WELCOME TO CASQUE WINES

Casque Wines is the creation of Mark Breunig and Kevin Stevenson which they founded in 2006. With the release of our first Le Casque wines in the fall of 2008.  The story of Casque Wines has only just begun.

Casque wines were created with one goal in mind – to produce small lots of wine from the absolute best vineyard sources in the Sierra Foothills and surrounding areas. We embrace the time honored French tradition of blending several different varietals together to create a wine that is greater than the sum of its parts. We also seek to create varietal wines that display special character in their own right. Go to our Winemaking page for more details about our philosophy. For an explanation of our helmet logo and branding, scroll down to the bottom of this page.

While we don’t currently have a tasting room, you can buy our wines on-line. We encourage you to join our mailing list, so we can keep you informed of local retailers and restaurants that will be stocking our wines as well as providing you with the latest information about Casque news, wine events, tasting opportunities and wine club membership. Expand your wine horizon beyond “the same old thing” and join us on the journey.  Cheers, Mark and Kevin

THE CASQUE WINES FAMILY

Kevin Stevenson, Partner & Winemaker

Kevin grew up in the farm country of Indiana “watching the corn grow”. His only memories of wine growing up were the occasional bottles of jug wine his parents would buy for parties. After graduating from college, he spent several years as a computer analyst, until escaping to Minnesota to start what would be a ten year career in the music business, both as a musician and a producer. It was in 1989, during their first trip to the Napa Valley that Kevin and his wife, Ann, got “the bug.” Ten years later after several more visits to California and different wine regions in Europe, they decided to make the move to the west coast. While looking for possible home/vineyard sites in the Sierra Foothills, east of Sacramento, they came across the unique vineyard community of Clos du Lac in Placer County (where they met Mark). They fell in love with the place and soon after purchased a lot.

Kevin immediately set about designing a house and learning everything he could about the vineyard operations. This involved everything from pruning to finding buyers for the grapes. Several years (and many blisters) later, Kevin manages the 17-acre estate, and his grapes have been the backbone of numerous award-winning wines. Needless to say, he’s never looked back. Le Casque is the culmination of a decade long dream to produce world class wine under his own label. kevin@casquewines.com

Mark Breunig, Managing Partner

Mark for many years has had a dream to one day be in the wine business. Based on his drive and knack for business, he knew that the day would come. Mark, while having a law degree and practicing business law, has also excelled in business development working for a number of high tech companies over the years from the start-up to the very large company. Working in the start-up world is where he thrives and loves all the different hats that every team member can wear. Working in the high tech world he met his wife Tina and together they truly began to discover the world of wine. When it came time to build a life together they chose a place that represented what they loved, which they found in the Clos du Lac community where they built their home amongst the grape vines, and got married amongst them as well. Hence starting a business focusing on his passion for wine was next on the list. mark@casquewines.com

Tina Morarity-Breunig, Marketing

Tina had a love for wine even before her love for Mark came along. The good thing was that love was one of many things they found they had in common. Through their years of dating and marriage they really came to thrive on the sound of that cork popping out of the bottle and the excitement that came with each new wine that they opened wondering what treasure they would discover.

Tina has spent 20 years in all aspects of marketing including economic development, real estate, high tech, telecommunications, and now she can add winery business to her resume. Tina handles all aspects of marketing, branding, website, communications, events and the wine club in addition to a full time job as Marketing Director for a growing Telecom software company in Silicon Valley. tina@casquewines.com .  Facebook Link: Tina. MorarityBreunig

THE WINE BRAND

The Story Behind the Casque (Helmet)

Our logo is the Adrian Casque, a French helmet design that was introduced in the early 1900’s by General August Louis Adrian. He was visiting a soldier in the hospital who should have been mortally wounded due to a gunshot to the head; however, he survived. When asked how that was possible the soldier responded that he was storing his mess bowl on his head under his casque. This inspired General Adrian to design a new helmet for the French soldiers. The casque was made with a skull cap type insert called a "Calotte" which allowed the helmet to sit snugly on the head, and provide additional protection to the skull.  The Calotte was the foundation for the success of the newly designed casque called the "Adrian".

This helmet style was considered revolutionary around the world and is still being used today by soldiers, firemen, police, bicycle riders, and more.  

Click the following links for more information About Us, our Winemaking Philosophy, and our Wines.  Also, don't forget to join the Adrian Wine Club to get a minimum of 20% off all of your on-line wine purchases, and take your journey to a higher level that will be exclusive to wine club members.