Robert Sinskey Vineyards 6320 Silverado Trail Napa CA 94558 (707) 944-9090 robertsinskey.com 178 ac – 240,000 bt Bottle Prize – awarded to wineries whose wines represent benchmarks in quality. PEOPLE In the 1980s, the late Bob Sinskey, a lifetime doctor, foresaw the need for lighter red wines as the American diet began to …
Larkmead Vineyards 1100 Larkmead Ln. Calistoga CA 94515 (707) 942-0167 larkmead.com 110 ac – 90,000 bt PEOPLE In the late 1880s the rambunctious daughter of San Francisco’s genteel Hitchcock family was sent to live a more decorous life in the countryside. Lillie Hitchcock called the estate Larkmead after the numerous finches on the …
HEITZ CELLAR (BOTTLE) 436 St. Helena Hwy. St. Helena CA 94574 (707) 963-3542 heitzcellar.com PEOPLE Joe and Alice Heitz were pioneers of the modern American winemaking era. The couple purchased their first property in 1961, a time when only 12 wineries were left in the Napa Valley following the scourge of Prohibition. The incipient …
SPOTTSWOODE (BOTTLE) 1902 Madrona Ave. St. Helena CA 94574 (707) 963-0134 spottswoode.com PEOPLE Founder Mary Novak led Spottswoode for over two decades. Today her daughters run the business. Beth Novak Milliken serves as president and CEO to the estate while her sister Lindy Novak acts as national sales manager. Aron Weinkauf serves as winemaker. Spottswoode …
SMITH-MADRONE (BOTTLE) 4022 Spring Mountain Rd. St. Helena CA 94574 (707) 963-2283 smithmadrone.com PEOPLE Brothers Stu and Charles Smith arrived on Spring Mountain in 1971, when it was still mostly uninhabited—though they soon discovered that the site that would become Smith-Madrone was planted to vineyards prior to Prohibition. More than 40 years later, theirs is …
HUDSON (COIN) 5398 Sonoma Hwy. Napa CA 94559 (707) 255-1455 hudsonranch.com PEOPLE Lee Hudson exudes a boundless energy and visible eagerness to share the vision of his ranch with anyone who will listen. He first came to the valley in 1975 and after almost 40 years is more keen than ever on experimentation and stewardship …
TURLEY WINE CELLARS 3358 St. Helena Hwy. St. Helena CA 94574 (707) 963-0940 turleywinecellars.com PEOPLE Turley Wine Cellars is a brainchild of Frog’s Leap co-founder Larry Turley, a former physician. Wanting to shift his focus to old vine Zinfandel and Petite Sirah, he divested from Frog’s Leap and started hunting for old vineyards for his …
FROG’S LEAP (COIN) 8815 Conn Creek Rd. Rutherford CA 94573 (707) 963-4704 frogsleap.com PEOPLE Frog’s Leap is the epitome of a family winery, headed by the Williams family (founder John and son Rory) and flanked by the many vineyard workers, their sons, nephews, and other relatives that have joined the winery over the years. The …
VOLKER EISELE FAMILY ESTATE (SNAIL) 3080 Lower Chiles Valley Rd. St. Helena CA 94574 (707) 965-9485 volkereiselefamilyestate.com The Volker Eisele Family Estate is one of the rare family-run small-scale estates in Napa where organic farming practices have always been practiced. Now managed by its second generation, it produces some of the most stunning Cabernet …
MATTHIASSON (SNAIL) P.O. Box 10880 Napa CA 94581 (707) 265 9349 matthiasson.com In part because of their advocacy for sustainable growing practices and in part because of the extraordinary wines they produce, Steve and Jill Matthiasson have set a high bar for California wine in the 21st century. PEOPLE Steve and Jill Matthiasson have …