)
Qupe Santa Maria Valley Bien Nacido 2006 Chardonnay ($19)

Points North:
DuMol Russian River Valley Chardonnay ($45)

French Burgundies:
Domaine de la Denante Macon-Villages White Burgundy ($15)
Jean Marc Bouley 2005 Volnay “Clos de Chenes” Red Burgundy ($58)
Côte de Beaune, 2005 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne ($137.50)

Lisa Snider is a local freelance writer. For more, visit www.findingojai.com.