Mount George Winery is owned and operated by George and Anne Ulitin; they produced their first commercial wines in 2002. Both are first generation immigrants, Anne from Yorkshire in the United Kingdom while George was born in a displaced persons camp in Austria soon after World War II ended. His father was originally from Russia and his mother is from what is now Ukraine. His parents survived the camps during World War II. Other parts of his family fled Europe and crossed parts of Egypt by camel before eventually settling in Canada. The Red Cross offered to resettle the refuges Austria to other countries; George’s parents chose Venezuela because that was the closest they could get to the U.S. as they intended to eventually move to the U.S. because part of their family already lived in the states.
We are always inspired by people who have experienced hardship in their lives and have overcome them. When George was a child he lived in severe conditions. For seven years in Venezuela he was raised in extreme poverty; his family arrived without speaking the language, had little money and had no support system. They settled on the outskirts of Caracas, living on the edge of the jungle. George remembers their one-room shack for his family of five was built of cardboard with a tin roof and a dirt floor. They had no running water and no electricity and no refrigeration; water was trucked in for the refugees once a week accessible in only one location (a public fountain). George remembers his mother boiled all water and lined up the water in an assortment of glass mason jars, all in various stages of drinkability and all covered in cheese cloth to keep the insects out. They supplemented their water from rain collected from their roof as it rained nearly every day. And they harvested wild fruits growing in the jungle and grew their own vegetables.
His mother had some medical training which was invaluable for living in these primitive conditions. And she served not only her own family but also other refugees. George immigrated to the U.S. with his family in 1960. Prior to co-founding Mount George Winery he had a 30+ year career with Napa Valley Police Department.
Anne’s father studied at Cambridge on a scholarship. He was a chemical engineer who later joined the English Royal Air Force during World War II. During the war he sailed on the Queen Mary which was re-commissioned from being a luxury liner to a military troop transport ship. After the war was over he immigrated to the U.S., with his family, again sailing on the Queen Mary. And this is when Anne came to the U.S. She and George met at college and then moved to Napa Valley in the mid 1970s. In 1974 they purchased land and planted a vineyard. Later they would acquire additional property which they planted and then sold the grapes.
Anne remembers the exhilaration from young people in the 1970s and 1980s in regard to making wine in Napa Valley. It was a time when people were excited about the ‘new’ wine culture, a time of significant learning and experimentation. She recalls hearing stories her kids brought home from friends whose parents were starting wineries in Napa Valley including of experiments gone wrong, I.E., exploding tanks.
Their introduction to winemaking was through association; friends were always talking about wine, and they knew many people working in the industry including those growing grapes, making wine or selling wine. George met a fireman who was also a winemaker at V. Sattui and had helped make sparkling wine at Schramsberg. Anne recalls telling him one day something like, “Wouldn’t it be fun if George and I made wine”. He responded, “I can make wine, I’m a winemaker!”. Within 6 months of that conversation George and Anne had secured their winery 02 license and were using a fully air-conditioned Quonset hut in Lake County which previously was used for packing pears. In the early years they would buy grapes from Napa Valley vineyards, ferment them in Lake County and then return them for aging in Napa Valley.
Their winery property is 11 acres; plans eventually call for planting a vineyard on site in their volcanic soils. During the growing season the days can be warm but the nights cool down. Their location benefits from fog from two locations; the San Pablo Bay and also from the Sacramento Delta blowing in through Suisun Valley. When they purchased the property the only structure built was a small home; this has been torn down. George and Anne designed the winery and with the help of a few friends built the winery themselves, aided by George’s general contractor’s license. They own a small vineyard near the city of Napa and purchase grapes from other vineyards exclusively in Napa Valley.
A small cave was drilled on the property which functions both for cellaring their wines as well as hospitality. Their cave driller had previously assisted with the cave construction at Palmaz Winery, by far the largest winery in Napa Valley. When referencing some of his work, he mentioned Palmaz. For reference, the size of that cave versus the Mount George wine cave are at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of square footage. And during the drilling a geologist identified several large boulders dating back at least 5 million years. These now line part of their driveway below the parking area.
Winery construction was finished in 2017; part of their concrete was scheduled to be poured the day the Atlas Peak fires started. These fires burned all through their property, at one point causing several burning trees to fall onto the winery building. Fortunately some of their neighbors were on the property at the time and were able to quickly mitigate this – otherwise the winery may have burned. A commercial fire hydrant is located on the property; from personal experience delivering water to various properties during the Tubbs Fire in 2020, having access to these and knowing their locations was invaluable.
The gravity fed winery was built using Fox Blocks by Airlite Plastics Co., otherwise known as ICF Blocks. Regardless of the season these keep the interior of the winery at a constant temperature. These blocks are composed of double layers of insulating foam, with plastic inserts embedded in concrete supported by steel beams. And putting them together is like building Legos. There is a lot to like about this setup; its strong, durable, has great insulative properties, is fire resistant and lightweight – therefore easy to transport, other materials can be fastened to its exterior and it is relatively quick to build.
George and Anne also own 15 acres in Lake County and maintain a bonded winery on that property.
One can see an attention to cleanliness, organization and detail immediatley when walking into their cellar. We are always keen to those attributes when visiting a winery for the first time. Their winery and cellar is impeccably clean; in addition, their winemaking is focused on details and timing. The wines are topped once a month with samples for free and bound SO2 taken from multiple layers with the barrels to ensure accurate and overall readings.
For any vineyard new to their portfolio, they ferment individual lots using different yeast strains. And then they choose their favorite lot and utilize that same yeast for future ferments. Their wines are all distinctive with their own personalities, a result from honoring the varieties, the vineyard and precision winemaking. The wines are bottled as either the Pewter Collection, limited production premium wines of Cabernet Sauvignon featuring hand-adhered pewter labels printed by a small family business in France, and wines under the Mount George Collection.
Select Wines
Whites
The 2017 Mount George Winery Sparkling Brut North Coast is a blend of approximately 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir. This wine is medium gold in color; the bouquet smells fresh, fruity and youthful, 8 years post vintage. Its initial aromatic is honeyed including of honeycomb but with other layers including peach blossom, white nectarine, golden apples and apricot. It is rounded, lively and features plenty of flavor – especially on the long-lasting finish. This wine is perfectly balanced between fruit and acidity. Its flavors include golden delicious apple, bosc pear, golden kiwi and a light citrus note most closely resembling pomelo and or grapefruit pith. This wine was produced at Rack & Riddle in Sonoma County; an introduction to their services was made by one of their friends working at Mumm Napa Valley.
The 2018 Mount George Winery Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley is deep straw in color; both sweetly fruited and tangy, the bouquet offers aromas of citrus blossom, freshly cut pineapple, chamomile, lemon meringue, orange marmalade, bruised apples, kumquat and grapefruit. Still fresh and alive 7 years post vintage, this wine is in a sweet spot at this age. On the palate there are flavors of pineapple, passion fruit, honeydew melon, pina colada, pomelo, lemon juice, yellow nectarine, white peach and carambola. Its texture is lightly fleshy, sporting a creamy and rounded mouth feel. This weight is offset nicely by a bright but not bracing acidity which provides plenty of movement across the palate. Lingers with a light herbal character (but not green) of dill. We would love to pair this with a crisp but not cold summer day, perched above the rugged Sonoma County coastline and a plate of freshly shucked oysters paired with a tangy mignonette sauce.
Reds
For their Malbec program in particular, they always purchase small amounts of grapes from new vineyards and then will increase production if the quality meets their expectations. Both George and Anne are excited about continuing to work with Malbec, especially after years of focusing on Cabernet Sauvignon.
The 2022 Mount George Winery Malbec Napa Valley, Proprietor’s Reserve is medium to deep purple/amaranthine in color. Ripe but not overripe the handsome bouquet offers loads of berry fruits including boysenberry, blackberry jam, Persian mulberry, dark cherry and dark plum. While the fruit dominates, there is an attractive floral component which provides an aromatic lift including of violets and lavender. Layers of secondary scents play a supporting role and include cinnamon, cloves, Graham cracker, cocoa powder, white pepper and pipe tobacco. Juicy and bright, the palate sings soprano with flavors of Santa Rosa plum, red cherry, dark raspberry and red licorice. The finish persists with notes of crushed black peppercorn, but is not peppery, and anise. The tannins are lightly gravelly, fully coat the palate and linger with a subtle dusty character. The typicity of the variety is expressed quite well in this bottling, while showing California sunshine but with a strong tug of old world restraint. Very much a protein friendly wine; perhaps pair with a ribeye covered in a dry rub of assorted herbs and spices and a BBQ.
The 2022 Mount George Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (100% varietal) Coombsville Napa Valley; this wine is deep ruby and opaque. Dark and moody the bouquet needs some time to brood before it starts fully revealing its aromatic layers. These include scents of potting soil, mushroom, truffle oil, tobacco leaf, charcoal, dark chocolate, pencil shavings, espresso, mocha, coffee grinds, olive tapenade, dark pepper, smoked sage and old cedar box. Its fruit is dark and somewhat hidden by all the other layers but includes notes of blackberry, plum and cherry. The fruit is coaxed out with additional time. From its diverse, meaty and savory aromatics, this wine demands a warm summer day, a BBQ and the company of good friends. The palate shows more fruit than the bouquet at this age (3 years post vintage); its flavors include Satsuma plum, dark cherry, bramble/blackberry, boysenberry and mulberry. The finish lingers dark and savory with notes of dried sage, smoked cedar, peppercorn and dried tobacco leaf. The tannins are rounded and persist with a light dusty and creamy character.
The 2019 Mount George Winery, Winemakers Vault Cabernet Sauvignon. The bottling is always very limited production and is not produced every year. This wine is deep ruby and opaque; the forward fruited bouquet is focused on its core with the oak providing a very subtle and complementary character. Fresh, lively and bright, its scents include Santa Rosa plum, currant, red licorice, blackberry, boysenberry and dried dark figs. As the wine evolves it opens to darker baking spices, mint and dark chocolate. Balanced. Approachable. On the palate there are flavors of plum, dark licorice, dark cherry, blackberry, boysenberry and date crystals. Soft and supple, the tannins are perfectly rounded and resolved at this age 6 years post vintage. Lingers with a light note of dried tobacco. Balance is not a word we often used to describe wines in the 15%+ alcohol range, but that adjective is an appropriate descriptor for this wines’ overall cadence. This is a ripe but also a refreshing showing. 15.3% alcohol.
The 2023 Mount George Cuvée is approximately 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Malbec. It was aged in 50% new French oak barrels. This wine is deep ruby and nearly opaque; the bouquet is both fruit driven and simultaneously spicy. Its scents include crushed pink peppercorn, plum skin, boysenberry, old saddle leather and old cedar box. Savory across the palate, its flavors include dried herbs, white pepper, plum, dark raspberry and red cherry. Its texture is remarkably supple at this age, perhaps a product of the vintage. Its energetic and bright, built on the back of its lively acidity. Balanced. This wine delivers plenty of character; For reference this was tasted from a barrel sample, soon after its final racking and before it was to be bottled.
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The image on the wines bottled under their Mount George Collection is an engraving-style illustration of Saint George slaying a dragon. Anne’s patron saint is Saint George; he is also a prominent patron saint in Russia. And the image of the lion used on the wines bottled under the Petwer Collection features a lion, an homage to Anne’s fathers time at Cambridge (the lion is the symbol of that university). It also ties in with the history of England; it is the national symbol of England and on the Royal Arms, signifying heraldry, royal imagery and cultural identity. And the winery is located at the base of Mount George.
Visits are by reservation and are typically hosted by Anne and or George. They work well with larger groups and enjoy hosting both car and wine enthusiasts. And if one motors from the city of Napa to the winery using Highway 121, one will quickly see why car enthusiasts are attracted to this challenging drive featuring plenty of turns and twists. Allow between 25-20 minutes from downtown Napa. Private lunches and dinners can also be booked; they bring in a chef for such events. Light food pairings always served at tastings including possibly small bites from one of George’s mothers recipes.
For more information, to purchase wines, to signup for their mailing list, to join their one of their wine club memberships including Camelot, The Lion’s Share or The Knights Gate (12, 6 or 4 bottles shipped 3x/year) or to make a reservation for a tasting, visit: www.mountgeorgewinery.com
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