Don Chalo Cellars is homage to the Fernandez family's late father, Don Chalo, who immigrated to Napa Valley from Michoacán, Mexico in the 1970s. Michoacan is rich in culture, tradition, and natural beauty—known for its vibrant Day of the Dead celebrations, charming towns, indigenous Purépecha heritage, and diverse landscapes ranging from lakes to mountains. … [Read more...]
Elleary Wine
Elleary Wine was founded by Palo Alto residents, Shawn Karimi and his wife Vivien Wang Karimi with their first vintage produced in 2016. Shawn immigrated to the U.S. at age 16 from his hometown of Abadan, Iran located next to the Iraqi border. His career began as a chiropractor; he has long since been retired from that field and since 2002 operates, … [Read more...]
Solorio Family Wines
Solorio Wines. Winemaker and founder Mario Solorio was born and raised in Michoacan, Mexico. This region is rich in culture, tradition, and natural beauty. It is known for its vibrant Day of the Dead celebrations, it features charming towns, indigenous Purépecha heritage, and diverse landscapes from lakes to mountains. While it is not known for wine grapes, … [Read more...]
Kubani Wines
Kubani Wines was founded by Rajeev B. Parikh with the brand's first vintage in 2022. Kubani is an homage to family; with the word created as a portmanteau from his children's names, Shibani and Kunal. Rajeev's wife once asked him, “You are such an active person — how are you going to handle retirement?” Half jokingly, he suggested opening a wine bar. At … [Read more...]
Silver Oak Cellars
Silver Oak Cellars is a Napa Valley and Sonoma County winery best known for its focus on Cabernet Sauvignon and its distinctive use of American oak barrels, a stylistic choice that helped define its identity among California wines. Founded in 1972 by Ray Duncan and Justin Meyer, both now deceased, this remarkable success story grew from a single‑wine vision … [Read more...]
Robert Mondavi Winery
Robert Mondavi Winery (acquired by Constellation Brands, Inc. in 2004, the same company that also owns 50% of Opus One) is one of Napa Valley's most iconic and visited wineries; it is located on the west side of Highway 29 in Oakville just north of Oakville Cross Road. It is one of the few wineries in the valley that draws people from around the world from a … [Read more...]
Clos Pegase
Clos Pegase is a very contemporary looking winery despite being over 30 years old, is often called the Napa Wine Temple due to its Greek styled architecture and several statues of Bacchus which used to be prominently placed on the grounds. Its design was created by prolific architect Michael Graves (1934-2015). Clos Pegase is located in the northern part of … [Read more...]
Artesa Winery
Artesa Winery is located in the Carneros District of southern Napa Valley; from an architectural point of view this is a very unique winery; the primary building is mostly set within the confines of a small hill rather than located above ground. As a result, it is somewhat difficult to distinguish where the winery ends and where the ground begins. In other … [Read more...]
Grower Spotlight: Thomson Vineyard, Carneros Napa Valley
The Thomson family history in Napa Valley dates back to 1938, when grower and proprietor of Thomson Vineyard, Jennifer Thomson's great-grandmother, Jenny Ophelia Barnum Thomson, and her husband, Matthew Alexander Thomson (Sr.) relocated from Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl. Matthew and his two brothers helped build the Oklahoma City airport before moving west … [Read more...]
Flint Knoll Winery
Flint Knoll was co-founded by proprietors Aaron Meredith Michaelis. Aaron fell in love with wine while working at Chateau Cigar Shop at age 18 in Wichita, Kansas. At the time, Jacob's Wine Store was located next door to the cigar shop. Aaron would walk over and look at their wine selection, his interest piqued by their portfolio of wines from around the … [Read more...]