Who we are

Hi, we’re Helena and Woody. We’re a third generation winemaking family based in Sonoma County, California. We started making Haus right here on our farm, where we live with our daughter Sophie.

We wanted a better drink

It all started with alcohol, an industry that hasn’t evolved since prohibition. It’s still ruled by huge liquor companies that spend big to get their products on store shelves and in bars. And you’re stuck with their choices. Sketchy ingredients, too much alcohol, outdated aesthetics, and too many hangovers.

Something needed to change, and as winemakers and grape farmers, we knew alcohol could be different. It can come from organic farms, not factories. It can be fermented naturally and made with real fruits and botanicals, not artificial flavors.

So we created our own alcohol brand. We made our first batch of Haus in our living room with a bucket of chardonnay and lemons and elderflower from our yard. Today each bottle is still handmade by our team in Sonoma County — we’re proud to be making something you can feel good about drinking.

We're putting a modern spin on the apéritif

Woody discovered apéritifs when he moved to Berlin in 2009. There, he experienced a different type of drinking culture. People weren’t drinking to get drunk, they were focused on connections and being present. When they went out, everyone drank aperitifs and the Americano — a low-ABV apéritif cocktail with vermouth, Campari, and soda — quickly became his go-to.

Made with herbs, fruits, and botanicals, apéritifs have been popular in Europe for centuries. Apéritifs are complex in flavor, but low enough in alcohol that you can sip them all evening without getting too drunk or feeling bad the next day.

Our apéritifs put a modern spin on the European tradition. You’ll find them less sweet and less bitter than traditional apéritifs, deriving flavor from the fresh fruits, herbs and botanicals in every bottle. The result is fresh, complex, and easy to drink.

A drink you can feel good about

We all care more about what we put in our bodies now. The alcohol we drink should follow the same rules. Our product is farm-to-bottle with only real ingredients - no sketchy additives. Here are a few of the ingredients we use to make our apéritifs.

Chardonnay Grapes

The foundation of every bottle. We started with grapes from our farm and now we source the best grapes from growers we love nearby. This isn’t like your mom’s chardonnay — our grapes are unoaked for a clean, fruity palate.

Elderflower

No synthetic syrups here. Extracted from tiny white flowers, elderflower berries contain citric acid, which packs lots of flavor — think a delicate mix of sweet and tart. It also gives each bottle its golden color.

Star Anise

With that potent licorice flavor, star anise brings a nutty and savory note to every bottle.

Lemon

We peel locally grown lemons by hand and use the rinds for their essential oils to add a bright, citrus flavor that gives the tastebuds a wake up call without tipping the balance of our flavors.

Clove

Hand foraged in Madagascar, we use whole clove buds that are bursting with spice and sweetness.

Raw Cane Sugar

Unlike those European liqueurs, we don’t use too much — and that’s how we like it. With more impurities than refined sugar for a more natural taste, and a slight molasses aroma.

For how we gather today

Less “go up on a Tuesday” and more “tell jokes and hatch brilliant business schemes on a Thursday,” Haus is designed to be a social ritual. For that moment in the day when we can slow down, wake up, and be present with people we like.