In 2012 the Renteria’s purchased the 30 acre Brown Ranch (formerly associated with Saintsbury Winery and formerly a cattle grazing ranch taking its name from the former owner, Nadine Brown). The vineyard is bordered by HdV’s Hyde Vineyard and Beaulieu’s Vineyard No.9 on Old Sonoma Road. We love the results from the 2021 vintage! Freshly balanced and stylish, featuring a light, pale straw presence in the glass with a bouquet of mild allspice, citrus zest, toasted pine nuts and pecans, rocky flints, and lightly toasted oak. Crisp, savory pineapple, sweet delicious apple, savory stone fruit, and ripe pear lead into mouthwatering deliciousness. IN THE VINEYARD The Dijon Clones are modern strains of Chardonnay carefully isolated from grapevine nursery blocks in France. These strains are selected for their incredible ability to produce the best of what the varietal has to offer and therefore have become quite popular with cool climate growers today. The cool and often foggy climate of the Brown Ranch Vineyard, located in central Carneros, Napa, allows for a slow growing season and optimal ripening. This climate aids in the balancing of acidity and lifting tropical aromas in the fruit and thus, in the finished wine. The vines were carefully hand harvested and delivered cool to the winery. IN THE CELLAR Once to the winery and weighted in, the grapes are traditionally whole cluster pressed and allowed to cold settle prior to filling once used French Oak barrels. We try to prescribe to a Burgundian practice of winemaking. We here at Venge are light handed on the usage of new French Oak keeping it to an average of 25% in our Chardonnay. Batonage, or the gentle stirring of the lees, is employed in the early stages of ageing to further develop refined richness and length of body to the mid-palate, while keeping the wine clean and fresh. The wine was surlies aged for 15 months. 15% native malolactic fermentation was allowed to build complexity and body, without compromising the structural integrity of the wine. The 2020 Brown Ranch Vineyard Chardonnay was bottled unfiltered....

(69% NAPA VALLEY, 31% SONOMA COUNTY) First produced in 1996, this wine is dedicated in memory of my beloved, yellow Labrador Retriever, Scout. We immediately recognized that he was an exceptional Lab when we first met him in 1989 at the Napa County Animal Adoption Center. Rescuing Scout proved to be a destined decision! He was a loyal and loving companion who helped us welcome visitors to our winery for seven memorable years. Our Scout’s Honor blend is based on a tradition of producing a full bodied and delicious red wine that is ready to consume upon release. We start with a base of old-vine Zinfandel and build upon that with old-vine Charbono, dry-farmed Petite Sirah, and finish with mountain Syrah. Full-bodied, concentrated, and gorgeous, with jammy, ripe black fruits, sweet currants, pepper spice, and mouthwatering deliciousness. IN THE VINEYARD We are fortunate to source fruit from vineyards that are managed by families who have been farming for over 100 years and who own and work the vineyards themselves, because it all begins in the vineyard. Signal Fire Vineyard located at Venge’s Calistoga Estate where the vines here are well established and dry farmed, with an average vine age of 70 years. Frediani Vineyard located in Calistoga consists of 100+ year old vines and situated atop rocky gravel and bale clay loam soil. Luvisi Vineyard located in Calistoga is also home to 100+ year old vines and borders the Frediani site. Moss Creek Vineyard in Capell Valley is farmed by the Moskowite family and home to over 185 acres of 50+ year old vines. Korte Ranch in Saint Helena is located on the valley floor near Ehlers Lane and offers gnarly, 70+ year old vines. Monte Rosso Vineyard in the Moon Mountain region of Sonoma County supplies 100+ year old Zinfandel vines. Grist Vineyard in the Bradford Mountain area of Dry Creek in Sonoma County offers 50+ year old Zinfandel and some Petite Syrah. Kick Ranch Vineyard in the Fountain Grove area of Sonoma County established in 1858, offers a nice hillside site with direct influence from the Petaluma wind gap. IN THE CELLAR Hand Picked and Destemmed Via Pellenc Sorting System, Gravity Flow to Stainless and Open Top Fermenters, Utilizing 100% Native Yeast Primary and Secondary Fermentations Over 12 Days, Diaphragm Air Pumps (Forced Air Pressure)—Bulldogging—and Transfers Via Gravity Only, Gentle Barrel-To-Tank Racking. 65% New American Oak, 35% Used French....

Our Calistoga Estate vineyard continues to improve as we have fully transitioned to organic farming. These dry-farmed, gnarly head-trained vines are a rare breed here in Napa Valley and we feel blessed to possess 8 acres of the good stuff! At the turn of the century this location was known as the “signal point” for early frost warnings—if the frost pots were fired up and billowing on this site, all vineyard owners in the surrounding area would act accordingly to protect their vineyards. 97% old-vine estate Zinfandel is blended in with 3% old-vine Petite Sirah from the Kenefick Ranch Vineyard right next door to the winery. This coupling brings base into the wine while honoring the classic Zinfandel nuances. Big, bold, and balanced with sheet coating color and viscosity, this is Zinfandel built to stand the test of time. Wonderful, fresh blue herb and honeysuckle fill the glass and lure you into curiosity. Crushed peppercorns, blackberry jam, sweet cola and allspice fill the mouth with pure pleasure. Full-bodied and viscous with a lengthy finish. This is a vintage not to miss. IN THE VINEYARD Local legend has it that this vineyard was at the “signal point” in Calistoga for frost protection measures during early spring budbreak season. As the cold air would begin to drift south through Knights Valley, the vineyard owners located in the center crown area would fire up their smudge pots to spare their vineyards from descending frosts, and thereby signaling their neighbors to ready their frost protection systems accordingly. Thus, the location was referred to as the signal fire. The vines here are well established and dry farmed, with an average vine age of 70 years. IN THE CELLAR We treat Zinfandel in the same manner as all our red grape varieties: with gravity and care. The small, individual lots of fruit were de-stemmed into open top fermenters, where a 5-day cold soak took place. The process of cooling the cap releases color and flavor pre-fermentation. The fermentation was allowed to slowly take hold via native yeast. Whole-berry fermentation took place for an average of 22 days. The wine was barrel aged for 16 months in 50% new American Oak and the balance in once used tight grain French Oak. No conventional pumps were used in the making of this wine. Only diaphragm air pumps, forced air pressure movement, or bulldogging, and transfers by gravity were employed to preserve the pure fruit integrity in the wine....

The Sugarloaf Vineyard was developed by vineyard visionary Bill Hill in in the late 1990s. At the time, no one believed that a Napa Valley vineyard as far south as this one—it’s on the same latitude as Carneros—could fully ripen Bordeaux varieties. With time, however, Hill was proven right! IN THE VINEYARD The key to Sugarloaf’s success is its basalt rock underpinning. The vineyard development team had to use a rock crusher to break up the ground enough for vines to take root, because topsoil is so sparse. The exposed spine of volcanic rock acts as a solar panel during the day, storing up the heat and radiating it well past sunset. The area faces southwest towards San Pablo Bay and the climate is moderately warm with afternoon marine winds cooling the warmer air from the surrounding hillsides. The rocky soil promotes low to moderate vigor creating balanced hillside fruit with velvet-like tannins. The vineyard produces Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Our rows of Merlot are on a steep slope facing southwest, which maximizes their exposure to the afternoon sun. Wines from this challenging site are dark and richly textured, gaining sleek polish with time. IN THE CELLAR Aged 19 months in 75% new, three-year air-dried French oak, and aged for one year in bottle prior to release, this wine opens with aromas of ripe crème de cassis, blueberries, baking spices, mocha, violets, and black olive. You have our attention! The palate is full-bodied with nicely polished tannins and incredible depth. Plush, layered and remarkably concentrated, this wine is built to impress as it retains a wonderful sense of freshness through the long supple finish, making it nearly impossible to resist. While this is simply delightful now, it should evolve beautifully for at least a decade....

Ages ago the mountain sides of Mount St. John, in the Mayacamas (above the historic Inglenook Winery) came crashing and tumbling down into the young Napa Valley, creating an auspicious formation, a long and wide mound of gravelly soils, known as an “alluvial fan.” This alluvial formation would dominate the widest part of this fertile valley, a point just to the warmer side of the valley’s climate seesaw between the cooler maritime influence of the San Pablo Bay and the hot, dry influence of the California inland valleys, an area known as the Rutherford Bench. This serendipitous combination of soil and climate eventually culminated in the wines which would define and influence the Rutherford style, wines first crafted by Niebaum’s Inglenook Winery and George de la Tour’s Beaulieu Winery. In 1991, Reg Oliver formed a partnership which included David Abreu and Ric Forman, and planted a vineyard on this benchland. They planted heirloom vines, using cuttings from what is called a “field selection” or “selection massale” meaning essentially that they procured prunings from selected vines in a neighbor’s vineyard. This way of planting was much more common in times past than today. In a way, it is the greatest form of flattery as well as a way to preserve unique flavor profiles by proliferating the genetic makeup of celebrated vineyards. Now owned and farmed by a lifelong friend in Jack Oliver, the Star Vineyard is a rare standout and we are very fortunate to have this wine to fill in while we made the turn on the 2020 vintage losses due to fires....

Our 2018 Family Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is a powerhouse effort from our Oakville Estate Vineyard. This wine features beautiful dark red and purple hue that clings to the glass. The aromatics are plush and highly perfumed with ripe black cherries, clove, cinnamon, blackberries and currants. The palate is full and expansive. There is no pocket of the mouth unfilled or escaping this wine’s sumptuous composition. The flavors captured in this Cabernet wash over the front and through to the back of the palate for over two minutes past the initial impressions. Anticipated maturity is 2024 to 2039. IN THE VINEYARD Harvest took place early on October 1st. The cane-pruned vines were hand harvested from our Venge Estate vineyard in Oakville. The 2018 was a hot vintage that saw a small fruit set due to continued drought. The natural “culling” of the fruit set let to reduced yields and a stellar crop. Now in their 31st year, we continue to sustainably “dry farm” these vines by not allowing them any applied summer irrigation. Their roots must find water on their own and struggle in the final months of summer and early fall leading to a complexity and depth of flavor often unequaled in irrigated vineyards. IN THE CELLAR The fruit was destemmed into a combination of small stainless-steel tank fermenters, concrete vats, and open-top barriques. Time on skins lasted 14 to 45 days. The fruit was then separated to “free run” and “light press” fractions. The Cabernet was aged in 100% new, tight-grained, French Oak barrels for a lengthy 27 months. We employ a variety of cooperages for Cabernet including Boutes, Sylvain, Taransaud, Gamba and Alain Foquet. 100% native, spontaneous yeast and malolactic fermentations were also key ingredients in the making of this wine. The gentle use of gravity flow winemaking, whenever possible, is carefully exercised throughout the making of this and every Venge wine. Bottled unfiltered....