Heitz Wine Cellars

Last updated

Heitz Wine Cellars
Heitz Cellars Logo.jpg
LocationSt. Helena, California, USA
Appellation Napa Valley AVA
Founded1961
Key peopleJoe and Alice Heitz, founders
Brittany Sherwood, winemaker
Parent companyLawrence Group [1]
Known forMartha's Vineyard Cabernet
Bella Oaks Vineyard Cabernet
Trailside Vineyard Cabernet
Varietals Cabernet Sauvignon , Chardonnay , Sauvignon blanc , Grignolino , Zinfandel
Other productsRosé, Fortified wine
Distributionnational
Tasting open to the public
Website www.heitzcellar.com

Heitz Wine Cellars is a California wine producer located within Napa Valley east of the town of St. Helena. An early modern era Napa Valley presence and pioneering exponent of French oak, [2] the estate enjoys a historical renown with the success of its Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, [3] and has also been described as a "master of Grignolino". [4]

Contents

History

The estate was established in 1961 by Joseph (Joe) and Alice Heitz, during a period when the population of Napa Valley wineries had been reduced to the lowest number since the Prohibition, with about two dozen wineries, at what is recognized as the turning point of Napa's wine industry. [2]

Joe Heitz

Born in Princeton, Illinois, Heitz grew up on a farm and came to California in the 1940s while serving in the Army Air Corps. For most of World War II, he served as a mechanic at an Air Corps base near Fresno. At night and on weekends, he worked various odd jobs which led to work at an Italian Swiss Colony winery setting him on his career path. [5] After the war ended, Heitz began taking classes at UC Davis, achieving bachelor and master's degrees in viticulture and enology as the first seven graduates in this major in 1951. [6] [7] Heitz found employment under the wine industry extremes, first at Gallo, and then under André Tchelistcheff at Beaulieu Vineyard as an assistant winemaker where he worked for near ten years. [5] [3] [8]

In 1958, he worked as a professor at the Research Center for Viticulture and Enology program at California State University, Fresno for four years. [6] In 1961, Heitz and his wife Alice bought a small 8.5-acre (3.4 ha) vineyard just south of St. Helena from Leon Brendel named "The One & Only" for $5,000, planted with grignolino, and went into business for himself where his winemaking production preceded Robert Mondavi's emergence in Oakville. [5] [3] [8] [9]

In 1963 Heitz bought at an auction several barrels of Chardonnay and Pinot noir wine from Hanzell Vineyards in Sonoma, the last vintages of the deceased owner James D. Zellerbach's pursuit of Burgundian excellence sold off by his widow. [2] Heitz blended the wines with success, achieving lucrative prices for the times. [5] A stated strategy for success was to pay growers "what their grapes were worth", in turn increasing the standard of the product he was receiving. [3] In 1964, Heitz acquired an 1898 stone winery with its 160-acre (65 ha) ranch property, which became the Heitz winery and home, [3] [10] with the original winery retained as a visitor's centre.

Heitz Wine Cellars vineyards in Napa Valley Heitz vineyards Mark Brady.jpg
Heitz Wine Cellars vineyards in Napa Valley

Heitz holds an exclusive agreement with Tom and Martha May, owners of the 34-acre (14 ha) Martha's Vineyard in the Oakville AVA since the first purchase of fruit in 1965 which Heitz blended with other Cabernet, an act considered Heitz' great breakthrough. [3] In recognizing the quality of the grapes, from the 1966 vintage Heitz first vinified the fruit separately and designated the vineyard on the label. [5] [3] Heitz is considered the first to champion the single vineyard designation in the U.S. [11] Later, the 1968 vintage received attention for its quality, widely considered the greatest wine made in America up to that time. [3] It had been 1,000-US-gallon (38 hL) American oak vats, transferred to Limousin barrels where it aged for further two years. [3] Frank J. Prial contended the wine remained "the benchmark by which California cabernets were judged" for more than two decades. [5]

Since 1976, a similar exclusivity agreement has existed with Barney and Belle Rhodes, owners of the 18-acre (7.3 ha) Bella Oaks Vineyard in the Rutherford AVA.

Following a review by Robert Parker where he wrote about Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon that it "lacked aroma", Joe Heitz sent Parker a box of linen handkerchiefs, insinuating to the critic that he ought to clear his nose. [12]

Joe Heitz suffered a stroke in 1996 which left him frail though lucid. [3] He died on December 16, 2000, aged 81. [5] [9] He was described by Warren Winiarski as the first of the Napa Valley artisans and the first to grasp the single vineyard concept. [13]

Modern era

Born in 1950, David Heitz succeeded his father as winemaker in the late 1970s, having worked at the estate for many years. [3] [9] In 1984 the estate purchased the Trailside Vineyard in Rutherford, having previously purchased fruit from the site, introduced as a single vineyard bottling in 1989. [3]

During the late 1980s and early 90s there were reports of TCA taint, or in alternate claims Brettanomyces yeast infection, [3] in the Heitz cellars that were eventually overcome, and Tom Stevenson has criticized American wine writers for not daring to "tell the late king he had no clothes on at the time". [4]

In the early 90s, the Bella Oaks Vineyard suffered from the disease eutypa and replanting became necessary. No 1991 and 1992 vintages were made of this cuvée. [3] Also in the early 90s, phylloxera afflicted Martha's Vineyard, and no vintages were made in the mid-1990s. [5]

In 2018, Heitz was acquired by Gaylon Lawrence, Jr. [14]

Brittany Sherwood is the winemaker at Heitz and has been there since 2012. [15]

Competitions

The 1970 Heitz Wine Cellars Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon appeared in several wine tasting competitions, including the "Judgment of Paris" tasting, where it placed ninth out of the ten red wines, [16] [17] and its subsequent 'rematches'. In the San Francisco Wine Tasting of 1978 it placed second out of seven wines, in the French Culinary Institute Wine Tasting of 1986 it placed seventh out of nine wines, in the Wine Spectator Wine Tasting of 1986 it placed first out of ten wines, and in the 2006 "Judgment of Paris" 30th Anniversary tasting it tied for a third place out of ten wines. [18]

Production

The estate amasses 375 acres (152 ha) of vineyards, in addition to its purchase agreements, Vines are cultivated by organic principles per certification. Heitz Wine Cellars annually produces approximately 40,000 cases (3,600 hL) of wine.

Heitz works with a number of grape varieties grown in several American Viticultural Areas including Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena and the greater Napa Valley. In addition to several vineyard designated Cabernet Sauvignon that are often aged in oak for three and half years, Heitz also produces varietal labeled wines from Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Grignolino and Zinfandel. Other wines include a dry rosé made from Grignolino and fortified "port-style" wine from Portuguese grape varieties like Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Souzão, Tinta Cao, Tinta Bairrada, Tinta Madeira, Tinta Amarela and Bastardo.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stag's Leap Wine Cellars</span> Winery in Napa Valley, California

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars is a winery founded by Warren Winiarski in 1970 and based in the Stags Leap District of Napa Valley, California.

Warren Winiarski is a Napa Valley winemaker and the founder and former proprietor of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars.

Miljenko "Mike" Grgić is a Croatian-American winemaker in California. He was born into a winemaking family in the town of Desne on Croatia's coastal region of Dalmatia. He is notable for being the winemaker behind the 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay that bested several white Burgundy wines in the wine tasting event that became known as the Judgement of Paris. In recognition of his contributions to the wine industry, Grgich was inducted into the Culinary Institute of America's Vintner's Hall of Fame on March 7, 2008. The tribute came at the same time that Grgich was celebrating his 50th vintage of winemaking in the Napa Valley.

Mayacamas Vineyards is a California wine producer located in the Mt. Veeder AVA in the Mayacamas Mountains within the Napa Valley AVA, bordering the Sonoma Valley AVA. The estate is known for producing wine of a more traditional style than the Napa trends of recent years that emphasizes power, weight, high levels of alcohol and extravagance.

Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier wine regions in the world. Records of commercial wine production in the region date back to the nineteenth century, but premium wine production dates back only to the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Draper (winemaker)</span> American winemaker

Paul Draper is a California winemaker who has been the chief winemaker at Ridge Vineyards in California since 1969. Without any formal training in winemaking, Draper first gained recognition for his 1971 Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon when it placed fifth at the Judgment of Paris wine tasting. Draper has played a significant role in the history of California wine through his pioneering work in popularizing "vineyard-designated" wines as well as instigating the resurgence of old vine Zinfandel. Along with Ravenswood Winery's Joel Peterson, Draper is considered one of the most important figures in the history of Californian Zinfandel, rescuing the grape from obscurity and demonstrating its full potential as a serious wine. Draper was featured in a short film titled Terroir and directed by Christopher McGilvray which was shown at the 2017 Cinequest Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abreu Vineyards</span> Winery in Napa Valley, California

Abreu Vineyards is a winery in Napa Valley, California founded by the viticulturist David Abreu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David R. Bennion</span> American winemaker

David Ralph Bennion (1929–1988) was a leading California winemaker who was the founder and winemaker at Ridge Vineyards in California from 1959 to 1969. From an early period, Bennion labeled Ridge Vineyards wines by vineyard, district and appellation, a first for California Zinfandel and a practice later followed by nearly every winery in the state. Ridge's flagship wine, Monte Bello is considered one of the great wines of the world.

Dawnine Sample Dyer is an American winemaker and entrepreneur who pioneered the use of champagne-making methods in California's fledgling sparkling wine industry in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California wine</span> Wine made from grapes grown in California, United States

California wine production has a rich viticulture history since 1680 when Spanish Jesuit missionaries planted Vitis vinifera vines native to the Mediterranean region in their established missions to produce wine for religious services. In the 1770s, Spanish missionaries continued the practice under the direction of the Father Junípero Serra who planted California's first vineyard at Mission San Juan Capistrano.

Burgess Cellars is a historic California wine producer in Napa Valley on the hillsides of Howell Mountain. It was founded in 1972 by Tom Burgess on a hillside vineyard and winery, and has been continuously family owned and operated. It is run by the second generation of the Burgess family and includes 65 acres across its two estate vineyards, which are at elevations of 800 to 1,000 feet.

Colgin Cellars is a winery in Napa Valley, California founded in 1992.

Cathy Corison is an American winemaker, entrepreneur and consultant. She specializes in Cabernet Sauvignon. Corison was the San Francisco Chronicle Winemaker of the Year in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silver Oak Cellars</span>

Silver Oak Cellars is a family-owned, California winery dedicated to producing only Cabernet Sauvignon. Silver Oak was established in 1972 by Ray Duncan and Justin Meyer. It is currently operated by Ray's sons David Duncan, who serves as the President and CEO, and his brother, Tim Duncan, who serves as Executive Vice President. Silver Oak has two wineries; one in Oakville in the Napa Valley and one in Healdsburg in the Alexander Valley. The Duncan Family also established Twomey Cellars in 1999, which has wineries in Calistoga and Healdsburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twomey Cellars</span>

Twomey Cellars is a California winery. It was established in 1999 by the Duncan Family, who have operated the successful Silver Oak Cellars in California since 1972. The Duncan Family started Twomey Cellars to pursue varietals other than Cabernet Sauvignon. Twomey has three wineries: one in Calistoga in the Napa Valley; one in Healdsburg in the Russian River Valley; one in Philo in Anderson Valley, and produces mainly Pinot noir and Sauvignon blanc. Twomey’s Sauvignon blanc is a blend of Sauvignon blanc grapes from their estate vineyards at their wineries in Napa Valley, Anderson Valley, and Russian River Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Baron</span> American winemaker

Daniel Baron is an American winemaker. He is best known for his work with the Duncan family-owned Silver Oak Cellars and Twomey Cellars, and was Director of Winemaking for both. After his retirement in 2017, he launched Complant Wine with his son, Sam Baron, to produce small production, artisanal, single vineyard wines. Originally a field worker for John Rolleri at Chateau Montelena, he gained experience in the Bordeaux region of France and was mentored by the likes of grape geneticist Professor Harold Olmo, and winemakers Jean-Claude Berrouet and Justin Meyer. He became general manager of Christian Moueix's Dominus Estate in the 1980s. He became winemaker for Silver Oak, an exclusive Cabernet Sauvignon producer, in 1994, and was trained by Justin Meyer to follow in his footsteps as Silver Oak's winemaker before Meyer’s retirement in 2001. In 1999, Baron was instrumental in persuading the Duncans to establish Twomey to pursue Merlot, Pinot noir, and Sauvignon blanc after discovering high quality Merlot grapes on Silver Oak’s Soda Canyon Ranch Vineyard. He has served on boards such as the American Society of Enology and Viticulture and the Napa Valley Wine Technical Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justin Meyer</span> American winemaker

Justin Meyer was an American vintner, enologist, and monk of the Christian Brothers. He was the founder along with Raymond Twomey Duncan of Silver Oak Cellars in 1972, a successful winery based in the Napa Valley and Alexander Valley. Today Duncan's sons David Duncan and Tim Duncan run Silver Oak Cellars, as well as Twomey Cellars, established in 1999. Meyer sold his share of the company to Duncan in 2001. One of California's top wine experts, he was president of the American Vineyard Foundation in the 1990s and also held numerous other positions in the wine industry. The San Francisco Chronicle cites Meyer as "one of the legends of the Napa Valley".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baldacci Family Vineyards</span>

Baldacci Family Vineyards is a California winery located in the Stags Leap District AVA of Napa Valley. Founded in 1998, Thomas and Brenda Baldacci were entranced by the beauty of the Napa Valley and the timeless heritage of the Stags Leap District. The generations before had left a deep and abiding affinity for the land from which came not only their livelihood, but their legacy. For the Baldacci’s, family is everything. When they purchased the Stags Leap property, over 18 years ago, Thomas and Brenda knew that they had found a place for their clan to stay connected through the generations. As each new vintage unfolds, they look forward to sharing their wines and their story, with you.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cakebread Cellars</span>

Cakebread Cellars is a Napa Valley winery known for its Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc wines, which are internationally distributed. Founded in 1973 by Jack and Dolores Cakebread in Rutherford, California, the winery produces approximately 200,000 cases of wine per year.

Ovid Napa Valley is a winery in Pritchard Hill, to the northeast of Oakville in the Napa Valley of California. It was established in 2000. The area, in one of the rockiest parts of the Napa Valley with iron-red and yellow soils, typically produces earthy varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Ovid winery is solar-powered and organically farmed and has been certified "Napa Green" by the Napa County Department of Public Works and the California Green Business Program. In 2017, a majority share of Ovid was sold to the Duncan family, who own Silver Oak Cellars and Twomey Cellars.

References

  1. ↑ Garcia, Corinne; Etheredge, Jeff (October 27, 2020). "3 of the biggest U.S. farmers". Successful Farming. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Johnson, Hugh (1989). The Story of Wine . Mitchell Beazley. pp.  452. ISBN   0-85533-696-X.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Brook, Stephen (October 1, 1999). The Wines of California. Faber and Faber. pp. 357–359. ISBN   978-0-571-19030-0.
  4. 1 2 Stevenson, Tom (2005). The Sotheby’s Wine Encyclopedia (4th ed.). Dorling Kindersley. pp.  491. ISBN   978-0-13-504437-7.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Prial, Frank J. (December 23, 2000). "Joseph Heitz, 81, a Standout In California Winemaking". The New York Times . Archived from the original on March 7, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Farmer, Lyn. "Those '70s Guys - California's Most Influential Winemaking Generation". The Wine News. No. June/July 2006. Archived from the original on November 29, 2010.
  7. ↑ Laube, James (December 18, 2000). "Napa Valley Legend Joe Heitz Dies". Wine Spectator.
  8. 1 2 Kissack, Chris. "Heitz Wine Cellars". The Wine Doctor. Archived from the original on December 13, 2004.
  9. 1 2 3 "Joseph E. Heitz Dies At 81". Vines & Wines. No. February 2001. Archived from the original on August 28, 2004. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
  10. ↑ Carson, L. Pierce (June 6, 2008). "Heitz family chairs 28th wine auction". Napa Valley Register .
  11. ↑ Gerien, J. Scott. "The Vineyard Designation". Wine Business Monthly. No. April 2003.
  12. ↑ Goldfarb, Alan (September 3, 2007). "Heitz and Seek - Former Cult Favorite Heitz Wine Cellars Hasn't Changed A Thing". Appellation America.
  13. ↑ Carson, L. Pierce (January 3, 2001). "Wine pioneer Joe Heitz dies at 81". Napa Valley Register .
  14. ↑ Mobley, Esther (April 19, 2018). "Napa winery Heitz sold to Arkansas agriculture giant". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Women Winemakers of California and Beyond |Brittany Sherwood". webpages.scu.edu. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  16. ↑ Asher, Gerald. "Wine Journal: The Judgment of Paris Revisited". Gourmet . No. January 1997. Archived from the original on April 18, 2009.
  17. ↑ Murphy, Linda (June 1, 2006). "Judgment Day: Part Deux / What the 2006 showdown between California and France really proves". San Francisco Chronicle . Archived from the original on July 19, 2015.
  18. ↑ Murphy, Linda (May 25, 2006). "California wines beat the French – again". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on March 4, 2007. Retrieved April 24, 2021.

Further reading

Taber, George M. (September 13, 2005), The Judgment of Paris: California vs France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine , Scribner, ISBN   978-0-7432-4751-1

Coordinates: 38°30′05″N122°25′04″W / 38.501497°N 122.417865°W / 38.501497; -122.417865

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.