Robinson Family Vineyards

Robinson Family Vineyards. The roots of this small family-owned winery date back to 1967 when Norman ‘Bud’ & Helen Robinson purchased 78 acres of land (below the prominent rock outcroppings in this part of the Vaca mountain range known as the Stags Leap cliffs) and at that time ran cattle and horses. Bud was a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army; prior to moving to Napa Valley, he was stationed at Fort Hood in Texas. His introduction to Napa Valley was through a family member already living here at the time.

Bud knew little about wine, did not drink this beverage but fortunately several prominent area vineyard growers convinced the family to plant part of their land to wine grapes including Nathan Fay (namesake of the Fay Vineyard which is owned by Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars) and Tom Turnbull, a local Episcopalian priest. Some of their non-commercial wine was made with the name Robinson, Fay and Turnbull; the family still owns a number of these older bottles, and several are on display next to their tasting room.

Very much a small family owned and operated winery, Bud and Helen’s daughter Suzie oversees hospitality and her husband Tom (who we originally met with) is the winemaker who works with a consulting winemaker and is in charge of most everything else relating to the property. His background in construction often comes in handy. Their three daughters (who grew up on the property) help with hospitality including twins Kim and Robin and their older sister Carrie.

The property is three separate parcels of which only 7 acres are planted to vines. The family still maintains a small herd of cattle on one of their parcels; whose grazing is very beneficial in terms of mitigating fuel during wildfires. The winery is located east of the Silverado Trail in the heart of the Stags Leap District. A number of their vineyard neighbors are small producers; Robinson Family Vineyards owns the only physical winery along this access road. Their property borders the property of Stags’ Leap Winery; Suzie and Tom fondly remember visiting the Stags’ Leap Manor when it was completely abandoned prior to 1971 when vintner, Carl Doumani purchased that property.

This gracious family works extremely hard, loves what they do and have fun doing so. Most crush pads in the Napa Valley are strictly for wine making uses, although we have visited several that dual as skateboard areas during downtime. The Robinsons have built perhaps the only bar/hangout area directly next to a crush pad in the valley. The old adage in the wine industry is that it takes a lot of beer to make good wine (and perhaps other types of alcohol). During harvest (typically parts of September and October), family and friends often help Tom with the wine making; this is a fun and memorable time to visit the winery.

The family’s first commercial release under the Robinson Family label was the 1998 vintage. While the family produces a number of wines, typically their overall production is usually between 800 and 1,500 cases annually. Each wine is produced with no more than a maximum of 300 cases with several only a barrel or two. Their small production wines are typically only released to wine club members or sold on site.

Their distribution is so tiny that the wines are primarily sold direct through visits, wine club memberships and online sales. They simply do not have enough wine to distribute on a large scale. The limited distribution they have is to places that the family likes to frequent locally including Cole’s Chop House and Allegria Restaurant in the city of Napa. Several of their wine club members are in the wine retail business and have facilitated limited amounts being sent to Texas and New Mexico.

Hospitality
A visit is a bit like driving back in time; as one pulls off of the Silverado Trail, one quickly leaves the often-congested traffic that has become so bad in the afternoons in recent years. Wandering east on a small road visitor with appointments pull into the winery and will be warmly greeted by one of the Robinson family members. Visits typically begin in the tasting room and refreshingly, are always hosted by a family member. The tasting room is intimate and features a tiny bar and a long table next to a window overlooking the vineyard to the south of their property.

The original wine library created by Bud and Helen is located next to their aging cellar; older vintages are now covered in dust, and some are from well-known wineries in France. Bud passed away in 1998 and the family has left his collection as it is. An old wooden hand crank press is located outside the cellar building; today it is used for growing pretty flowers but from 1971 through 1997 it was used for making the family home wine.

Tastings feature select current release wines; weather permitting guests will take a short walk up to the winery (one of the smaller physical wineries in all of Napa Valley) with a stop on a small lawn overlooking part of their property. On a clear warm day, with glass of wine in hand – this is a tasting experience that many to the valley for the first time imagine but perhaps don’t always find at some of the larger more visited Napa Valley based wineries.

The family has an intriguing sense of humor; an acronym on one of their old home-wine labels spells F.A.R.T. using the last names of local residents including Fay and Turnbull. One of their other old labels, the Octopus is bottled with an intriguing shape.

Select Wines
Whites/Rosé
The 2023 Robinson Family Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc is medium straw in color. The citrusy bouquet is bright and energetic with scents of grapefruit, green apple, honeydew melon, orange blossom, star jasmine, kaffir lime leaf, lemon rind and lemon grass. From the aromatics alone, the herbal typicity of the variety is well represented. This wine is especially zippy and fresh on the bouquet. From the strong represented herbal notes on the bouquet, we were expecting the palate to mimic this. But that is not the case; it offers flavors of white nectarine, white peach, pineapple guava, golden kiwi, pineapple, golden apples, grapefruit and honeydew melon. Beautifully balanced and vibrant, the finish lingers with a mouthwatering character featuring attention-getting but not bracing acidity and a lingering note of lime peel, dill and a flinty minerality. Thoroughly enjoyable, this bottling goes down far too easily.

The 2017 Robinson Family Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc is highly aromatic and reveals engaging floral driven aromas including citrus blossom, jasmine and passion fruit. There are also notes of white pineapple, freshly cut grass, a lemon-lime zest and a slate-like mineral nuance on the bouquet. Balanced with a nice approach on the palate offering both a sweetness along with a tartness of fruit. Supple and slightly creamy across the palate with good acid, this wine is mouthwatering but not overtly tart. Offers flavors of red and green apple, mandarin and a lime zest. The finish is very clean. Over the years, we have tasted and smelled several different vintages of this wine, sometimes from the aromatics alone, we think it’s a Viognier.

The 2021 Robinson Family Vineyards Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon (estate) is medium salmon in color with some pink hues; offers aromas of jolly rancher watermelon, wild strawberries, citrus blossom, pineapple guava and notes of lemon lime. This bouquet is highly aromatic. Features a rounded and creamy texture with flavors of lemon drop candy, strawberry, watermelon and crunchy red apple picked right from the tree. This is not a lighter styled rosé. Features an intense and long flavor filled finish with just the right amount of acid tartness to keep one salivating for more. Very well done.

Reds
Stags Leap District is one of Napa Valley’s best known red wine sub-appellations. As a result, their focus is on several estate-grown red varieties including Cabernet Sauvignon and some rarer limited production 100% varietal bottlings of Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Malbec.

Merlot
The 2021 Robinson Family Vineyards Merlot is medium to deep ruby in color; dark fruited, savory and ripe, the well-layered bouquet offers aromas of dark cherry, blackberry jam, boysenberry spread, Satsuma plum, old cedar box, tobacco spice, suede, smoked sage, cloves and a light touch of assorted baking spices. As the wine evolves, additional layers are revealed including coffee grinds, mocha and expresso. Fruity and sweetly fruited, fun and fully ripe, on the palate there are flavors of Santa Rosa plum, dark raspberries, blueberries, cherry pie, boysenberry jam and blackberries. This wine has all the attributes to earn the description of being a ‘crowd favorite’. The tannins are highly polished and linger seamlessly on the finish with a light gravelly character. Dinner at Celadon in downtown Napa is still fresh in the mind from the night before; we would love to try this wine with their Moroccan braised lamb shank.

The 2013 Robinson Family Vineyards Merlot offers a pretty bouquet with some bottle bouquet already showing from its 6 years of age post vintage. There are aromas of blackberry and old cedar box. The palate is highly approachable and very balanced – rich in flavor and ripeness but without heavy tannins. This vintage in particular in Napa Valley, generally produced wines with firm and grippy texture. This bottling is not one of them. Structurally the wine finishes with a supple note with fine-grained well-integrated tannins along with darker dessert spices. The finish is attractive, fruity and long-lasting.

Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2019 Robinson Family Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is medium to deep ruby; the bouquet reveals higher toned and red-fruited aromas with a focus on its fruit core rather than oak. Its scents are of red plum, tart cherry, raspberry, currant and cranberry, with a light accompanying note of dried sage. The palate is as bright as the bouquet with flavors of red cherry, dark raspberry, red plum and currant. The acidity is balanced. Lingers with a subtle note of dried tobacco leaf. The tannins are lightly grainy and are felt more on the front of the palate than the back. This is a very crowd friendly bottling and a versatile wine to pair with a diversity of food.

The 2015 Robinson Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon features an elegant bouquet with aromas of dried rose petal, tobacco leaf, Asian spices and black licorice. Bright aromatics. Slightly savory in its aromatic presentation. Sublime in its texture – this wine is finely balanced between fruit, acidity and tannins. Flavors of cherry, blackberry and chocolate with a polished finish. This is a premium, well-priced to quality ratio Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon made in an approachable style that is quite enjoyable on its own.

Petit Verdot
The 2018 Robinson Family Vineyards Petit Verdot Oakville is 100% varietal; it is dark ruby with purplish tinges on the rim and noticeably opaque in the glass. The bouquet offers plenty of fruit aromatics including dark ripe plum with the skins almost bursting as if the fruit was picked directly from the tree, dark cherry, blackberry jam, mocha, Graham cracker, vanilla and some darker baking spices. Two words quickly come to mind describing this wine: delicious and balanced. But we can use a few more accompanying words – offers flavors of blackberry and espresso. The plush and rounded tannins complement the opulent fruit and are seamlessly integrated into the smooth satisfying finish. This wine is very much ready to drink in its youth.

Great Legs
Wine leaving residue that slides down the glass is often referred to as the “tears” or “legs” – and there are varying opinions in the industry as to the relevance of ‘legs’. Most Napa winemakers we have met with are indifferent to the term legs when referring to wine. One can take the Robinson’s second label called Great Legs at face value or perhaps there is more to the story. Regardless, this wine was created by Carrie, Kim and Robin. This bottling may differ in which varieties are included; in the past it has featured a blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and a Cabernet Franc but may also be 100% varietal. The Great Legs bottlings are priced affordable and styled to be approachable in their youth, I.E., easy drinking, to be opened any day of the week without worrying about the price.

The 2018 Robinson Family Vineyards Great Legs, Cabernet Sauvignon Coombsville is dark ruby in color; this wine is 100% varietal Cabernet Sauvignon. Offers aromas of ripe blackberry, mocha, cocoa powder, espresso and vanilla; if hedonism was a smell, this bouquet would be that smell. Or simply put, it smells like desert in the glass. Offers plenty of flavor across the palate without any youthful textural aggravation, in other words features smooth and rounded tannins. Lingers with a slight bitter chocolate note. This is a wine that is ready to drink young and should be.

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Compared to other sub-appellations there are relatively few physical wineries in the Stags Leap District. The few make up for a lack of numbers with a strong community – especially among the several small family-owned wineries who while focusing on their own brands also strongly support their fellow neighbors. Case in point is annual Vineyard to Vintner (V2V) event every April featuring access to Stags Leap District based wineries and producers (some of whom are not open to the public).

Robinson Family Vineyards is a member of the Napa Valley Vintners and the Napa Valley Grape Growers Association. Select vintages of library wines are available for purchase on site during visits. For more information, to schedule an appointment or to join their wine club (two shipments a year), visit: www.robinsonfamilyvineyards.com

Winery/Tasting Room

Property/Vineyards