Vineyard & Cellar
“From the very beginning,
it was clear that this was
going to be a great site.
It’s got everything I could
ever want in a vineyard.”
Vineyard
Seven years of deliberate viticulture went into our first vintage. Our six densely planted blocks of vines are cane-pruned to create a shade canopy in the heat of summer. We plant nitrogen-fixing cover crops rather than artificially amending our soil, and we fight off pests by providing habitat for winged predators.
Our east-facing vines enjoy a temperate microclimate. At daybreak, as the silhouette of the Vaca Mountains appears over the Napa River, fogs roll in from the west and the south. A forested preserve shoulders our estate on two sides, further cooling our vines with its shaded embrace.
Our volcanically derived Aiken soil type is rich in iron, which promotes chlorophyll production and thus photosynthesis. While the surface layer is rocky and well-drained, sublayers of loam and clay hold moisture. These conditions often make for brutal, highly tannic wines, but Fe is notable for its silky finesse.
Cellar
Winemaker Aaron Pott brings a Premier Grand Cru Classé mentality and a Burgundian education to our cellar. His process begins in the vineyard, where we have planted the proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot that we aim for in our final blend.
We harvest by hand in the coolest hours of the morning, keeping the fruit chilled throughout vinification for freshness. We sort three times before crushing, then follow a gentle gravity-flow protocol. Fermentations are spontaneous and macerations are long and slow. In barrel, we stir the lees to naturally protect the wine and allow malolactic to proceed at a leisurely pace.
Aaron previously served as winemaker at Château Troplong Mondot and director of Château La Tour Figeac. During his time in Bordeaux, he learned the art of selecting barrels from the technical director at Pétrus, Jean-Louis Bossuet. To this day, Aaron continues to travel to France annually to select barrel staves for four different coopers.
Our use of a diverse array of new and gently seasoned oak softens tannins and imparts subtle aromatics and delicate spice to the wine without altering the intrinsic qualities of the fruit. After more than eighteen months in barrel, we select the final blend. The wine rests in bottle an additional six months prior to release.
Vineyard
Seven years of deliberate viticulture went into our first vintage. Our six densely planted blocks of vines are cane-pruned to create a shade canopy in the heat of summer. We plant nitrogen-fixing cover crops rather than artificially amending our soil, and we fight off pests by providing habitat for winged predators.
Our east-facing vines enjoy a temperate microclimate. At daybreak, as the silhouette of the Vaca Mountains appears over the Napa River, fogs roll in from the west and the south. A forested preserve shoulders our estate on two sides, further cooling our vines with its shaded embrace.
Our volcanically derived Aiken soil type is rich in iron, which promotes chlorophyll production and thus photosynthesis. While the surface layer is rocky and well-drained, sublayers of loam and clay hold moisture. These conditions often make for brutal, highly tannic wines, but Fe is notable for its silky finesse.
Cellar
Winemaker Aaron Pott brings a Premier Grand Cru Classé mentality and a Burgundian education to our cellar. His process begins in the vineyard, where we have planted the proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot that we aim for in our final blend.
We harvest by hand in the coolest hours of the morning, keeping the fruit chilled throughout vinification for freshness. We sort three times before crushing, then follow a gentle gravity-flow protocol. Fermentations are spontaneous and macerations are long and slow. In barrel, we stir the lees to naturally protect the wine and allow malolactic to proceed at a leisurely pace.
Aaron previously served as winemaker at Château Troplong Mondot and director of Château La Tour Figeac. During his time in Bordeaux, he learned the art of selecting barrels from the technical director at Pétrus, Jean-Louis Bossuet. To this day, Aaron continues to travel to France annually to select barrel staves for four different coopers.
Our use of a diverse array of new and gently seasoned oak softens tannins and imparts subtle aromatics and delicate spice to the wine without altering the intrinsic qualities of the fruit. After more than eighteen months in barrel, we select the final blend. The wine rests in bottle an additional six months prior to release.