Elyse Winery

Elyse Winery specializes primarily in vineyard designate red wines. Founder and original winemaker Ray Coursen is a self-taught vintner who grew up on a farm in rural New Jersey. Ray has lived a diverse life including spending two years in Vietnam during the Vietnam War, traveling the world for a year visiting Europe and Africa and working at Bauer Wine and Spirits, a fine wine shop in Boston that was founded in 1960 focusing on both European and domestic wines. We visited this shop with the sole purpose to see where Ray worked for a period of time (see our photos at the end of this review).

One day he and his wife Nancy packed everything up and headed to California to learn the winemaking business. Other than taking some very short courses, Ray has learned his winemaking skills by doing – on the job. He worked one harvest picking grapes and digging ditches at Mt. Eden Vineyards in Saratoga and then picked up invaluable viticultural knowledge by working for a local vineyard management company.

Ray’s next job was as a tasting room staff at Whitehall Lane Winery. Not always the most common path to become a winemaker but not the first. Fortunately, his passion for making wine was quickly evident and he did not work in the tasting room for very long. He was moved to the cellar where he learned wine making skills and eventually became head winemaker for Whitehall Lane Winery.

After 10 years of renting space at other wineries to make the Elyse wines, Ray purchased land and a winery in 1997 (today home of Elyse Winery). The space was previously owned by Bernard Pradel Cellars, founded 1983 by Frenchman and former restauranteur Bernard Pradel (although his wines were not being produced on this property). Some of his wines were poured at several of Wolfgang Puck’s restaurants in the 1980s and in 1989 The Wine Spectator listed his 1985 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (from purchased fruit) on their top 100 wines list of the year. The site was also previously used as a kennel for German Shepherds and a paddock for stabling horses.

A number of improvements to the infrastructure on site have been made over the years – the tasting room adjoins what was a horse barn and the guest cottage used to be a chicken coop. Elyse is named after Ray and Nancy’s daughter who was born in 1986. They later had a son Jake who while in 4th grade began complaining that he did not have a wine label named after himself … so Ray produced a second wine label called Jacob Franklin; for many years these wines were also available in the tasting room. Only in wine country…right? Jake Coursen continues to produce Jacob Franklin wines under he and Ray’s ownership and is no longer affiliated with Elyse Winery.

Their wines are not cookie cutter; the wines in general that we have tried over the years have been about the fruit, not about the oak characteristics. The wines show a bit more polish and are ‘riper’ since the transition in ownership and winemaking.

Despite being well-established, wine enthusiasts visiting the valley often will never hear of Elyse even though the winery is located only 1/2 mile west of Highway 29 on Hoffman Lane and is an easy 30 second drive from the highway. Elyse has quietly been making excellent wines for many years and perhaps has preferred to remain under the radar.

In early fall 2018, Ray and Nancy sold Elyse to Napa wine veteran, Josh Peeples and his business partner, Cheryl Foil. A dinner at Redd (permanently closed in 2018) in Yountville between Josh and Ray led to Ray’s decision to sell the winery. We originally met Josh when he was working at Chateau Boswell; he is originally from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. After graduating from the College of Charleston he took a trip to California. He spent some time working for a startup software company during the dot com boom and would visit Napa Valley on the weekends eventually moving to the valley and directing sales and marking for several luxury wine brands.

During his long time in the valley, he has met numerous winemakers including Russell Bevan who he works with on several wine projects.

Cheryl is a computer engineer with a degree from William & Mary and is a principal at Kiddar Capital, a global asset management firm.

As of our latest update to this review, Elyse produces a remarkable variety of premium wines – during our first visit many years ago, 27 different wines were listed on their price list – in more recent years, the number of wines produced here has been reduced. Regardless of production, all of their wines are priced extremely well for Napa Valley standards – even their premium reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (which is not made every year). Some nearly 18,000 cases were being produced at the peak of their production; today they produce around 7,000 cases annually.

Several other brands produce their wines here as part of the HQ Collection (a collective) and Josh is a partner in several of these brands. Since the change in ownership, Josh has moved the winemaking for these brands on site and potentially will be renaming Elyse Winery to The Institution. The Elyse wines continue to be produced on site. Wines from these brands are also tasted on site by appointment.

As of our latest update to this review, in addition to Elyse, the other two brands available for tasting here under the HQ Collection are: Addax (named after a type of antelope) and Institution, a Napa Valley Cabernet with a pair of scissors as their brand image paying homage to when Ray Coursen locked up the Elyse cellar simply by sticking a pair of scissors through the door latch. One of their three bottle offerings is in a wooden box, also latched with a pair of scissors). Other brands used to also be associated with this winery including Standard Deviation (Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc), Morgado and Kobus (mostly Pinot Noir). Some of these brands produce non-Napa Valley wines.

Not setup to take large groups, tastings are typically hosted at a tiny bar in a cozy, clean and uncluttered room (which hasn’t changed much in the 15+ years since we started visiting Elyse), in a separate side room or weather permitting, outside. A private lounge space is also available for members. A tasting here is about the wine, but at the same time is relaxed curated by friendly and very knowledgeable staff.

A typical tasting includes 5 different wines although this can certainly quickly grow to a much larger selection based on interests of guests. Several of their wines feature extremely unique blends as well as rare varieties not often produced by Napa Valley based wineries. In order to acquire these varieties, they source from various locations in California including neighboring Sonoma County and the Sierra foothills. But most of their vineyard sources are from premium vineyards in the Napa Valley including from their own tiny 1.5 acres next to the winery, planted entirely to Cabernet Sauvignon.

Select Wines
Zinfandel
Elyse makes several different Zinfandels and has done so for many years; Zinfandel is one of the varieties they are most known for. Not many small Napa Valley based producers produce, bottle and label a wine as a White Zinfandel. Elyse produces this wine from Rutherford. The 2021 Elyse White Zinfandel was fermented entirely from free run juice. This wine is medium to deep salmon in color; it has no issue with lightness of color. The bouquet reveals aromatics of wild strawberry (the white kind that never really shows much color), cherry pie, ruby grapefruit and subtle notes of lemon/lime. It offers rich and concentrated flavors of strawberry, black raspberry and watermelon along with a light spice note. A hint of sweetness shows among the flavors which is balanced nicely by its acidity. This wine offers a creamy and supple texture from the entry through to the finish.

One of our favorite Elyse Zinfandel bottlings is from the Morisoli Vineyard. This was also the vineyard that Ray originally began Elyse with in as his first vintage in 1987 (merely several hundred cases of Zinfandel at that time).

Until more recently, Elyse had almost exclusive access to the oldest vines in the Morisoli Vineyard – the approximately 100-year-old Zinfandel. Because the vines are so old, there is also a small percentage of other red varieties in this wine. Ray and Nancy used to live in a guest house at this vineyard and over the years became very attuned to the site’s nuances including noticing that when a single Black Muscat vine ripened, it was time to harvest the old-vine Zinfandel.

The 2019 Elyse Morisoli Vineyard Zinfandel is dark ruby in color, the sweetly fruited bouquet shows aromas of boysenberry and blackberry, but there’s also a darker more brooding character to the aromatics, including mushroom, truffle, and some darker spices. As the wine opens it evolves to some notes of chocolate. The palate offers notes of licorice, cherry and a perceived fruit sweetness along with some baking spices including clove and vanilla. The tannins show a light dry and chalky texture anchoring the long and fruit-filled finish.

The 1996 Elyse Morisoli Vineyard Zinfandel. We tasted this wine 28 years post vintage; medium garnet in color, at this age it shows some noticeable brickish colors in the glass. The bouquet offers a diversity of tertiary aromas including caramel, burnt toffee, vanilla and assorted brown baking spices. And dried fruits including cherry, cranberry and raspberry along with a scent of fruit roll up candy. There are also hints of red licorice, tobacco and old library book. The fruit while muted by age, is still there. It includes raspberry, dried figs, dried cherry, light baking spices and like the bouquet, a flavor similar to fruit rollup candy. Its alcohol is only 12.9%; we would venture a guess that the palate featured primarily higher toned red fruited flavors in its youth. The acidity is bright. The finish lingers savory, with a light herbal note (tea leaf), soft and seamlessly integrated tannins accompanied by a light dusty/drying character.

The 2019 Elyse Korte Ranch Zinfandel is dark ruby in color; the aromatics are initially a bit brooding, including notes of forest floor and mushroom along with plum, and a hint of wood spice. But let this wine continue to evolve in the glass and it will reveal a nice union of both darker fruits, dessert spices and chocolate. This is a fairly robust Zinfandel, but still very balanced. One might call it a crowd pleaser. One can feel the tannins on the darker spice filled finish.

The 2006 Elyse Korte Ranch Vineyard (sourced from vines around 80 years of age) is a leaner style Zinfandel with notes of white pepper on the bouquet some of which shows on the palate. This wine displays a freshness and a liveliness that one does not always associate with wine made from this variety grown in warm California conditions.

It is interesting to note that despite 13 years between tasting Elyse bottlings from the Korte Ranch Vineyard, both vintages showed very similar darker spice driven characteristics.

The 2019 Elyse Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel is noticeably dark in color with a Garnet/purple hue on the rim of the glass. The bouquet is sweet and ripe and includes scents of blackberry, boysenberry, a jam-like note and brown sugar, almost like crème Brulé. Simply put, it smells like dessert. The opulent aromatics continue onto the palate which is equally as opulent showcasing an intensity and a noticeable richness. The tannins are dense, with a light gravelly texture, and linger with for quite some time.

Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2019 Elyse Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon was sourced from several vineyard including from Tench (neighboring vineyard to the north next to Screaming Eagle). In terms of color, this wine is ‘darkness in the glass’ and is opaque; the aromatics include dark cherry and ripe plum, blackberry and boysenberry along with mocha and chocolate. This is a juicy, big, opulent and flamboyant wine without the heavy-handed influence of robust tannins. Rather its texture rolls over the palate lingering with notes of tobacco spice.

The 2013 Elyse Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon offers an intriguing menthol sweetness of aromatics with ripe blackberry and notes of a chocolate brownie and as the wine opens further – espresso and mocha. Quite layered on the palate, there is a noticeable density of fruit from start to finish. There is plenty of weight but without robust structure with tannins still showing plenty of grip but not in a coarse way. 2013 was the first year that Elyse produced a Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. This vintage was aged in 80% new French oak and spent 3 years in barrel before being bottled.

Elyse used to produce port-style wines. These age remarkably well based on personal experience; some of the oldest of these wines we have tried have been nearly 20 years old. Regardless of vintage, they are always intensely flavored but without being heavy or too sweet.

Whites
Each year, Elyse produces L’Ingenue, a Rhône inspired white wine that historically has been a blend of Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier and Grenache Blanc. This is the only white wine Elyse produces, although in the past they produced an off-dry white called La Peche.

The 2022 Elyse L’Ingenue White Wine, Sonoma County (Bennett Valley). This is the first year L’Ingenue has been 100% varietal Viognier. This wine is medium gold in color; this highly aromatic and generous bouquet smells richly fruited, with scents of apricot, yellow peaches, yellow nectarines, Alphonse mango, ripe papaya, honeycomb, juice from yellow apples and apple skin. And classic floral Viognier aromatics including honeysuckle and jasmine. Deeper in the bouquet are notes of ginger, and a waxy character, perhaps that of beeswax. As the wine evolves it expresses a note of vanilla. Ripe and intensely flavored, this wine tastes like apricot, yellow peach, Crane melons – a Sonoma County favorite in the fall, Cantaloupe, ginger, pineapple, baked apples, mango and a refreshing lifted note of mandarin orange. Its texture features a rounded and silky like character, supported by a fresh backbone from its bright acidity. The finish persists with loads of flavor, and doesn’t immediately drop off. In terms of a pairing, this wine can hold up to a variety of spices and flavors; we are thinking Thai food, perhaps a recipe of lightly seared Thai chili scallops.

The 2020 Elyse L’Ingenue White Wine, California is deep gold in color; its aromatics are ripe fruited with loads of contributions from its barrel aging. This wine smells like dessert with notes of apricot jam, caramelized sugars including that of creme Brule, a prominent hit of honey and vanilla, butterscotch, orange marmalade, baked apples, pineapple upside down cake, our favorite dessert every celebration of one year around the sun, assorted baking spices, butter and hazelnut. While smelling this wine in the middle of summer, our thoughts turned to cabins, winter time, snow on the ground and being cuddled up with your favorite squeeze on a couch in front of a roaring fire. Equally as ripe, rich and intense on the palate as on the bouquet, this wine tastes like honeycomb, apricot, yellow peaches, ripe papaya, mango, cantaloupe, baked yellow apples, melting butter, vanilla wafer and lasting nutty characteristics including of toasted almond and hazelnut. Its texture is fleshy, oily and silky, like running one’s fingers across a thick cashmere sweater. For reference, we tasted this 5 years post vintage. At this age, this is a completely different expression of L’Ingenue than the 2022 vintage.

Josh was associated with Napa Cider Company, a local producer of wine-infused hard cider. We tried their Dry Hard Cider offering blended with Chardonnay. This cider is deep gold in color; it smells fresh. This cider showcases a smooth texture and flavors of apple (obviously!), lemon and lime. The finish is clean and drops off quickly. Napa Cider was sold by the bottle and by the keg.

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Ray is a Vietnam War veteran and was the founding winemaker for Purple Heart Wines beginning with their inaugural vintage in 2013. As of 2017 Ray is no longer winemaker here although these wines continue to be produced. General proceeds from the sales of the wines are donated to the Purple Heart Foundation an organization that works to secure benefits for veterans including service dogs, education opportunities, helping with brain injury recovery and other war injuries.

The wines are primarily sold direct to consumer although they do have limited distribution to restaurants and fine wine shops. For more information or to join the Elyse mailing list or wine club (with 6, 12 or red only options), visit: www.elysewinery.com.

Winery + Tasting Room

Bauer Wine + Spirits, Boston (where Ray used to work)