About The Vineyard...

Starting in 1999, we began an experiment with the Sangiacomo family and Pinot Gris. Based on that initial success, we embarked on a larger scale project, and the Sangiacomo’s planted 2 acres of Pinot Gris exclusively for Ancien, using clones that we imported from Alsace. The rich, clay soils and eastern aspect of the site, coupled with the farming expertise of the Sangiacomo’s, produces ideal fruit for the richer flavored, fuller bodied, well structured Alsatian style that we are striving to produce. The vineyard has matured nicely, yielding consistently ripe fruit with bracing acidity. We are the sole winery that is sourcing Pinot Gris from this special plot, our “vineyard-within-the-vineyard.”

About The Vintage...

Ample rain brought an end to our five-year drought and the 2017 vintage produced the high quality of fruit that we had enjoyed in the prior seasons.  It was an unusually wet year that gave us vigorous vines and an abundance of fruit.  Record-breaking heat in the days leading to harvest fully ripened the grapes, developing sugar and flavor, while cool nights ensured wines would retain mouthwatering acidity.  Our harvest wrapped up, with wine aging in barrel and safe from smoke damage, long before the October fires visited Napa. 

About The Wine...

We pressed aggressively for maximum extraction of the exotic spices and to gain additional structure. We then separated press fractions in order to insure the proper development of structure and lushness while in barrel. We fermented the must entirely in neutral French oak barrels at a cool 50 °F, capturing and retaining rich fruit flavors while also developing a lush, expansive palate. In addition, we stirred lees to enhance texture and develop additional layers.  518 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

Delightful aromatics are enhanced by a refreshingly mineral mouthfeel and lingering finish.  A mélange of Asian pear and summer nectarine greet the nose, followed by subtler notes of fragrant white flowers, fresh Granny Smith apples, and tangerine zest.  On the palate, citrus-kissed stone fruit complements star fruit and green apple leading to a lingering finish of peach and grapefruit.  Pair this with grilled meats, seafood, pastas with olive oil or cream sauces, Asian cuisine...the combination of its rich mid-palate, smooth tannins, and acidic structure make this wine unusually versatile at the table.

About The Vineyard…

The Mink Vineyard is located next door to the winery, in the Coombsville Viticultural Area of Napa Valley. Open to the same morning fogs and afternoon breezes that cool Carneros to the west, Coombsville is consistently one of the coolest pockets in Napa. Mink sits inside a small “bowl”, allowing cooler air to settle during the evenings, and making Mink’s mesoclimate a couple degrees cooler, even, than the surrounding hills. But the real secret to Mink’s explosive flavors, smooth, mouth-coating minerality, comes from the soil. Underneath is a layer of compressed volcanic ash, called tufa. The tufa drains the topsoil, storing moisture in its porous structure. The vines are able, with some work, to grow roots into the tufa layer, accessing moisture during the long, dry growing season 

About The Vintage…

We received much needed rain in the winter of 2015, which put us back on the road to having healthier levels of soil moisture. The 2016 vintage began early, much like the previous vintages, and the optimal growing season caused us to speculate that this would be a very early harvest as well. An unseasonably cool spell visited us mid-summer, slowing down growth. After this brief spell, very warm days followed by cool nights finished off the growing season, giving us a great balance of ripe fruit and mouthwatering acidity. While not as early as projected, our harvest still ended up wrapping up long before the rains of October came.

About The Wine…

The grapes were destemmed into small, one-ton, open-top fermenters, with traditional hand punch downs, and aged the wine in Billon cooperage, a barrel that tends to sit subtly underneath the delicate fruit, lifting aromas without crowding them. The wines were racked once, gently, prior to bottling.   Grapes, must, and wines were moved using gravity through to the barrel and a gentle push with inert gas through racking and bottling. 268 cases produced.

Tasting Notes…

This is an approachable vintage of our widely adored offering from just two and a half acres in Coombsville. It is graced with beautifully round blue fruit notes around which dance brighter notes of huckleberry and pomegranate. The finish is dominated with fine, chalky palate coating tannins and minerality that balance the hedonism of the Mink fruit. While this wine is soft and welcoming now, it will in time reveal its underlying depth. Displaying the uniqueness of Coombsville, this luxuriously textural wine will excite the senses with its many complexities.

A Historic Vineyard...

The Old Block of the Haynes Vineyard, located in a cool pocket of the southeastern Napa Valley, is a part of California winemaking history.  Among the vines in the Old Block of Haynes Vineyard Chardonnay, Ken found through examining and tasting the grapes that a handful of these vines showed “musque" characteristics.  A selection of these specific vines led to our Musque Chardonnay.

About The Vintage...

We received much needed rain in the winter of 2015, which put us back on the road to having healthier levels of soil moisture.  The 2016 vintage began early, much like the previous vintages, and the optimal growing season caused us to speculate that this would be a very early harvest as well.  An unseasonably cool spell visited us mid-summer, slowing down growth.  After this brief spell, very warm days followed by cool nights finished off the growing season, giving us a great balance of ripe fruit and mouthwatering acidity.  While not as early as projected, our harvest still ended up wrapping up long before the rains of October came.

About The Wine...

Our Musque Chardonnay bottling is the culmination of a multi-year selection process at the Haynes Vineyard in Coombsville.  Grapes were tasted and selected on a vine-by-vine basis evaluating for the rare “musque” character.  The cuttings were then taken and planted to two rows in another section of the vineyard, which yield just a couple barrels each vintage.  The vines are all varietal Chardonnay, but possess the unique clonal traits lending the floral “terpene” aromatics reminiscent of varieties like Muscat, Viognier or Gewurtztraminer - though certainly in more subtle fashion.  This wine was made much in the same way as our other Chardonnays, fermented entirely in French cooperage.  Bottling was done after a total of 9 months in barrel.  68 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

An ethereal mélange of fruit-kissed floral notes await you in this bottle!   Honeyed orange blossom greets and then opens up to reveal tropical undertones.  The wine will continue to develop its heady mixture of fruit and floral, becoming more seductive and intoxicating over the next year.   While the lush, opulent texture of this wine point to this is as 100% Chardonnay, its uniquely bright and vibrant aromatics will keep your friends guessing about just what grape could create such a delight for the senses.

About The Vineyard…

Our Chardonnay owes it style, depth, and structure to intensely flavored, low yielding, heirloom clones growing in two Carneros vineyards: on the Napa side, the Toyon Farm and on the Sonoma side, the Sangiacomo Vella Ranch. We hand-selected the cuttings ourselves, from older vineyards in the Carneros area. These cuttings are reputed to have origins tracing to Paul Masson who imported them from Burgundy in the early 1940’s, from Louis Latour's renowned Corton Charlemagne vineyard. These selections are often referred to as “Old Wente” or “Robert Young,” denoting the sourced mother blocks in the 1960s.

About The Vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality!

About The Wine...

We aspire to guide our Chardonnay toward a layered, complex, and expressive style that develops gracefully in the bottle and shows enticing minerality, vivacious fruit, length and structure. For us, the watchword is balance. We pressed the grapes as whole clusters, settled and fermented entirely in French oak from four different coopers, chosen for their unique synergism and support of the fruit on the palate. One third of the barrels were new. We used a variety of yeasts, including native strains, and fermentation proceeded evenly and slowly, averaging a cool 55°F. The wine was aged on its yeast lees, which were stirred weekly through the spring. 460 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

A beautiful mélange of citrus and pomaceous fruit, perfumed with light notes of freesia. Bright tangerine zest and creamy lemon meringue dominate, softened by notes of pear and apple blossom. Bright acidity with a generous and opulent mouthfeel caresses the palate and leads into a finish that will continue to lengthen in the coming months.  Give this complex vintage time to open up in the glass and show the full array of Old Wente Chardonnay beauty.

About The Vineyard…

Our Carneros Pinot Noir comes entirely from the Toyon Vineyard, located in the Napa side of Carneros. This vineyard was originally planted for us in 1998 with cuttings tracing back to the Swan estate in Sonoma County and Dijon 115 - followed by cuttings from Ed Penhoet’s vineyard in Carmel Valley. Ed’s selection from River Selection is a story into itself (ask us sometime!), and is sometimes referred as “Pisoni Clone” since Gary Pisoni took cuttings from the vineyard in the early ‘80s.

About The Vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality!

About the wine…

We separated the entire lot into one ton, open-top fermenters, employing traditional punch-downs by hand in order to achieve optimal extraction. About 5% of the fruit was fermented as whole clusters. The wine was aged in an array of French cooperage, nearly half new, and gently racked once prior to bottling.  Grapes, must, and wines were moved using gravity through to the barrel and using inert gas through racking and bottling.

440 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

The focused concentration of this vintage gives us a spiced nose with vibrant sour black raspberry and wild cherry cola notes.  The luxurious palate is loaded with dark berries and combines seamlessly with hints of dark chocolate, anise, and Brazil nut.  The palate is full of textural, mouth-coating tannins balanced by a bright acidity.   The chewy tannins, earthy spices and minerality complement the fruit and floral notes signature to this wine. The palate will continue to develop in opulence over years of aging, revealing even darker layers and more earth notes.

About The Vineyard…

Toyon Farm, owned by Ed and Camille Penhoet, is located on a southwest-facing slope on the eastern (Napa) side of the Carneros. The topsoil is dark rich clay, averaging just around 24 inches in depth. These soils promote a dark, brooding fruit, emphasizing texture and tannin. The Toyon designate is now entirely from a block of Pinot noir planted on the north slope of the vineyard. The cuttings are originally from a famous vineyard in Burgundy, via Ed Penhoet’s River Ranch vineyard planted in the ‘70s. As the original source of the Pisoni vineyard – it also referred to as “Pisoni Clone” or River Ranch selection 

About The Vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality!

About The Wine…

We separated the entire lot into 1 ton, open-top fermenters, employing traditional punch-downs by hand in order to achieve optimal extraction. About 5% of the fruit was fermented as whole clusters. The wine was aged in an array of French cooperage, nearly half new, and gently racked once prior to bottling.  Grapes, must, and wines were moved using gravity through to the barrel and with a gentle push of inert gas through racking and bottling. 47 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

Our direct representation of the Toyon Farm terroir, this wine greets bright and well spiced, then melds effortlessly into a rich palate coating smoothness. The bouquet is filled with notes of dark berries, spiced herbs, and cola.  The brooding palate, dominated by an almost visceral layer of mouth-coating tannins and mid-palate flavors of mocha, raspberry, and cranberry, is balanced with a bright, palate-lifting acidity. It finishes with round and chewy chocolaty tannins that accentuate a firm chalky finish that offers promise for greater things to come. This deep and balanced wine is structured to age gracefully for years, if you can keep a bottle around that long.

A historic vineyard…

In 1966, Pat and Duncan Haynes planted their vineyard to Martini Pinot Noir and Wente Chardonnay. In the 47 years that have passed since then, there have been many significant changes in the science and technology of viticulture. However, not every supposed advance results in an improvement quality. These old school, widely spaced, cane pruned vines have found a most perfect balance point as tended by Fernando Delgado since 1970. He prunes each vine individually, according to its strength and potential, choosing which canes to keep and how many canes and shoots that each vine will grow. There is no technological substitute for this level of knowledge and experience coupled with pure love for the vine and its fruit.

About the vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality! 

About the wine...

Inspired by the classic and most revered Chardonnay vineyard in the world, Le Montrachet, we utilize the same classic techniques. It is fermented in tight-grained French Oak cask after a gentle squeeze as whole clusters. The wine is not moved through the fermentation and aging period, only pushed by inert gas in gentle fashion into the bottling tank. In vintages where the wine achieves good clarity through natural settling, the wine is not filtered – otherwise it undergoes a light polish to help reveal is core of fruit. 92 cases produced.

Tasting notes...

This vintage gave us an opulent mélange of lemon meringue with hints of citrus, honeydew, and lychee. The palate is bright and fresh, and the richly textured mouth-feel is expansive and builds through the finish. Crisp apple and ripe pear emerge from the full-bodied midpalate, brightened by notes lemon and key lime. The finish is a lengthy and powerful amalgamation of ripe fruit, baking spices and mouth-watering minerality with a firmly focused finish. A white for red drinkers, this is a Chardonnay that pairs with a wide array of dishes and will do quite well in the cellar.

A historic vineyard…

In 1966, Pat and Duncan Haynes planted their vineyard to Martini Pinot Noir and Wente Chardonnay. In the 47 years that have passed since then, there have been many significant changes in the science and technology of viticulture. However, not every supposed advance results in an improvement quality. These old school, widely spaced, cane pruned vines have found a most perfect balance point as tended by Fernando Delgado since 1970. He prunes each vine individually, according to its strength and potential, choosing which canes to keep and how many canes and shoots that each vine will grow. There is no technological substitute for this level of knowledge and experience coupled with pure love for the vine and its fruit. 

About the vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality! 

About the wine...

Before the harvest, Ken and Fernando walk these rows together and mark the most flavorful old vines from the original planting. Only the original and healthiest vines are allowed to be included in this limited pick to produce this very special wine.   After the careful vine-by-vine selection in the field, classic Ancien small lot winemaking is performed using one fermenter filled by gravity and punched down by hand.  58 cases produced

Tasting notes...

With its brilliant garnet color, this wine displays balance, grace, and the most velvety of textures. The palate mirrors the lively nose featuring initial fruits of strawberry and cranberry intermixed with blood orange, sandalwood, and fresh herbs. The fruit concentrates on the mid-palate somewhat, revealing notes of wild berry pie and tea. The hedonistic palate is bright and expansive, with a silken texture. A deep inhale of aromas can make one imagine a walk through a freshly rained on herb garden. It finishes with a light, understated grip, and moves backward through the finish. The finish continues to evolve toward more earthen and mineral notes, as it coats the entire palate and continues to reveal new aromas.

About The Vineyard…

Gilbert Perez’s two acre vineyard in the southwestern corner of the appellation, only nominally protected by the coastal hills and open to the maritime influence of the Pacific Ocean, is the single source for these grapes. The soils here are sandy loam and very well drained, typical for the Russian River Valley. The cooler sections of Russian River, near Sebastopol, are known for producing explosive and aromatic fruit flavors balanced with acidity and earthy aromas.  All seventeen rows are planted with Dijon 115 clones, which tend to add perfumed aromas and light spice notes to the lush fruitiness obtained from the soils.

About The Vintage...

Small but intense, the 2015 vintage did not give us a lot of fruit to work with but what we received yielded outstanding wines. The drought continued and its effects were only exacerbated by unseasonable weather – warm in the winter on into spring resulted in early bud break, yet cold weather during flowering resulted in an uneven fruit set, which ultimately meant smaller crops. Once summer arrived, it brought warmth with it and led to another early harvesting vintage. Attention to detail in the vineyard meant that the grapes that made it to harvest were high quality . . . giving us wines with exciting flavors and a lot of personality 

About the Wine...

We fermented in our one ton, open-top tanks, layering the bottom 25% of each tank with whole clusters of fruit, adding structure and spice notes to the back palate and balancing the otherwise plush fruit of Gilbert’s Vineyard.  A warm fermentation with a combination of native and isolated Burgundian yeasts produced excellent and focused flavor extraction, complemented with traditional punch-downs by hand. The wine was aged entirely in Francois Freres cooperage, half new, and racked once, gently, prior to bottling.  Grapes, must, and wines were moved using gravity through to the barrel and using inert gas through racking and bottling.   150 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

Intensely spiced and fruity aromas of strawberry and black cherry mix with cinnamoned hazelnut and fresh herbs as an introduction to this hedonistic blend of fresh fruit and earthy spice. The wine opens to a broad and firmer than usual mid-palate of various black berries and cassis. The opulence and strength of flavor in this vintage is reminiscent of the outstanding 2010 vintage that has held especial vibrancy of characteristic flavors for years. The palate is elevated and brightened with a refreshing acidity that welcomes this wine to the table. Dried flowers, fresh berries, sweet cranberry orange, and baking spices are revealed in the satisfying finish.

About The Vineyard…

The Red Dog Vineyard sits atop Sonoma Mountain on the cool, western side. In 2000 Tom and Debbie Engel planted this vineyard for us using cuttings from the Mink Vineyard. The vineyard is situated on the eastern face of a ridge, and the top is just under 1000 feet elevation. At this height, Pacific currents moving inland through the Petaluma Gap cool the vineyard almost continually. The soils are some of the most ancient soils in Sonoma County and have been leached of nutrients by wind and rain for eons. It is a truly spectacular vista point but a challenging place to grow grapes.

About The Vintage...

Timing is everything in life as well as in the vineyard. 2014 marked another year of record-breaking drought, however the year began with adequate soil moisture supported by well-timed rains resulting in an overall pleasant growing season. Warm and moderate weather with plenty of sun ripened grapes completely and made this an early budding and early harvesting vintage. Since everything was basically ready to pick at the same time, this made for an extremely intense harvest of long hours to ensure all the grapes received the attention they needed. Similar to the last two vintages, this year gave us an average sized crop with this one yielding soft, hedonistic wines that showed delicious fruit very early on – even in the barrel far before bottling!

About The Wine...

The grapes were destemmed into our 1-ton, open top fermenters and cold soaked for 4 days. We punched down by hand 4 times per day tapering down as the fermentation progressed. A warm fermentation, peaking about 92°, with additional maceration and skin contact ensured a generous extraction from these stubborn grapes. The wine was aged entirely in French barrels from the Tonnellerie Remond cooperage, and a slight majority of those barrels were new. The wine was racked once prior to bottling. Until bottling, all wine movements were made by with a gentle push of inert gas. 244 cases produced.

Tasting Notes...

Exotically elegant, the subtle nuances of this wine are followed by a lingering finish. The nose opens to an alluring perfume of raspberry, rose hips, and mandarin followed by rich aromas of tobacco, cedar, and forest floor. Spiced throughout with cinnamon, lavender, and sage, the fruit expands in the glass and fills the palate with kirsch, cherry preserve, dried cranberries, and hints of tea, clove, and tangerine.  The mouth feel is soft and rich, with a considerable acidic lift. Toward the back, it reveals an earthen and tannic strength, and the finish is long and dominated by fine, dry tannins and dried spices and fruits.  With age this wine deepens and softens, rewarding the palate while exhibiting an even more exotic nose as the bouquet develops.