E2 Family Winery

Some of the first family ancestors arrived in California in 1835 and settled in the town of Lockeford. Our great grandfather, Herman Walter Ehlers, began his education in wine in 1921, working at the National Fruit Product Company, which later became the Shewan-Jones Winery in Lodi.

In 1934, Lodi saw the completion of the new East Side Winery, just in time for the 1934 crush. The winery installed Herman Ehlers as its first master winemaker, a position he held for more than 41 years. Herman garnered awards all over California for his winemaking. But he felt that the highest honor he ever received was a lifetime membership into the American Society of Enologists.

1951 saw Herman’s eldest son, Walter, branch out and expand his farming ventures with the formation of the Herman Ehlers and Sons Corporation. That same year brought the birth of his only son, Steven Ehlers. Steven began working in the vineyards at an early age, continuing the family tradition of introducing the next generation into the family wine business.

In the following years the vineyards grew to include the vines planted on their 400+ acre, delta, island ranch. The current Ehlers family vineyards are comprised of Merlot, Zinfandel, Chardonnay, Verdelho (our rare, Portuguese white wine), Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Burger, and Syrah grapes.

The current generation of vintners, Steven Ehlers Jr., his brother Brett Ehlers, and their sister Elishia Ehlers were welcomed to the family between 1976 and 1981. Again, the next generation followed in their father’s and grandfather’s footsteps from an early age. Now—with the production of wines currently at 4500 cases a year and multiple awards won by the current generation of viticulturists and winemakers—the family tradition moves forward.

Vintner Brett Ehlers’ grandfather, Nicholas Dellan, graduated from the University of Southern California in 1957, with a Master of Science in Education. He was a true Trojan. Fight On!