Merlot Vineyard

4 Acres

Merlot vines are planted on facing hillsides of a warm, sheltered, northwest oriented drainage. The northeast slope of this block is steeper requiring the vines to be planted on terraces. Both sides of this warm, sheltered, bowl-like area receive direct sun from the southwest. Both rows and the direction of drainage are such that the area receives late afternoon marine breezes. Soil in this vineyard is shallow, lean, and rocky with unsorted, stream rounded cobbles, stones, pebbles, and an occasional sand lens derived from the Glen Ellen formation.

The vertically oriented 100R rootstock was selected to match the lean, rocky soil.

Vines have been grafted to the Inglenook Merlot Clone 3 the most widely planted Merlot in California. Bud wood material was originally selected for propagation by University of California Professor Dr. Harold Olmo from the Inglenook Vineyards in Napa Valley. Wines from this clone have won numerous gold medals and are considered by both growers and wineries as their number one choice. It has a reputation for good yield with excellent quality fruit.

Grapes for winemakers

Noticed our winery is small, while our property is big? Wondering if there's a chance we'd part with any of these prized grapes? Give us a call (707) 833-4312.