GRATUS Vineyards was founded by Thomas and Victoria Wargovich. Thomas is originally from Pennsylvania and Victoria is from Virginia; both met on a blind date through Victoria’s sister who worked in Thomas’ medical office. Each has left prior careers, Thomas as a cardiac surgeon (along with teaching at the University of Florida for 10 years) and Victoria in mortgage banking. As a small producer, they are actively involved in all operations of their business; Thomas helps oversee their vineyards and Victoria handles their sales and marketing.
Thomas first came to Napa Valley in the 1990s as part of a group attending a medical conference in San Francisco. Taking a day off from the conference the doctors came up to the Napa Valley for wine tasting. This was in the summer and Thomas remembers enjoying the moderate temperatures coupled with the lack of humidity. He was living in Florida at the time; summers in that state can be highly miserable with its high humidity and mosquitoes (we camped out in the Everglades, tent-less one July – not something we will ever repeat).
Looking to move to Napa Valley – Thomas had his eye on working at St. Helena hospital. He liked the feel of the remoteness of Pope Valley and the relatively short drive to St. Helena Hospital: in 2001 he purchased 27 acres (although ultimately, he never worked at the hospital). When he acquired the land, it was still pasture fields – prior owners had put in a small pond for cattle, no one was living on site and the property had never been planted to vineyards. The surrounding land is a mix of oaks and grassland along with what is arguably the most famous vineyard in Pope Valley, the Juliana Vineyard (owned by the Terlato family from Chicago).
This is a quieter part of the Napa Valley that few first-time tourists to the region ever see – a part of the county that is certainly worth seeking out. It is rural with few wineries and a nice balance of natural landscape and vineyards. It is more likely you will hear birds rather than the noises of passing vehicles.
Thomas realized he had a passion for the natural world as a child. His undergraduate degree was in Botany/Biology from West Virginia University. The transformation of the property is rather remarkable in such relatively short time. Today over 1000 (often unique and rare) trees are planted on the property including some 300 specifies of conifers and over 50 species of oak. Thomas is quick to point that that there are only 30 native conifer species growing in California. Some of the trees are listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) critically endangered species list. One such tree is the Wollemi Pine – less then 100 adult trees are known to exist on the planet.
Wanting to learn more about vineyard management and wine making (coupled with the fact that it took nearly 5 years to secure the required permits to plant the vineyard), Thomas enrolled at Napa Valley College and completed their two-year program with courses in both viticulture and enology. He also worked for GeoVit a small Napa based vineyard management and irrigation services company. One day he spotted a flyer on a bulletin board at Napa College advertising an internship at a winery on Howell Mountain. He called the number and spoke to winemaker Sean Capiaux at O’Shaughnessy Estate. His 34-page Curriculum Vitae, despite no winery experience must have made an impression; Sean soon hired Thomas as his 50-year-old intern.
Thomas planted a large portion of the vineyard himself; today the vines are managed by Eric Dodd of St. Helena based Wight Vineyard Management. The vineyard is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Petite Sirah and a tiny block of Cabernet Franc and several white Rhône varieties.
It was through his time working at O’Shaughnessy that Sean introduced Thomas and Victoria to winemaker Robbie Meyer, co-owner of Peirson Meyer Wines and longtime consulting winemaker to a number of premium, often Napa based producers. Robbie has made their wine since the inaugural vintage of 2012.
When deciding to plant white varieties, the common consensus among friends and neighbors was to plant Sauvignon Blanc especially since Pope Valley has developed a reputation for growing this variety. Refreshingly, they opted to plant Rhône white varieties including Grenache Blanc, Marsanne Blanc, Picpoul Blanc, Roussanne and Viognier. Thomas points out how fast trees grow on the property – so do the grapevines; fruit from the white varieties was harvested only after the second leaf, and a tiny production of the inaugural estate white wine blend was produced from the 2016 vintage.
Select Wines
Whites/Rosé
The Gratus rosé features an image of a woman sitting in a cafe in Paris looking posh and sophisticated while enjoying a glass of wine. The woman is Victoria. She also chose the name for this wine as L’ovey is a term of endearment that she often calls Thomas. Its varieties, percentages in the blend and vineyard locations have changed over the years.
The 2023 GRATUS Vineyards Rosé, California is made from Pinot Noir. This wine is deep salmon in color; the bouquet is well-layered including scents of cran-apple, blood orange, white grapefruit, pomelo, raspberry, wild strawberries (reminding us of picking these tiny super red fruits in our youth), red cherry, citrus blossom, green guava and rose petals. As the wine evolves, it opens to a note of vanilla. Minerally. Bright. Layers of citrus expressed. On the palate there are flavors of raspberry, watermelon, strawberry, ripe loquat, mandarin, cranberry (without the bitterness commonly associated with that fruit), pomegranate, ruby grapefruit and a lingering note of dill. Its fleshy and rounded mouth feel offers a noticeable weight, but this is carried easily by it bright acidity. Balanced. We would love to pair this with fresh ceviche, a cuisine we have fond memories of enjoying our many trips to coastal Peru over the years.
The 2016 GRATUS Vineyards Rosé is predominately Cabernet Sauvignon with a small amount of Malbec. The wine was created by Saignée, a process of producing a lighter style wine where a portion of the juice is removed prior to the primary fermentation of the red wine and allowed to ferment separately. Or in industry speak, bled off. This vintage is dark salmon color in the glass with succinct aromas of strawberry, raspberry and dried rose petal. Rounded and clean, on the palate there are flavors of strawberry and raspberry. Minerally. This wine drinks very easily by itself; it is refreshing where one sip quickly begs another and before you know it, the bottle is empty.
The 2023 GRATUS Vineyards Estate Napa Valley Rhône White Wine is a blend of Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier, and Picpoul Blanc. This wine is medium to deep gold in color; bright, lively, tangy and sporting loads of aromatic lift and depth, its scents include honeysuckle, honeycomb, star jasmine, quince, golden apples, pineapple guava, a light bruised apple character, lemon zest, sea spray, and lemon verbena. On the palate there are flavors of apricot, honeycomb, yellow nectarine, peaches, golden kiwi, honey crisp apple, pineapple and Asian pear. Superbly balanced from the entry through the finish, this wine features a creamy and silky mouth feel with a slippery texture; it sports some weight but is not heavy. Fully ripe. The finish persists with a present phenolic grip, lingering with a light tug of texture and a drying character. 13.8% ABV.
The 2017 GRATUS Vineyards Estate Rhône White Blend was fermented partly using indigenous yeast (non-inoculated) and partly with commercial wine yeast. It was aged sur lie in neutral barrel. This wine is medium golden in the glass; aromatically pretty it reveals floral aromas including notes of honeysuckle (showing even more as the wine has time to open) along with a sweetness of tropical fruit including pineapple, honey and an orange peel zest. It offers a rounded and supple texture across the palate; immediately noticeable is the persistence and intensity of flavor through the long finish. There is plenty of depth on the palate. Lingers with a hint of almond and a minerally character on the finish. Drinks very well by itself. Pair this with a grilled halibut.
Reds
The 2018 GRATUS Napa Valley Malbec is deep ruby and opaque; fruity, flirty, fun and fully ripe, the nose is an open-knitted and highly generous expression of the variety. Its scents include blackberry jam, boysenberry preserve, cherry pie, baked plums and Persian mulberry. Additional layers include sweet tobacco, white sage, cloves, baker’s chocolate, mocha, pink peppercorn, old cedar box and as it continues to open a note of mint, thyme, oregano and basil. Brimming with fruit on the palate, its flavors are of cherry, dark raspberry, Santa Rosa plum, blackberry and boysenberry with a light note of dried tobacco leaf. Its ripe character is balanced somewhat by its acidity. At 7 years post vintage, the tannins are well integrated with their youthful edges being polished by their time in bottle. They linger with a light grainy, gravelly texture and dusty, persisting gently beyond the fruit on the finish. In terms of being a crowd friendly Malbec, this wine is the ideal candidate for such a description. Make the pairing easy; choose your favorite recipe for BBQ short ribs.
The 2015 GRATUS Vineyards Malbec is dark ruby red in the glass. Intriguing on the bouquet, it is very aromatic showing notes of blackberry and boysenberry, cloves, cinnamon, dried rose petals and cedar box. While the secondary characteristics are present; the bouquet is really about the intensity of fruit. Seamless across the palate this wine has no harsh edges. Perfectly balanced with somewhat dusty well-integrated tannins lingering softly along with baking spices and hints of mocha and coffee. This wine features a bright acidity with a lively finish. It is not often we get to try 100% varietal Malbec from Napa Valley; this one is special.
Their Petite Sirah vines tend to produce more grapes than what is desired on a balanced vine; as a result they often drop up to half the original crop each year.
The 2019 GRATUS Napa Valley Petite Sirah is deep ruby and opaque; we’ve noticed wines from this variety hold their color especially well as they age. For reference we tried this wine 6 years post vintage. Intense and ripe, with an impressive aromatic depth, this wine smells like blackberry jam, boysenberry jam, baked plums, dark cherry at the peak of ripeness, mocha, dark cocoa powder, chocolate, Graham cracker, pipe tobacco, cloves and smoked sage. The fruit is clearly the star of the show here, both on the bouquet and the palate with the oak providing a supporting character. On the palate there are flavors of dark plum and dark cherry (the most dominant notes), boysenberry, Himalayan purple mulberry, and blueberry. The lively acidity keeps this wine energetic and flowing brightly across the palate. The tannins are gravelly and with few edges; their rounded texture persists seamlessly in tandem with the rich fruit on the extended finish. This wine is showing in a sweet spot right now.
Inky dark in the glass, the 2015 GRATUS Vineyards Estate Petite Sirah shows notes of sage, hints of toasted oak, dark chocolate and a generous helping of rich and layered dark fruit aromatics. It is powerful and intense on the bouquet, yet simultaneously shows an elegant sweetness of fruit. The palate is juicy and brightly lit with mouth filling flavors of plum and blackberry, both persisting for quite some time, but not accompanied by the heavy or dense tannins that this variety is often known for.
The 2015 GRATUS Vineyards Estate Red Wine (their flagship wine) is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon with the remainder 25% being Malbec and a tiny amount of Petite Sirah. This wine is deep ruby and opaque in the glass; the bouquet offers bright fruit aromatics including sweet blackberry and plum, a kiss of mocha, a floral note (perhaps lavender), mint and old cedar box. Smooth and supple across the palate – its character reveals earthy notes, present, but not harsh tannins and a white pepper spice on the finish. This wine is long lasting in terms of both flavor, texture and being age worthy.
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Using the common language of botanists worldwide (Latin), Thomas and Victoria chose to call their wine GRATUS – which is Latin for grateful. And even the back label on a number of their wines is written in Latin. Both are grateful for the relationships cultivated in Napa Valley including those who have become friends and imparted some of their wine advice. And grateful knowing they own a special slice of Napa Valley.
Translated from Latin to English, the back label reads as the following:
This is the fruit from the vineyard
of the Wargovich family estate,
through the sunlit slopes of Howell Mountain
located in St. Helena. The owners give thanks
to their ancestors, the pioneers,
whose labors have allowed them
to attain these long-hoped-for things.
For the quality to price ratio, this is one of the more intriguing producers from Napa Valley. Their wines have won a number of awards or medals at various wine competitions including the Sunset International, the Press Democrat North Coast Wine Challenge, the Los Angeles Invitational and the Sommeliers Choice Awards.
Their production is small, typically only around 600 cases per year although they do sell grapes to several wineries. The wines are sometimes available locally at Sam’s Social in Calistoga, ACME Fine Wines in St. Helena and at R&D Kitchen in Yountville. Winemaking has moved several times over the years including at Fairwinds Estate, Brasswood and currently at Shadybrook Estate in Coombsville. For more information, to purchase wine and or to join one of several wine clubs, visit: www.gratusvineyards.com
Absolutely gorgeous! Love the write up.
Thank you E. Gee. Its summer time and the living is easy 🙂