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Ideology Cellars is owned by Bob Williamson; he also runs the popular artisan winemakers facility and tasting room, Silenus Vinters which is located just south of the town of Yountville. As of the time of this review Ideology Cellars produces 7 wines with several more on the way including two wines from the Russian River area in neighboring Sonoma County. Several of their wines can be tasted at Silenus Vintners during the normal tasting hours. Bob comes from a construction background and has been a fine wine enthusiast for a number of years. While living in foggy Half Moon Bay he and his wife decided to try to find property inland in a warmer location. Enter Napa; Bob's original purchase was a nearby 15 acre vineyard but when the old Koves Newlan property came on the market with an existing winery he took the jump not yet knowing how involved he would become with additional ventures including vineyards, a winery, a custom crush facility and a tasting room all wrapped up into one property. Bob is not a hands off owner, due to the number of wineries Silenus services this is one of our most visited locations; he is always on site, either working in the winery or in the tasting room. We recently caught up with him for a sit down tasting of several of Ideology's wines.
Ideology Cellars produces two very different styled Chardonnays while using the same fruit for both wines. This fruit comes from the Red Hen Vineyard which is located just south of the winery. We already know this vineyard produces top notch Chardonnay having tried its fruit in wines from two other wineries who both source from this same vineyard. The vineyard consistently produces high quality fruit year in and year out. However when the winemaking program is structured differently while using the same fruit you have two very distinct tasting wines. The 2007 "blondie" saw no new oak and is a refreshing example of what you can do with this varietal when when its not overly manipulated in the winery. It is fermented entirely in stainless steel, undergoes no malolactic fermentation and is aged in neutral oak. The color could certainly be construed as blond, almost pale straw like. Tropical aromas spring from the glass including pineapple and hints of banana. The mouth feel is clean and crisp with good acidity and minerality notes. Pear flavors and a lingering finish that hints of lime complete this wine. The "Blondie Gone Wild" is their other style of Chardonnay. This wine is fermented with wild yeast, hence the name and see's about 65% new French Oak during its aging. The 2006 vintage has notes of toasted oak and almond on the nose followed by a palate that shows well the lovely flavors this varietal and vineyard produces. The mouth feel has good weight and flavors of citrus, melon and spices round out the finish. The winery is situated in the Oak Knoll District and is surrounded by 10 planted vineyard acres including Cabernet Sauvignon, with small amounts of Petite Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Despite appearing to be on the valley floor this is not technically valley floor property. Rather it is benchland, containing soils that have eroded down over the years from the Mayacamas mountains which form the western border of their property. In addition, there are deep rich alluvial soils on site in part deposited from the nearby Dry Creek (which is not always dry). Bob had tasted several wines made by the previous owners of the vineyard and liked what he tasted. As a result he uses his own estate vineyard to provide the fruit for several of his Cabernet Sauvignon wines. Having made a few vintages from this vineyard, the fruit is already in high demand especially by some of the artisan winemakers on site who have tasted it! We tried the 2006 vintages; both Cabernet's are big wines and would do well with decanting before serving. The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon has a nice earthiness, white pepper and notes of cedar on the bouquet. Both this wine and the Reserve are very dark and well extracted wines. The Reserve vintage is made by hand selecting only the highest quality fruit for the final blends. This is a big wine with excellent color, good acidity and juicy mouth filling flavors. The backbone is broad with big tannin structure. The 2005 Merlot was their first ever wine released. The fruit for this wine is from Bob's original vineyard which he has since sold. With a high end Napa winery such as Shafer purchasing the fruit from this vineyard you know its high quality terroir. The production is extremely small but the wine is not. This is a huge Cabernet lovers Merlot! It is rich in color, aroma and flavor. Interesting baking spices, blackberry and dark chocolate are found on the bouquet followed by a rich, layers of dark fruit flavor anchored by bold tannins. We think this will have great ageability and will continue to evolve both in complexity and types of flavors. As of press time no website exists for Ideology Cellars but you can find more information on the main winery site: www.ideologycellars.com |
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Igneous is owned and operated by Don and Ann Huckfeldt. Don's family owns a 30+ year successful water-well drilling business in the Napa Valley. With a business such as this one he has become intimately aware of most every vineyard in Napa County and has also become friends with many of the local vintners. As a result when he decided to plant an estate vineyard on property that has been in his family since 1969 who better to call then one of the best in the business, David Abreu. Abreu is the vineyard manager "to the stars" so to speak - having provided vineyard management services for some of Napa most high end well known cult wineries including Araujo Estate, Bryant Family, Colgin, Harlan Estate, Grace Family and Screaming Eagle - 6 of the generally 7 recognized cult wineries in Napa...not bad! Long time Napa native and master of the Cabernet Sauvignon, Kirk Venge has been their winemaker since day one.
Igneous's estate Huckfeldt Ranch Vineyard is located in the Coombsville region, a rolling vineyard covered hillside landscape located just east of the town of Napa. While the majority of this small vineyard is planted to several clones of Cabernet Sauvignon, they also have small blocks of blending varietals such as Petite Verdot and Cabernet Franc. The vineyard is planted near a seasonal creek (dry when we visited) and as a result much of the land here is an alluvial soil which provides excellent drainage. This vineyard is fairly new having been planted in 2002 and their 2005 vintage was the first release to incorporate fruit from this estate vineyard. This is prime Coombsvile terroir - nearby neighbors include a Quintessa owned vineyard and Caldwell. Having sourced fruit since their first vintage in 2002 from the famed David Abreu owned and managed Thorevilos vineyard Igneous knows well the consistent high quality fruit that comes from this particular vineyard and they continue to plan on sourcing its fruit for future wines. For the first few years before their own vineyard started producing, their wine was 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Thorevilos Vineyard. The Thorevilos vineyard is in a fairly isolated hillside location at the base of Howell Mountain. We have visited this vineyard several times throughout the year and the attention to detail is amazing. When we have been here we have always seen vineyard crews carefully managing the vines regardless of the season; the vines look absolutely pristine. Abreu makes his own wine from this vineyard and in 2002 earned a rare 100 point score from Robert Parker...pretty head stuff! As a tribute to both Don's geology background and the type of rock that forms much of Coombsville and the eastern part of Napa Valley, they choose the name Igneous. This is the type of rock that forms after molten lava flow hardens into rock when it comes into contact with the cooler air. Igneous focuses on one super high end, limited production, hand crafted wine each year. We tried the 2005 vintage soon after its release. It is dark crimson in color with a very aromatic bouquet. Notes of earth, gravel and mocha are interwoven with big fruit aromas which become more noticeable as the wine opens up - most decidedly blackberry and cherry. The palate is well layered and complex with wonderful ripe intensely flavored fruit - black cherry and raspberry. Broad firm tannins provide good balanced structure now, as well as being the backbone to give this wine a fairly long cellar life. With typically only several hundred cases produced each year, the wine is very selectively distributed. Joining the mailing list now would be a good idea before what we think will be excellent ratings to hit the press in the relatively near future. You can find their wine at a number of high end restaurants in Napa including the French Laundry and Meadowood. They have good placement in New York and also Las Vegas. Visit: www.igneouswines.com |
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Initially they supplied grapes to other wineries most notably to Charles Krug Winery and Robert Mondavi and in fact Mondavi still buys their fruit even today. They still supply most of their harvest to other wineries and it is only recently that they started making their own wines. This winery is truly a family run affair. Three siblings - two brothers and a sister are in charge of the day to day activities including their own vineyard management. They are the most down to earth people you will meet and this is as personalized a tasting as you will find in Napa Valley. One of the owners will meet you at the wine house and then you can either drive up to their gazebo in the electric golf cart or walk up through the hillside vines. They have only been open for tasting by appointment since 2006. Their production typically runs around 400 to 600 cases making them among the smaller wineries in the Napa area. They certainly have the capacity to increase production as they own the land and as mentioned previously they sell the great majority of their fruit. However, they want to remain small which allows them to provide more attention to detail and hands on control of the wine making process. They specialize in Cabernet Sauvignon with their first vintage released in the early 2000's; we tried the 2004 vintage which is blended with 10% Petite Verdot. This wine is ready to drink now, is quite balanced with a lot of rich ripe tasting fruit, however has those firm structured trademark Stag's Leap tannins. These tannins along with great acidity will ensure this wine will age very well for many years. Be sure to try their other more recently produced wine - the Seis Primas, which is Spanish for "six girl cousins" and is named after the 6 daughters the three siblings have. This is a very unique blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Note that you can also taste Ilsley wines at the Silenus tasting room on Solano Ave just south of Napa. Their wines are available with about 15 other small wineries who custom crush at the Silenus facility. Visit: www.ilsleyvineyards.com |
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To enter the winery, drive down a long paved driveway off on the west side of Highway 29. This driveway is located just north of the Rutherford Cross Road and almost across from the great BV Winery. The end of the driveway ends in a semi-circle where you will be greeted with a smile and by the obligatory words, "Welcome to Inglenook Estate". Your "chauffeur" will complimentary valet park your car. From here you walk along a lengthy red carpet (we have been here several times and the carpet is never quite as clean as the red carpet they roll out for you at Universal Studios!) to the entrance of this historic winery. There is a $25 estate entrance fee which you can ask to be waived for your "designated driver" if you have one. This fee includes a 30 minute historical tour. Cute "passports" are given to you upon entering which will include your very own stamp which you receive at the wine tasting counter. It also contains general and historic information about the winery. This "passport" is good for 2 days, for a visit and tour only. The fee includes 5 tastings from their main room, a guided tour and a self tour of the movie and sailing rooms. The main building is very fancy both inside and outside. There is a beautiful reflecting pool in front, and a large stately oak tree on one side adds a dimension of history to the winery. The movie director Francis Ford Coppola, of Godfather and Apocalypse Now fame, has been the owner of this winery since 1975. Coppola has long enjoyed wine (his grandfather used to make home wine in the basement of his New York apartment) and this is not the only winery he owns; he also operates Rosso Bianco in Geyserville in neighboring Sonoma County. Tastings are mostly Cabernets Sauvignon. All estate wines come from their vineyards on site which are all organically farmed. Rubicon has many acres some of which extend all the way up into the Mayacamas Hills to the west of the actual winery. We enjoyed the 2004 Rubicon which is a very full bodied, smooth rich wine with lots of fruit on the palate. This is a big fruit driven wine but without the huge tannins. You are free to take the last taste with you as you walk throughout the building. Be sure to visit the small sailing room downstairs which includes mementos and memorabilia from the original owner, Gustave Niebaum. As you will quickly learn from visiting the winery, he was a sailor. Upstairs you find the Movie Museum with many of Francis Ford Coppola's awards, movie props and other interesting movie memorabilia. Exhibits upstairs are often displayed on a rotating basis. A grand staircase leads up to this museum and provides a good photo op at its base. Think Jack & Rose at the base of the staircase in the movie Titanic as you wave to your friend's camera. One of their Reserve wines has a wooden label. We challenge you to find another wine on the market with such a label! If its a warm day, there are tables outside for your relaxing enjoyment - also towards the south end of the winery there is another winebar called Mammarella (named after Francis's mother). This winebar provides additional tastings in a relaxed Parisian cafe style atmosphere (small food items are also served). Visit: www.inglenook.com |
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Inherit the Sheep | Tweet
was founded in 2006 by Clay and Tersilla Gregory - both of whom have been involved in the Napa wine industry for a number of years. In 2001 the Gregory's found a small piece of land in Coombsville (a region in Napa east of the city of Napa). They made several trips to the property and observed several sheep on site. The previous owners told the Gregory's the sheep come with the land if you decide to purchase the property. Clay and Tersilla were traveling when their real estate agent called and told them an agreement had been reached. At that point when Clay told Tersilla this, she made what was probably the quickest decision ever for the name of a wine label. Tersilla came up with "inherit the sheep" on the spot and the name stuck. The three sheep depicted on the label for every vintage is based on one of her paintings. This slightly less than 2 acres had never been planted to grapes before yet it was surrounded by a fine pedigree of vineyard neighbors including Caldwell Winery and Quintessa's Faust vineyard. The Gregory's planted the vineyard in 2001 after Clay met with his neighbor John Caldwell; John is an expert in soils and how they relate to choosing clones and rootstalks. He used to own a grapevine nursery and in fact has published a book about soils and clonal selections. Caldwell's vineyard is planted to a number of varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Cabernet Franc and it made sense to also plant these varietals in Inherit the Sheep's vineyard. Clay has been in the wine industry since graduate school in the late 1970's when he worked at a small winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains. At a small winery everything is often done by hand including bottling, barrel work etc and he gained valuable hands on experience during his time there. Not only was his passion for wine sparked at this winery but also his spirit for the wine industry in general. He remembers when machinery broke during harvest and a neighbor pitched in to help; winemaking is a business where the sharing of information is typically the norm. Contrast this to industries such as Entertainment or High Tech where practices are generally cutthroat and competitive. No winery did more to promote that spirit of cooperation in the Napa wine industry than Robert Mondavi and it was here in 1989 that Clay took his first Napa winery job. It was also here where he met Tersilla. Inherit the Sheep produced a Syrah for the first few vintages but ultimately budded this varietal over to Cabernet Sauvignon so they could focus on a single varietal. 2008 was their last vintage - we tried the 2007. The nose is fairly aromatic and elegant with notes of darker fruit, notably blackberry complemented by aromas of white pepper. The mouth feel is smooth, supple and rounded with fine grained tannins. After the fruit finishes on the rather quick clean finish, notes of cedar linger slightly longer. For the first few vintages the different varietals were initially co-fermented and the final wines were blends - however after a number of trial tastings they found the varietals on their own were superior in taste, structure and mouth feel. Today they focus on one varietal and one wine each vintage; an estate Cabernet Sauvignon that typically is slightly blended with their own Cabernet Franc. The bouquet is deep and seductive on the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon showing a nice mix of dark fruit along with a smokiness (cigar) and nuances of spicy pepper. The mouth feel is rounded classic Coombsville fruit - soft upon entry but quickly gaining layers of mouth filling ripeness including rich flavors of blackberry and black currant. The tannins are silky and smooth and are well integrated with the fruit. The 2007 is still young but it already shows more complexities than their 2006 vintage; this is a wine that will do well with some bottle age. The bouquet is somewhat earthy and minerally but as it breathes aromas of sweet fruit come to the surface along with hints of mocha. The mid palate is soft and layered; the finish is slightly longer and more structured than the 2006 vintage. The tannins are fine grained and linger delicately. All their wines are bottled unfiltered. Production is very low even by Napa standards. With around 1.5 tons/acre of the Cabernet Sauvignon a typical vintage usually has a production of around merely 200 cases. You can find their wine locally at Backroom Wines and Bounty Hunter in Napa as well as select Napa Valley restaurants including La Toque. Also of note is that Inherit the Sheep donates 5% of their sales to SLOW Food USA ( www.slowfoodusa.org ). For more information visit: www.inheritthesheep.com |
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