Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards is located towards the top of Diamond Mountain Road in the Diamond Mountain District and features some of the best views in the entire northern part of Napa Valley. This site is a vineyard only as there is no winery located here – rather the wines are made at a small family-owned winery in the southern part of the valley. The vineyard and brand were founded by vintner and retired lawyer, Peter Thompson (no relation to Peter Thompson Wines in Penola, South Australia). Peter is one of the hardest working vintners in all of Napa Valley.
The name of the winery comes from the first names of Peter’s two sons, Andrew and Geoffrey. Following in his father’s footsteps, Andrew is a lawyer in the San Diego area and Geoffrey studied at the Culinary Institute of America and is an accomplished chef who spent a number of years working in Chicago.
When Andrew was around 9 years old while in school, he created a rough image of the initials AGV. Peter brought this to his label designer Tony Austin who stylized it; this is on the front of every Andrew Geoffrey bottle of wine. Geoffrey was several years younger at the time and wanted his own design on the bottle. One day after tracing a large image of a grape at school, he approached his father and asked if this image could be put on the bottle. So, Peter went back to Tony who was anticipating this might happen, Tony resized the image and this appears on the back label of all their wines.
The 66-acre site (16.5-acre vineyard) sits at almost 2000 feet and usually receives a light dusting of snow each year. One year there was enough snow to take sleds down the hill in between the vine rows. Peter has held a coveted permit to plant more vines on his property for many years and did so in mid 2021. This additional acreage was planted to clone 169 Cabernet Sauvignon. In addition to grapes from the property used for his own wines, Peter also sells grapes to several premium Napa Valley based wineries and has sold or is selling to notables such as Jackson Family Estates (Cardinale and Lokoya brands), Haber Family Vineyards and Gamble Family Vineyards.
The vineyard used to be accessed via a well cleared trail through chaparral. The short trail ended at a deck which afforded one 180-degree spectacular views of the Napa Valley and nearby mountains including the tallest, Mt. St. Helena. In 2020 the Glass Fire severely burned through the Diamond Mountain District including through Peter’s property and incinerated the deck. Another deck similar in size (approximately 1,000 square feet) has since been rebuilt, slightly above the site of the original deck (which is now planted to grapevines). Nearby vineyard neighbors including Checkerboard Vineyards and Seaver Vineyards.
Peter first fell in love with the Napa Valley while attending college at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. During a trip north in the early 1970s to attend a USC Stanford football game, his friends took him to Napa Valley for some wine tasting. He remembers visiting all six wineries along Highway 29 but wasn’t able to visit Christian Brothers in the old Greystone Winery building because his visit was on a Sunday, and they were closed. Knowing next to nothing about wine he soon became hooked by the industry. His career was non-wine related (other than an educated consumer of wines) until 1999 when he retired from law in San Diego.
During the early 1990s he spent 2.5 years looking for a prime piece of hillside Napa Valley property before settling on the totally undeveloped brush covered land on some of the highest and most rugged slopes of the Diamond Mountain Appellation. He purchased this site in 1995. He remembers first visiting the property – parking his vehicle because he could drive no further and walking down a brush-covered fire road. He was able to see glimpses of the valley far below through all the trees but had no idea of the spectacular views from here until he actually cleared the land for the vineyard. Peter purchased this property from the Bechtel family (reference Bechtel Corporation); the Bechtel’s originally owned a much larger piece of land but subdivided it into smaller parcels.
Peter was also part of the four core individuals that founded the Diamond Mountain District in 2001 including Rudy von Strasser, Norm Kiken and Al Bronstein. The AVA starts at 400 feet in elevation and covers up to the Sonoma County line at the top of the Mayacamas mountains. The total AVA is 5,000 acres.
And the site has numerous exposures ranging from north and south facing to vines planted in a westerly direction (unusual in the fact that the slopes on Diamond Mountain typically face east.
In addition to law, Peter’s background is also in geology having worked a year for an oil company. The vineyard is composed primarily of volcanic ash (hence the whiteness of the rock in the vineyard) along with tuff and tufa. One can almost call this site a moonscape. The volcanic ash has a chalk-like very fine texture and when dry and the wind blows, it quickly becomes airborne. As a result of the soil composition, the vineyard is extremely well drained. There is absolutely no shortage of rocks on the property; this is among some of the rockiest vineyard sites that we have visited in Napa Valley.
An existing well was on the property when Peter purchased the site, but it was not a very productive well. So, Peter had another well drilled. He hired Laurie Wood, grape grower and water witcher to walk the property. Peter recalls the original well was closed off and then covered with topsoil; Laurie walked right over it in his search for water and mentioned something like, “there is water here but let’s see if we can find more.” He chose a spot to drill and hired Huckfeldt Well Drilling (for several years this family produced their own wine brand, Igneous Wines). After reaching 500 feet Peter called Laurie and asked where the water was; Laurie said to keep drilling. Peter kept calling Laurie every subsequent one hundred feet but still no water. Finally, they reached 850 feet, found a layer of sand, drilled through that and reached an aquifer which was so strong that water blew some 60 feet into the air.
Each part of the vineyard was carefully planted based on soil type in relation to which varieties and rootstocks would grow best. The vineyard is predominately planted to Cabernet Sauvignon (78%) with smaller plantings of other red varieties including Cabernet Franc (18%) and Petit Verdot (4%).
Three individual clones of Cabernet Sauvignon are planted and during wine making, each clone is treated separately. As a result, the individual clones are fermented and aged apart from each other; this gives Peter’s consulting winemaker (John Gibson) additional options when crafting the final blend. For instance, if there is a block of the vineyard that isn’t up to their quality standards, it will be left out of the final blend.
Peter first met John at a joint wine event hosted by the Napa Valley Vintners and the Napa Grapegrowers at Vine Cliff Winery in the mid 1990s. John remembers Peter telling him that he had just purchased a sizable piece of land on Diamond Mountain that was completely forested and Peter asking him if he could offer insights on how to develop this raw land to a vineyard. John had no experience developing forested land to a vineyard but knew someone who did. John introduced Peter to Rex Geitner, who was vineyard manager for Warren Winiarski at the time at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. Rex had also worked with vineyards on Diamond Mountain including Diamond Creek and Sterling Vineyard’s property.
Select Wines
Whites
Chardonnay
Andrew Geoffrey produced their first white wine in 2022, a Chardonnay from a premium vineyard on the Napa Valley side of Carneros. These non estate wines are bottled under the label, Ascent.
The 2024 Andrew Geoffrey Ascent Chardonnay is medium golden in color; the bouquet smells restrained but lifted and bright, completely sans of the oaky and butter characteristics that California Chardonnay’s are often associate with. This wine smells fruity – like honeydew melon, pineapple, lychee honeysuckle, peach blossom, golden apples and comise pear. And as it opens, a light note of vanilla and butterscotch. The palate is superbly balanced with both stone fruited and tropical flavors including white nectarine, Golden delicious apples, lychee, white peach and pomelo. Finishes bright with a lovely freshness due to the lively vein of acidity. The mouthfeel is lightly rounded, and buoyed nicely by its persistent freshness. Refreshing. This is not an overtly cellar manipulated expression of the variety.
Typically only one wine is produced each year – a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is always predominately Cabernet Sauvignon but is typically blended slightly with several of the other varieties growing in the vineyard, depending on the vintage. Single 100% varietal bottlings of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot are only available to club members as these are usually produced in quantities of only 25-50 cases each vintage and are not made every year.
The estate Andrew Geoffrey wines are always fresh, regardless of vintage – a testament to the vineyard and its elevated location. They are balanced bottlings that straddle approachability in their youth but always built to be very age-worthy – and they have the history to prove that.
Cabernet Franc
The 2022 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Franc is particularly impressive this vintage. This wine is deep ruby in color; this is a fully ripe expression of the variety, with aromas of red cherry, dark raspberry, red plums, blueberry and boysenberry. Persists with a light note of toast from the oak, but is well in the background. Fresh and filled with lots of movement, this energetic expression sports red fruits of cherry, currant, boysenberry, raspberry and Persian mulberry. Finishes spicy, savory and juicy with a densely packed but not edgy tannins. Rather their texture is lightly grainy and gravelly – persisting beyond the fruit on the finish with a drying character.
The 2016 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Franc offers an elegant, riper bouquet with aromas of dark cherry, black currant, a hint of mocha, old cedar and tobacco leaf. The cedar and tobacco notes add a savory dimension to the ripe fruit, with the mocha providing a subtle sweeter accent. I’m not sure we could pick this out as a Cabernet Franc from a lineup of Cabernet Sauvignon. Well layered across the palate, this wine shows more dark fruits than red fruits, including plum and blackberry. Its depth of flavor carries into a somewhat savory finish with tighter, drying tannins which linger for some time, along with notes of cracked peppercorn. The fruit persists alongside the tannins, while good acidity keeps the palate lively. And while certainly a bigger showing of this variety, both in flavor and alcohol, it is still nicely balanced.
In 2016 Peter made a very limited production wine from the only two rows that wrap around the entire vineyard footprint on his property.
Cabernet Sauvignon
The current release Cabernet Sauvignon tends to receive a bit more age than many wineries’ current releases. Unlike wineries that are sold out of library wines, Peter holds back some of his older vintages and refreshingly, they are available at the same price as his current releases.
The 2022 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Petit Verdot. We tried this wine four years post vintage, soon after it was released. This wine is medium to deep ruby; lifted, lively and red fruited, this is not an overly ripe expression from a particular hot year. And some mountain garrigue. And mocha as the wine opens further. On the palate there are flavors of cherry, boysenberry, dark raspberry, dark plum and a finishing savory edge including a union of sage, tobacco – finishing red fruits and lively acidity. The tannins are grainy and gravelly and still youthful. Both texture, flavor and acidity persist in tandem on the extended finish. This particular bottling expresses the freshness of the vineyard quite well – especially during such a challenging year. Age worthy? Absolutely. Not a common descriptor we used for this vintage.
The 2020 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is 100% varietal clone 15 Cabernet Sauvignon. Approximately only 15% of the vineyard was harvested this year, prior to the Glass Fire. And only Cabernet Sauvignon was harvested this year, which is why this wine is 100% varietal. The grapes were harvested the third week of September. The bouquet is ripe, yet also brightly lit and red fruited, with aromas of raspberry jam, boysenberry spread, blackberry pie and plum compote. And a note of chocolate and cocoa powder as the wine evolves. Easy drinking, red fruited this wine tastes like raspberry, Santa Rosa plum, currant and red mulberry. Texturally, this wine is very approachable with tannins that are well-tumbled and persist with a gentle drying tug. Finishes with plenty of movement due to the energetic acidity. This wine is one of the best examples of what was a great vintage until the valley filled with smoke.
The 2019 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is deep ruby; the first aromatic showing on this bouquet at 7 years post vintage is of cherry, along with Santa Rosa plum, boysenberry, currant, red mulberry and dried rose petals. The fruit is front and center stage here, bright and lifted. The initial aromatics smell like walking into an old wine cellar/cave; as the wine opens, the fruit becomes more expressive. Well layered across the palate with plenty of flavor and textural depth, this wine tastes both red and dark fruited with flavors of cherry, plum, boysenberry, Persian mulberry and a finishing note of dried tobacco leaf. Lingers with notes of smoked mountain sage and dried bay leaf. Fresh, built upon the back of a lively vein of acidity. The tannins are lightly grainy with a persistent gravelly and dusty texture. The grapes were harvested the first week in October. Still plenty of life ahead of this beauty.
The 2018 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc. This wine is deep ruby in color; aromatically a riper expression than the 2017 vintage, this wine smells like raspberry jam, plum compote, dark fig, blackberry pie and boysenberry spread. The oak lets the fruit do most of the conversing here, comfortably seated in the back seat. Balanced beautifully at 8 years post vintage, between flavor, acidity and texture. Primarily red fruited, this wine tastes like raspberry, Santa Rosa plum, boysenberry, blueberry and Persian mulberry. Finishes fresh, savory and spicy with flavors of smoked cedar, dried sage, dried bay leaf and a ferrous/minerally character. The tannins are gravelly, persisting in tandem with the fruit with neither one pulling away anytime soon. This wine has lots of life ahead of it with the proper aging.
The 2017 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc. This wine is deep ruby and nearly opaque; shows some bottle bouquet at 9 years post vintage, this wine is a union of mature but still bright red fruits and accompanying non-fruited spices. Its scents include dark raspberry, Santa Plum, blackberry, old cedar, dried sage and pipe tobacco. Like the bouquet, the palate is also red fruited with a spicy and savory finishing edge. This wine tastes like raspberry, red plums, cherry, not fully ripe boysenberry and currant. Lingers with notes of dried tobacco leaf, dried bay leaf, smoked cedar and smoked sage. The tannins are still very much present, but are expressed with a tumbled and gravelly feel. Its lightly drying presence eventually outpaces the fruit on the finish. Still very much fresh with plenty of live and movement from the bright acidity.
The 2014 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is dark garnet in the glass; it reveals dark fruit aromatics including blackberry. The bouquet also shows notes of saddle leather, bacon fat, truffle oil, black licorice and spices including cardamom and clove, but the aromatics are primarily about the gorgeous fruit. The aromatics are a slight bit savory, with the leather, earthy and spice notes adding complexity around its darkly fruited core. Offers plenty of depth and layers on the palate, with a concentration of flavor that carries through the finish. The tannins are more tightly woven than those of the 2012, reflecting this wine’s younger age at the time of tasting, but still show that classic Andrew Geoffrey structure: fine-grained with density and slightly chewy on the finish. Their persistent grip adds a textural dimension without overshadowing the wine’s depth of fruit.
The 2012 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon. Dark red in color offers both an opulent and an elegant bouquet with aromas of blackberry jam and ripe black cherry complemented nicely by hints of vanilla. There is a sweetness to the fruit aromatics but not an over-ripeness. Also, darker sweet desert spices and additional redolent aromas of old cedar box. On the palate shows darker fruit notes including plum and blueberry. A fine showing of polished and chalky tannins runs the profile of the palate – structurally, shows a noticeable density of tannin which lingers on a very long finish along with notes of cedar and dark spice. This is a very balanced offering.
Because of the elevation of the site, the vineyard has less temperature variation than lower elevation sites and the vines are typically above the valley fog. This was ideal during the cooler and wetter 2011 vintage in particular, when unusually cooler temperatures and an abundance of fog blanketed the valley and the lower slopes. Peter recalls critics had already released their negative reviews of the 2011 vintage even prior to harvesting his own grapes! For the record, 2011 was an excellent vintage for Andrew Geoffrey.
The 2011 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon offers a very distinctive bouquet that hints at the vintage, showing slightly different aromatics than the other Andrew Geoffrey wines. It still reveals a sweetness of fruit on the nose that a number of the older vintages also display, but with slight pyrazine notes which complement rather than detract from the bouquet. These include aromas of rose stems, jalapeño pepper and a dust note, adding an appealing herbal and earthy dimension alongside the fruit. Offers lovely mouthwatering flavors across the palate, with a freshness that carries through the finish. Lingers with fine-grained, dusty, almost chalk-like tannins, their texture providing a persistent but measured grip. The brightness of fruit and distinctive tannin character work nicely together. This is clearly one of the nicer 2011s we have tried over the years.
The 2008 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (tasted 12 years post vintage date) is dark ruby in the glass. The bouquet offers aromas of sweet red and black licorice, tea leaf, dark olive, old saddle leather and some trailing dessert spice aromatics including mocha, clove and cardamom. The savory and sweeter notes form an appealing contrast, adding layers of complexity. The entry is plush with flavors of blackberry and plum, and that initial softness carries across the palate before the structure becomes more apparent. The tannins are medium-bodied, abundant and dense but not coarse texturally, offering plenty of presence without a rough edge. Sports a slightly earthy, darker finish with notes of white pepper, with the fruit lingering alongside the savory nuances and persistent tannins.
The 2007 Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (tasted 13 years post vintage date) is noticeable dark ruby in the glass. This wine has held its color very well over the years. Offers ripe plum aromatics and a fruit sweetness throughout the bouquet including black licorice. Also features a ripe sweet very ripe plum note to the aromas that we have sometimes enjoyed in 100% varietal Syrah. Just a hint of dried tobacco leaf. Shows some similar desert spice notes as the 2008 vintage. Offers a noticeable richness of fruit across the palate, complemented by a mouthwatering brightness. This wine is well-layered. Lingers with medium bodied (yet dense in feel), dusty and earthy tannins which persist for quite some time. Still lots of life ahead of this big boy.
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Peter often takes the Andrew Geoffrey wines on the road to select locations across the country and sometimes internationally, hosting intimate winemaker lunches or dinners at restaurants or people’s homes. He is a talented chef; we had a peak at his menu and the entrees are sure to make one’s mouth water including the Gran Padano Italian cheese, a special sausage he sources from a premium purveyor in San Francisco, a dry rubbed Chateaubriand and a delicious arugula salad (the recipe created by his son Geoffrey).
Peter also hosts special wine, food and travel cruises focusing on specific regions within Europe. These are small river cruises – the focus of the wines on board are select vintages of Andrew Geoffrey. Guests also can choose to accompany Peter on pre and post trips either before or after the river cruise.
With very few exceptions, the wines are not distributed and are only sold direct. A limited number of large format bottles are available. And Peter crafts a limited number of private-label wines for a client. For more information or to join the mailing list, visit: www.andrewgeoffrey.com
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