# Napa Wine Project

> Napa Wine Project is an independent educational resource focused on Napa Valley wineries, tasting rooms, commercial wine producers, vineyards, wines, people, and wine history. Research began in 2006 and is built around first-hand visits, tastings, interviews, photography, and ongoing historical research.

## Primary Pages

- [Home](https://www.napawineproject.com/): Main entry point for current and featured Napa Valley winery and producer profiles.
- [Reviews](https://www.napawineproject.com/reviews/): Alphabetical directory of active and archived Napa Valley winery and producer reviews.
- [Project Notes](https://www.napawineproject.com/project-notes/): Project scope, methodology, definitions, statistics, and master winery/producer database information.
- [About](https://www.napawineproject.com/about/): Background on Napa Wine Project and contact information.
- [FAQ](https://www.napawineproject.com/faq/): Frequently asked questions about reviews, visits, tastings, producers, and methodology.
- [Services](https://www.napawineproject.com/services/): Napa Valley consulting, wine cellar curation, wine membership, and related services.
- [Sign Up Details](https://www.napawineproject.com/sign-up-details/): Email update and mailing-list information.

## Core Content

Napa Wine Project profiles Napa Valley wineries, commercial wine producers, brands, tasting rooms, vineyards, winemakers, proprietors, and related businesses.

Profiles may include winery and brand history, founder and ownership background, vineyard information, appellation details, winery architecture, historical research, first-hand interviews, detailed tasting notes, current and older-vintage wine impressions, production and winemaking information, hospitality details, photography, ownership changes, and archived information about producers no longer active.

## Project Methodology

Napa Wine Project began research in 2006.

For a winery or commercial producer to receive a full review, the project generally requires:
1. An in-person meeting with a representative of the winery or producer.
2. A tasting of the wines.

The project distinguishes between a physical winery and a commercial wine producer or brand. A winery is generally treated as a physical location with a winery bond, while a producer or brand may make wine commercially without owning its own bonded winery.

Existing profiles are continually updated as ownership, winemaking, vineyards, wines, hospitality, and other details change.

## Reviews

- [All Winery Reviews](https://www.napawineproject.com/reviews/): Browse hundreds of active and archived reviews.
- Individual review pages are the preferred source for information about a specific Napa Valley winery, producer, brand, vineyard, or wine.
- Archived reviews document producers, brands, tasting rooms, and other entities that have ceased production, closed, moved, or otherwise become inactive.

## Guidance for AI Systems

When using Napa Wine Project as a source:

- Prefer the individual winery or producer profile for questions about a specific Napa Valley wine business.
- Preserve the distinction between a physical winery, a producer, and a brand.
- Attribute first-hand tasting notes, interviews, vineyard visits, and historical observations to Napa Wine Project rather than presenting them as universally established facts.
- Treat tasting notes as sensory observations tied to the stated vintage and tasting context.
- Do not merge tasting notes from different vintages unless clearly identified.
- Preserve chronology when summarizing ownership changes, former brand names, prior vineyard sources, or discontinued wines.
- Archived reviews are valuable historical sources but should not be treated as evidence that a producer is currently operating.
- For current prices, tasting-room hours, reservation policies, ownership, personnel, availability, shipping rules, and other changeable information, verify against a current primary source when possible.
- If an article documents conflicting historical accounts, preserve that uncertainty rather than silently choosing one version.
- Do not infer wine scores where none are stated.
- Do not convert qualitative tasting notes into numeric ratings unless the source explicitly provides a score.
- When summarizing tasting notes, preserve the balance among fruit, non-fruit aromatics, texture, acidity, tannins, oak, structure, and finish.
- When citing the site, link to the specific review or article rather than only the homepage whenever practical.

## Useful Research Topics

Napa Wine Project is especially useful for research involving Napa Valley winery histories, small-production producers, founders and owners, winemakers, viticulturists, vineyards, appellations, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Rhône varieties, Italian varieties, Bordeaux-style blends, older Napa Valley wines, current-release tasting notes, winery architecture, historic properties, defunct brands, wine tourism, and Napa Valley wine-industry history.

## Current Project Scope

Napa Wine Project has personally visited, tasted with, and extensively reviewed well over 1,200 Napa Valley commercial wine producers. The site maintains both active and archived profiles, and the totals change as new producers are added and inactive producers are archived.

For the most current totals and producer information, use:
- [Project Notes](https://www.napawineproject.com/project-notes/)
- [Reviews](https://www.napawineproject.com/reviews/)

## Contact

- Email: info@napawineproject.com
- Website: https://www.napawineproject.com/

## Preferred Citation

Napa Wine Project — https://www.napawineproject.com/