The Owl Tale

Kynsi means Talon in Finnish, to pay homage to the resident barn owls and the family's ancestry.

When the winery was first started in the old dairy, it had been decades since it had ceased operations and the grounds had been cared for.  There was a gopher problem, and not your average garden infestation but a plague of historic proportions.  In search of wisdom, it was discovered that barn owls are gopher’s #1 predator.  Astonishingly,  a nesting pair can process up to 40 gophers a night when feeding their young.

Barn owls are not nest builders, so 2 wooden boxes were installed in the old barn and within a couple of weeks there was a nesting pair.  They had 4 owlets that first spring and wiped out the also breeding gophers.  As the pellet pile grew under their boxes, nature was being put back into balance.  The owls single handedly saved the ranch and the wise female in her preening pose was chosen to represent the brand, a pedestal duly earned.  To honor family heritage, they chose the Finnish word “Kynsi” meaning talon to go with the beloved barn owl.