Frog's Leap Winery

Last updated
Frog's Leap
FrogsLeap logo.jpg
LocationRutherford, California, USA
Coordinates 38°28′25″N122°24′04″W / 38.4737°N 122.401°W / 38.4737; -122.401
Appellation Rutherford AVA
Founded1981 [1]
First  vintage 1981
Key peopleJohn Williams, owner & winemaker
Paula Moschetti, winemaker
Jonah Beer, general manager
Cases/yr60,000 [2]
Known forSauvignon Blanc [3]
Cabernet Sauvignon [4]
Varietals Sauvignon blanc , Chardonnay , Zinfandel , Petite Sirah , Merlot , Cabernet Sauvignon , Cabernet Franc , Valdiguié , Riesling
Distributionnational
Tasting by appointment
Website www.frogsleap.com

Frog's Leap Winery is a California wine producer that operates from Rutherford. It was founded in 1981 on a spot along Mills Creek known as Frog Farm. [5] Frog's Leap Winery was established by John Williams and Larry Turley. [6]

Contents

In addition to their accolades for their wines, Frog's Leap is also noted for its humorous approach to winemaking, [1] down to their "Ribbit" corks. [7] The winery got its name by combining "Frog Farm" (where its first wines were made) with "Stag's Leap" [6] (where John Williams had his first winemaking job). [8]

History

John Williams and Larry Turley formed Frog's Leap in 1981 at the site of the historic Adamson Winery, producing 700 cases of sauvignon blanc. [6] When they started, Turley was a doctor and Williams was a winemaker at Spring Mountain Vineyard. [9] They took the winery into organic farming, and made it the first Napa winery with certified organically grown grapes. [2] They built up the winery in Saint Helena, California [1] together until 1994, when John Williams took Frog's Leap to the Red Barn Ranch in Rutherford, California and Larry Turley established what is now Turley Wine Cellars. [10] In 2004, Sunlight Electric met with Frog's Leap discussing how the winery was spending around $50,000 annually on electricity. On February 9, 2005, the photovolatic system went live over Frog's Leap's leeching fields. With the system's annual output of 260,000 kilowatt-hours (9.4×1011 J), it produces about 85% of the site's energy usage. [11]

Winemaking

Frog's Leap features organically grown grapes and dry-farmed vineyards. [12] Owner John Williams believes dry-farming results in stronger, healthier vines. [13]

Frog's Leap engages in other green practices as well. They were one of the first wineries to use solar power to run their entire operation. [14] [11] The winery also includes the use of compost and cover crops to organically enrich the soil, as well as dry farming to conserve water and reduce soil erosion. [11]

Wines

Frog's Leap used to make a wine known as "Leapfrögmilch" [6] (a pun on Liebfraumilch), but after an incidence of noble rot in 2006, they replaced it with "Frögbeerenauslese" [12] (a pun on Trockenbeerenauslese).

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Tim Atkin (1991-02-02). "Wine: Time's fun when you're having flies". The Guardian .
  2. 1 2 Michael V. Russo (2008). Environmental Management. SAGE. p. 266. ISBN   978-1-4129-5849-3.
  3. ↑ "Tony Fletcher's iJamming! Featured Wine: Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc". Archived from the original on September 10, 2007. Retrieved 2009-07-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ↑ Eric Asimov (2008-08-20). "In Napa, some wineries choose the old route". The New York Times . p. F1. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  5. ↑ "Frog's Leap Winery". Atlas of Wineries.
  6. 1 2 3 4 David Shaw (2003-01-08). "Organic for a different reason". Los Angeles Times . p. Food 6. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  7. ↑ Kevin Zraly (2006). Windows on the World Complete Wine Course. Sterling Publishing Company. p. 257. ISBN   1-4027-3928-1., although the book incorrectly spells it "Ribit"
  8. ↑ "Harvest Restaurant - Special Events". Archived from the original on 2009-04-29. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  9. ↑ Terry Robards (1982-07-04). "Frog's Leap: A prince of a wine". The New York Times . p. 34.
  10. ↑ L. Pierce Carson (1994-01-24). "Partners leap in new directions". Napa Valley Register .
  11. 1 2 3 "Case Study: Frog's Leap Winery, Rutherford, CA". Sunlight Electric. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
  12. 1 2 Clive Platman (2009-05-09). "All in the best possible taste". Birmingham Post . p. 4.
  13. ↑ James Conaway (2008-08-27). "The time is ripe for Napa's organic grapes". The Washington Post . p. F5. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  14. ↑
    • Tom Bender (2008-02-27). "Jump to Frog's Leap in Napa". The Modesto Bee . p. E2.
    • Committee on Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures (2005). Tax Credits for Electricity Production from Renewable Sources. DIANE Publishing. p. 56. ISBN   1-4223-3419-8.
Frog's Leap vineyards Frogs Leap Vineyard.jpg
Frog's Leap vineyards
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