Oleandri Wines was founded in 2017 by Fred D’Amato. Both sides of Fred’s family trace their roots to Sicily. His mother’s father immigrated to the United States, while his father’s parents remained in Sicily. Fred’s paternal grandfather made wine for the family and had a particular fondness for white wines. He primarily sourced white grapes from the slopes of Mount Etna, an area known for producing wines with bright acidity and expressive aromatics—two characteristics that left a lasting impression on Fred.
Fred first visited Sicily when he was ten years old. Family vacations often lasted up to a month at a time, and those trips were filled with large family gatherings. While they were not quite parties, the dinners were lively and plentiful, with wine always present at the table. In that environment, making wine for the family simply made sense.
Fred’s maternal grandfather came from the small port town of Porticello, a charming seaside village in Sicily, located along the Tyrrhenian coast near Palermo. Known for its strong fishing heritage, the town offers an authentic glimpse into traditional Sicilian life. Colorful boats line the harbor, and fresh seafood is a highlight at local restaurants, especially during lively festivals.
The atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming, with narrow streets, coastal views, and a close-knit community. Visitors often enjoy strolling along the waterfront, watching fishermen at work, and tasting regional specialties. Porticello blends natural beauty, maritime culture, and genuine hospitality, making it a delightful destination away from more crowded tourist spots. For an overview of Porticello, we recommend walking or driving up to Solunto for panoramic vistas of the town and surrounding bay. Solunto is also a site of well preserved Roman ruins.
The family name Oleandri also carries geographic significance—his father also was raised in Porticello on the tiny Via Oleandri, located a short walk from the main harbor. The name of Fred’s wine brand pays tribute to both his family heritage and the places that shaped their history. See our photographs below from our visit.
His father’s side of the family was deeply involved in the fishing industry. They operated retail shops and supplied seafood to restaurants and other businesses, with much of their fishing taking place off the coast of Tunisia. Fred’s father’s cousin owned the still in business seafood restaurant, Trattoria Francu U’ Piscaturi dal 1970.
On his mother’s side, the family worked in agriculture, with businesses centered around citrus and almond groves. Fred’s grandfather and three of his brothers eventually immigrated to the United States, settling first in Milwaukee, while other relatives moved west to California. One brother established himself in the San Francisco Bay Area, also working in fishing.
Winemaking remained a strong family tradition even after immigration. In the late 1940s, relatives in California would ship Napa Valley grapes by rail packed in dry ice to Milwaukee. Fred’s grandfather would then make wine at home using his own press. By the mid-1960s, when Fred and his family were living with his grandfather, he was already being exposed to winemaking at an early age.
After his first career, Fred returned to school to study winemaking at UC Davis and graduated with a degree in Viticulture & Enology. He gained practical experience working harvests in Dry Creek Valley, where he was one of the older interns in the cellar.
His first vintage was in 2017, a blend of grapes from Spring Mountain and Atlas Peak’s Broken Rock Vineyard. By 2019, he began sourcing grapes from the historic Georges III Vineyard on the Napa Valley floor and started focusing on single-mountain expressions, including fruit from Oak Knoll and Howell Mountain. While the mountain sources may alternate depending on the vintage, Georges III has remained a consistent cornerstone of the wines.
While Oleandri does not own vineyards, Fred is extremely selective about which vineyards he purchases grapes from. From there, the goal is to craft wines inspired by classic Burgundian and Bordeaux traditions—balanced, elegant, and designed to complement food. In both extraction and blending, the emphasis is on restraint and harmony. Winemaker Patrick Saboe describes the Oleandri Wines as poised, finessed, and classy. He is not wrong.
For a brand to succeed, every element must work together seamlessly: the vineyards, the winemaking, the personality behind the wines, and the way the story is presented through the website and customer experience. When these elements are not aligned, brands often struggle—a reality we have seen repeatedly over more than twenty years of work in Napa Valley. As Saboe told us, he appreciates the harmony of how all aspects of Oleandri work in tandem.
Originally from Charleston, South Carolina, Saboe’s path to the cellar began in the restaurant industry at the renowned Slightly North of Broad. His career took a definitive turn following a honeymoon to California wine country in 1996, which inspired him to transition from selling wine to making it. He subsequently earned a degree in Enology and Viticulture from UC Davis in 2002.
Before leading The Wine Foundry, Saboe built an extensive resume at several prestigious estates, including Robert Sinskey Vineyards, Hanna Winery, Keller Estate, and Petroni Vineyards. His technical expertise is particularly noted in Bordeaux varietals and Pinot Noir, though he has worked with over twenty different grape varieties across the Napa and Sonoma regions. Saboe is known for a “minimalist” winemaking philosophy, often stating that “exceptional wines are made from exceptional fruit with exceptional care.” Beyond his primary roles, he serves as a consulting winemaker for several other boutique brands, focusing on producing balanced, site-specific wines from top-tier vineyards like Stagecoach and Broken Rock.
The Oleandri Wines are made at The Wine Foundry located in the heart of Napa’s Crusher Wine District about 12 minutes south of downtown Napa. This winery is a premier “custom crush” facility and luxury brand incubator that bridges the gap between wine consumption and creation. While it produces its own award-winning wines, its primary mission is to empower individuals, groups, and commercial entrepreneurs to craft their own professional and premium quality wines.
The Foundry provides clients with access to grapes from over 40 prestigious vineyards across Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Barbara. Oleandri sources grapes from a number of these vineyards including in Napa Valley, Broken Rock Vineyard on Atlas Peak, Georges III Vineyard in Rutherford, Moulds Family Vineyard in Oak Knoll and Game Theory Vineyard on Howell Mountain.
Clients can be as “hands-on” as they wish, participating in everything from sorting and crushing to blending trials and custom label design. With state-of-the-art technology like optical sorters and on-site lab analysis (saves significantly in terms of both time and money for outsourced lab results), the facility offers a sophisticated, “behind-the-curtain” experience that makes the complexities of winemaking accessible to everyone from novices to boutique vintners.
Select Wines
Whites
Chardonnmay
The 2023 Oleandri Chardonnay, Rogers Creek Vineyard Sonoma Coast. This site is located in western Sonoma County; the blocks that produce the Chardonnay for Oleandri are steeply terraced and are located at an elevation of approximately 600 feet ASL. This site is windy and cool, providing optimum growing conditions for Chardonnay. This wine is medium to deep gold in color; loaded with layers of fruit and ripeness, the bouquet expresses plenty of California sunshine, yet this is supported by an aromatic brightness and never crosses into the territory of linear. Its scents include pineapple, baked peaches, yellow nectarines, apricot, pineapple guava jelly, honeycomb, butterscotch, creme Brulé, vanilla and water/wheat flower wafers. The palate is a delicious as the bouquet is as compelling; its ripe flavors include pineapple, apricot, yellow mango, papaya, yellow peaches, baked apples and honeycomb. Its texture is fleshy, showing a rounded and creamy mouth feel which is carried easily by the vibrant and persistent acidity. The oak is integrated very well here, both on the bouquet and the palate. In a blind tasting from both aromatics and palate, we might have guessed its ABV higher than its listed 13.5% – perhaps even up to 14.5%. This wine drinks great by itself but in terms of a pairing, perhaps we can suggest something from the Pacific Ocean, not far from where these grapes were grown. Try with seared halibut or Dungeness crab.
The grapes for this wine were whole cluster pressed and then racked to barrel for primary fermentation. Malolactic fermentation also took place in barrels with bi-weekly batonnage occurring. It was aged for 10 months in both new & neutral French oak barrels.
Reds
Pinot Noir
The 2021 Oleandri Pinot Noir, Lindsay’s Vineyard Sta. Rita Hills. This vineyard is owned by Bill Foley of Foley Family Estates and one of Foley’s wineries, Lincourt also makes a bottling from Lindsay’s Vineyard. This 205-acre vineyard is named after Bill’s daughter Lindsay; it is located between the towns of Buellton and Lompoc anbd receives cooling influences from the maritime climate as a result of the nearby Pacific Ocean. This wine is pale ruby in color lighter than many of the Napa Valley Carneros or even Russian River expressions of this variety; the nose smells raspberry, red currants, licorice, red strawberries and light layer of sarsaparilla and vanilla. Balanced, this lighter styled expression tastes like raspberry, Rainier cherry, Santa Rosa plum, currants, pomegranate and strawberries. The oak integration is a light complement to the fruit, staying in the backseat while providing a whispered conversation. The tannins are delicately woven together; their seamless feel is lightly felt more on the front of the palate than the back. Medium acidity. Pair this with Peking duck.
Cabernet Franc
The 2024 Oleandri Cabernet Franc (from barrel) is sourced from Stagecoach Vineyard, from the lower portion of the Pritchard Hill section of the property. Early on, the bouquet reveals a distinctly pretty and an immediately compelling character, combining fruit, floral notes, and hints of sweeter baking spices. Aromas of lilac, lavender, and violet lead the way, followed by dark fruit including Damson plum, coral cherry, blackberry, dark raspberry, and boysenberry. Lighter layers of mocha, dried tobacco, and dark cocoa powder add further complexity. The wine straddles the threshold of aromatic ripeness but never crosses over. At this early stage the palate leans slightly more toward red fruit than darker tones, showing raspberry, cherry, currant, and not-quite-fully ripe boysenberry. And a ferrous, minerally character becomes especially noticeable on the finish. The palate currently reveals a bit more barrel influence than the bouquet, including a light touch of lingering toast that will likely dissipate once the wine is racked and spends additional time in bottle. The wine shows vibrant, persistent acidity, particularly on the finish, contributing to an overall sense of freshness. The tannins are broadly distributed across the palate, with a tumbled, dusty character that lingers. The texture is dense yet never heavy. Overall, the wine already shows a restrained, mature sense of integration beyond its years—remarkably well-balanced at this early stage in its evolution.
During an evaluative tasting from wines made from Stagecoach Vineyard, Patrick remembers telling a winemaker, “If you believe in God, this is where he exists”, referring the particular block of Cabernet Franc used by Oleandri.
Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2020 Oleandri Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford Napa Valley is from a large property located on the eastern side of the sub appellation, primarily valley floor but also planted on gentle slopes at the base of the Vaca mountain range. This wine is deep ruby and nearly opaque; the bouquet is a pretty union between both fruit and barrel influences. Its scents include blackberry, dark cherry, boysenberry, Persian mulberry and Santa Rosa plum. And its non fruited layers offer a bit of complexity to the aromatics, i.e. dried tobacco leaf, old cedar box, toast and a hint of lavender. And as the wine evolves further, it offers a note of cocoa powder. At six years post vintage, this wine is showing in a particularly sweet spot right now. On the palate, there are flavors of blackberry, boysenberry, dark cherry, dark mulberry, dark chocolate, cocoa powder and a light note of smoked cedar. The chalky textured tannins fully coat the palate; they are never edgy or out of place. They continue to persist in tandem with the fruit on the extended finish with a drying moderate grip. This wine is savory, bright and balanced. And we might add does not show smoke taint, a common character in wines from Napa Valley from this particular vintage. Pair this with a warm evening, the company of good friends, a BBQ and a well marbled Wagyu steak.
The 2022 Oleandri Wines La Scala Red Blend was listed in a Robb Report article in 2025 titled, One of the 7 Best Bordeaux Blends From Napa Valley to Drink Now.
—
Fred often shows his wines at a variety of trade and consumer wine tastings around the country including at the annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine. The wines are sold direct to consumer or through a limited number of online retailers including Liquor Express and Remedy Liquor. For more information, to purchase wines or to join the customizable Oleandri wine club, visit: www.oleandriwines.com
Via Oleandri
Porticello
Leave a Reply