Enkidu takes its name from a character in the ancient Sumerian epic poem Gilgamesh. Enkidu was best friend to the hero Gilgamesh, and while the hero was out doing heroic deeds, Enkidu was tasked with stewardship of the land and animals. Winemaker Phil Staehle, owner and founder of Enkidu winery, notes that in the poem Enkidu becomes “more cultured and refined over time….in the same way a grape does as it journeys from the vine, through the vinification process, to a finished wine.” Staehle has been making wine in northern California since the 1980s. At Enkidu he focuses on Syrah, Pinot Noir, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. The wines have won compliments and ratings in the 90s from reviewers, and Robert M. Parker Jr. has called them “elegant.”