Plant the flag

Hunters make the best wine in the world.? Hear me out!

Safari Club International 's mission recently took me to California wine country.? Sonoma to be exact.? Of course I visited some vineyards while I was there.? But with ~5,000 vineyards to choose from, and only a long weekend with limited time between meetings, I decided to focus my wine tastings at only vineyards owned by hunters.

Given this is California, you might assume that this would severely narrow my list of places to visit.? But as it turned out, there were more places to go than I could possibly make time for.

At the end of the day, a vineyard is a farm and why should a farmer working on blue dirt be any different than a farmer working on red dirt?

The wine was incredible! I even found a chardonnay that I actually like.? But at the end of the day, the wine was just the final product of each farmer’s deep love for the habitat and ecosystem for which they are stewards.??

This deep love for the land is the advantage that all hunters share when we talk about why we hunt.

I was surrounded by hunters during the inaugural banquet of the SCI Wine Country Chapter and it felt like a homecoming.? As SCI/F CEO Laird Hamberlin pointed out during his banquet remarks, SCI was founded in California and our roots are strong to this day with 1 in 10 of our members being Californian.?The?Wine Country chapter is joining a coalition of SCI Chapters who, against the odds, have known great success in California.?Their collective efforts ensure we have a voice in Sacramento and are credited with major wins like defeating the iconic species act and defending youth hunting when it was challenged in the courts.

The banquet raised money for conservation and exceeded expectations, surpassing the fundraising of any other inaugural banquet that I've witnessed.? And yes, that's a challenge to other chapters!? ?

The banquet was held at Wing & Barrel Ranch, a hunting, fishing, shooting and conservation club built in the heart of Sonoma County.? I’ve spent plenty of time on both coasts and in capital cities around the world, but I cannot think of a more liberal county than Sonoma County.? Nevertheless, Wing & Barrel Ranch stands strong as a beacon for those who truly love the land, wildlife and our hunting heritage.

The owner of Wing & Barrel Ranch is also the President of the Wine Country Chapter.? He is a true visionary who exemplifies what sets SCI hunters apart from other hunters.? When a SCI hunter sees something, they do something about it.? Working through every possible hurdle that California could put up, Wing & Barrel Ranch was established and planted a flag for hunters.? When it comes to protecting our freedoms, the Wine Country Chapter takes the fight to where the fight is.

This is a bedrock of SCI Advocacy.? Whatever, wherever and however you hunt, SCI is there.? In the courts, state capitals and halls of Congress, SCI is there.

This is why SCI has planted its flag in the heart of Capitol Hill with the opening of the Hunters’ Embassy.? The Hunters’ Embassy is truly a nerve center for advocacy fights around the world.? Taking the fight to where the fight is.

There are thousands of miles between the Hunters’ Embassy and the Wine Country Chapter, but we share the same mission, and the same passion.?

#conservation #advocacy #hunting #wine #firstforhunters