The Gate The Vineyards
The Cave
The Barrels The Wine
The Tanks The Man
John Caldwell John and Joy Caldwell
Caldwell Winery, www.caldwellvineyard.com, John Caldwell’s plan was to build houses, develop a site which had beautiful views, then some activists wanted open space..what was the real estate markets loss was the wine markets gain. The area had some vineyards, so he took a chance that these hillsides could produce the great fruit that the valleys did..lucky for him and us, they could and did. It might of been his roots which had been involved in some area of the winemaking business for some 120 years in California, or it was just meant to be. A trip to France, some study, some research, led him to plant in 1982 and harvest his first Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc in 1985. Positive results led to building a nursery to supply the best clones and rootstock from France to the areas top vineyards. He went on to supply grapes to renown names such as Pahlmeyer, Joseph Phelps, Mura, Maris, Neiman and Viader. He launched his own label in 1998 with 400 cases of a proprietary red wine from the best blocks in the vineyard, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot. In 2002, he started the big dig, and built the caves that now house his wineries production, storage and tasting room.
The current wine list consists of a 2007 Merlot; 2007 Tannat; 2008 Chardonnay; 2007 Petit Verdot; 2007 Syrah (clone 174); 2007 Syrah (clone 300); 2008 Syrah Rose; 2007 Syrah Port; 2007 Rocket Science; 2006 Silver; 2006 Gold. We were treated to a awesome tasting in “The Cave”, which is a round room within the Cave which is used as the tasting Room. John and his wife Joy, had set a table of cheese and bread goodies to be paired with their great wine. We tried the Caldwell Sauvignon Blanc, now I am not a huge Sav Blanc fan but this was full bodied not wimple white, it was zesty and smooth, his Syrah Rose blew us away..I am really not a Rose fan but this wine had body and was delicious. I have been a big fan for years of his special blend called Rocket Science, which has the coolest bottle in the business, tapered from wider at the bottom to smaller at the top like a rocket ship, the wine is big, smooth and has a great mouth feel, the Silver and Gold are Cabernets at the best level. The Petit Verdot was special as was the Port. Visits are by appointment only and are so, so worth the visit if you plan on being in and around the City of Napa. The views are beautiful and the vineyards are vast, a heaven on earth. For a more in depth article on John Caldwell that is a great read see The World Of Fine Wine, Issue #24.
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