released their first vintage in 1998; their focus is on white and red Rhone & Spanish varietals and they source from their own vineyards near Clearlake in Lake County and at the base of Howell Mountain in Napa County. This is a winery producing wines from varietals not often seen in the Napa Valley. The founders are Sam Spencer and Wendy Roloson and the … [Read more...]

produced their first vintage of wine in 2000. The owners used to vacation in the Napa Valley and fell in love with the area. Unlike many older folks who have fell under the “allure” of Napa, moved to the area after a previous career and started producing wine in their later years, the owners of Hagen Heights are building a winery when they are in the middle … [Read more...]

(Founded 1991) is an interesting winery in that they are spread out all over. Their home vineyards are located in the prestigious Spring Mountain appellation in Napa. Fife is owned by Dennis Fife; his former partner in the winery is the famed author, Karen MacNeil (author of The Wine Bible). In addition, they lease the Redhead Vineyard in the Redwood Valley … [Read more...]

is run by several mysterious partners – even their winemaker is noted as “phantom” and his/her identity is not revealed. We caught up with Phantom in Pasadena to try their inaugural Lava Rock release. Yes, sometimes we travel far and wide to taste Napa wines! Their Lava Rock is 100% Napa Valley grown red wine from two vineyards both planted in volcanic … [Read more...]

is located off of Highway 29 in the southern part of St. Helena almost right next door to the Flora Springs Tasting Room and just south of the Dean & Deluca shopping center. However, they do not share driveways or parking lots. This is one of the older wine shops in all of Napa Valley having been founded in 1983. This shop is often confused with the St. … [Read more...]

is an anomaly in the Napa Valley winery scene. At the time of this review their focus is entirely on very limited productions of two varietals, each quite different from each other – a Pinot Noir and a Cabernet Sauvignon. This winery is owned and operated by Michael Logan who is also the winemaker. His first vintage was in 2003. These varietals are two of … [Read more...]

was originally founded in 1988 and specializes in Howell Mountain grown vineyards including Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon. What a great name of a winery whose namesake also is the appellation. Howell Mountain sits high above the Napa Valley floor (1400 feet and higher) and is well known for producing high quality Zinfandel’s and Cabernet Sauvignon. Many … [Read more...]

has vineyards located in the hills above the Silverado Trail not far from Darioush and Signorello Wineries. Anselmo “Steve” Simi is the owner – he grew up helping his parents make their home wine. He looked in the Napa area for over 10 years before he found this ideal location to grow Cabernet Sauvignon. The land was site of an existing vineyard planted in … [Read more...]

is owned by Jim Paras and contains 22 acres that he purchased in 1990. It is located on the hillsides of Mt. Veeder just off the road that leads to Mayacamas winery. Jim founded Jade Mountain winery in 1988; this label has since been sold. This is a unique piece of property in that Jim searched for a number of years for one piece of property that could … [Read more...]