Steve Humble is already a wine legend in Aspen, where he runs the award-winning wine program at the Roaring Fork Club. In 2006 he launched 32 Winds Wines with award-winning winemaker Ehren Jordan. After a whirlwind trip to Houston this week to promote his wares, Humble took time to talk to CultureMap about his journey from sommelier to winemaker and what makes a great wine.

CultureMap: How did you get involved in the winemaking industry?

Steve Humble: I have have been in Aspen for 20 years now and have been a sommelier for 17 years, and have worked with great establishments, James Beard winners, and high-end chefs, etc. I left 10 years ago for a high-end country club called Roaring Forks. I have been great friends for a long time with Ehren Jordan, who was Winemaker of the Year and is the winemaker for Turley and owns his own winery, Failla.

I always had this dream of being in the wine business and making wine, so in 2006 — January 3, 2006, actually — I called him up and said, 'How do I go about this? How much capital do I need to raise?' and so on and after the end of the three-hour conversation he was going to be my winemaker and we were in business together.

CM: Coming into 32 Winds from different sides of the industry, was there a difference in perspective?

SH: We're a combination of a sommelier and a winemaker. I'm not dumb enough to think I know a lot about making wine, but we go out and find the vines together, it's a challenging collaboration. It would never have been a great partnership if I told him, 'I want you to make this kind of wine.' We're both really passionate about it. Over the course of our friendship we've shared many a bottle of wine, and it seemed like a very natural step. We share similar philosophies and tend to like the same kind of wine, though not exactly the same because we have different palates.

I taste and appreciate wines from all over the globe and I think all of the great wines have one thing in common — being hand made from real artisans. So I was a little bit of a purist about doing a small production and other things. I know what stylistic models I like, and being a sommelier I would not be true to my trade if we did not make great food wine. Great food and wine should be together and enhance the experience.

By a great food wine I mean wines that will not overpower food, that have a natural acidity that will match food.

CM: It seems like you've had a lot of success right out of the gate, I noticed your 2006 cabernet is already sold out ...

SH: 2006 was our first vintage, just 750 cases. Now we have about 2000 cases, split evenly between Chardonnay, Cabernet, and Pinot. One thing Ehren brings are phenomenal connections and access to the finest vineyards, like our Chardonnay from Lee Hudson Vineyards. Me as a sommelier in Aspen Valley, I know him and I've met him, but if I called him up and asked for some of his grapes, he'd tell me there's quite a line before me. But Ehren had that automatic authenticity, and the automatic response across the board has been yes.

The U.S. wine market is in shambles right now so I feel very fortunate to sell out of the first vintage in nine months. I'm excited for sure ... I end up pinching myself.

CM: Tell me about this trip to Texas.

SH: This is the first time we've launched the wine in Houston, the first time to have wines in Texas. The great thing about the Houston market, is that I know plenty of Houstonians and Dallasites because they spend their summers up in Aspen, many of them are members at Roaring Forks, so even though we are just releasing wines here now, we have an immediate following and a little bit of brand recognition. We were just in New York and there it's definitely more of a feel of a new product.

I don't want to pick out specific places and not mention others, but 32 Winds is in some of the finest restaurants and retailers around the city, and the last two days have been hugely successful, so I'm hoping to have a great spread of the product. And I'll be back in September for the release of the 2007 Cab.

CM: What's been the biggest surprise in moving from sommelier to winemaker?

SH: For me it was fascinating and a daily learning process to watch the grape growing on the vine and see the evolution to the wine glass; to touch it every step of the way. I'm a firm believer that all wines have a sense of place, to experience that was a very tangible thing.