Starlite Vineyards is located in the Alexander Valley in California’s Sonoma County.
They make hand-crafted European-style wines. They acquired the property in 2001 and launched the winery 2003 with their “Claret Style” Zinfandel. The wines expanded to “Condrieu Style” Viognier and “Bordeaux Style” Cabernet Sauvignon in 2007. Starlite does not follow ratings on a regular basis. However, the wines have periodically received ratings of 94 points from The Chicago Wine Institute.
Starlite Vineyards sites on a 6-acre hilltop property to maximize fruit ripening. Block 1 was planted to Zinfandel in 1998. Block 2 was planted to Cabernet Sauvignon in 2002. Block 3 was planted to Viognier in 2008. In 2011, 8 rows of Block 1 were converted to Viognier. In 2014, 2 more rows of Block 1 were converted to Tempranillo. The vineyards are planted 6 feet apart (row to row) and 2.5 feet apart (vine to vine) and are amongst most densely planted vineyards in California.
