NorthBay biz visits Napa’s Chiles Valley district for the latest installment of our Hidden Gems series.
Hidden to the east of Rutherford, just past Lake Hennessey, you’ll find the sliver of an AVA known as the Chiles Valley district. It’s one of the smallest of Napa’s AVAs (about 4,000 acres, with only 1,000 plantable) and also one of the coldest. It’s nothing like neighboring Pope Valley, which is typically at least 10 degrees warmer at any given time. Our destination does warm up on summer days, but its nights can sometimes cool down by 60 degrees. We’re talking major temperature swings, a higher risk for frost and a later growing season (by about three weeks) than the valley floor.
Even though Chiles Valley is located 15 minutes east of the Silverado Trail, it still has a great maritime influence. Apparently, you don’t have to live next to the ocean to feel the breeze. Open at both its northern and southern ends, the valley gets the same fog and cool breezes you’d find much closer to the coast. At the same time, it’s at an elevation of 800 to 1,300 feet (with some of its peaks stretching into the 2,000s), is surrounded by forests, and feels miles and miles away from Napa Valley. It’s rustic, charming, and its people are true individuals.
Looking back
Formerly referred to as “The High Valley,” the valley is named after Col. Joseph Ballinger Chiles, originally from Missouri, who first came to California in 1841 with a party of 30 men after reading an account of the state’s lushness. But when they first arrived, there had been a drought, and the men became upset; some even considered turning back.
When Chiles reached Sonoma, he came into contact with Gen. Vallejo, who took to him immediately. Chiles told Vallejo he wanted to start a grist mill (there wasn’t one in the area yet). He then searched from Monterey north and, when he crossed over at Rutherford and saw a split canyon, he made his way to the top of a hill, stood on a rock, looked out and said, “I wish to spend the rest of my days here.”
Apparently, it had rained since the first time he saw the place.
He came upon the Wappo Indians and was able to communicate with them using sign language. They told him the area was called “Catacula,” which translated to “Valley of Oaks.” There are still oak trees in the valley that are hundreds of years old.
Chiles went back to Vallejo, who granted him several thousand acres in the area, called “Rancho Catacula.” Chiles proceeded to build his mill between 1845-1856. It was the first flour mill in Northern California and remained in use until the 1880s. He also built an adobe (which included a jail), grew crops and raised mules and cattle there—he also made whiskey. It was one of John Charles Fremont’s first stops when he came to California to win it as a state, and while there he met with Chiles, George Yount and William Pope, among others. Chiles also served as vice president of the Society of California Pioneers, 1850 to 1853. Today the adobe still stands, but it’s on private property (the Dollar ranch).
The first vines were planted in the 1870s, and some of them are still alive today, since the valley was largely protected from phylloxera due to its secluded location. Swiss-Italian Anton Nichelini made his home there in 1884 and planted his first Zinfandel vines in 1890. Sons Bill and Joseph, with their father’s help, began planting additional vines in the 1920s. The facility, which still houses its original Roman press, is the oldest continuously family owned and operated winery in Napa Valley. Today, the winery, now run by third- and fourth-generation family members, focuses mostly on Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Sirah and Zinfandel, but also offers a Sauvignon Vert (a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle), a Primitivo and a Port-style dessert wine, made from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, called Cabaret. Nichelini is the only Chiles Valley winery that’s regularly open to the public, but only on weekends (you can make an appointment for a weekday visit if needed) All other wineries in the area offer tastings by appointment only.
The majority of Chiles Valley plantings include Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Some of the largest vineyard areas are owned by the Gallo family (which purchased Louis Martini’s property there several years ago), but it doesn’t use a designated Chiles Valley name on its bottlings. The area is without its own growers or vintners organization, which makes sense, since the growers and vintners there have each seemed to choose their own paths as far as making wine goes. But in the end, they’re each accomplished and highly acclaimed for their efforts, and are growing what they like to drink—and isn’t that the way it should be when making wine?
Volker Eisele Family Estate
Volker Eisele is a character and a half. He led the movement to designate Chiles Valley as its own AVA, yet he grows something entirely different than most other wineries in the area—and very well. He’s a perfect example of the valley’s cast of true individuals.
Originally from Muenster, Germany, he went to the oldest continuing high school in Europe. He received a scholarship to go to UC Berkeley in 1963, where he eventually met his wife Liesel.
The Eiseles used to visit Napa on a regular basis, and by circumstance, they’d often visited a place they liked that’s about five miles from their current location. When they decided to go into agriculture in the early 1970s, they already knew the people who owned the estate they eventually purchased. The original property owner was Francis Sievers, also a German immigrant, who built the winery (where the tasting room is now) and home in the 1860s. His family lived on the property until 1961. The original winery scale and press are still in the winery/tasting room, where the wine was originally gravity fed downstairs for barrel aging. Some other remnants from the past include a large pair of Tule Elk antlers over the winery door, a majestic valley oak that’s 700 years old and a buckeye tree, one of the oldest specimens in the area. There’s also an ornate, marbled wood, 1800s-era piano brought over by the Sievers, which today sits proudly in the tasting room.
The property is 400+ acres total, 60 of which are planted. The original grapes were planted long before prohibition, but Eisele has since replaced them with what he’s more interested in growing and enjoying—Bordeaux varietals. Turns out, Chiles Valley’s growing season is more along the lines of Bordeaux’s, as is its cooler climate. That’s why he chose to grow Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. He’s also planted some Syrah, but just for the wine club.
Family-owned and operated and fully organic, the winery produces about 7,000 cases annually, but it varies by year because the Eiseles only use estate fruit. Because of this, the family’s focus (the Eiseles have two children; son Alexander is following in his father’s footsteps, while daughter Christiane (currently an ER doctor in New Orleans) is ensuring its estate is the best it can possibly be. “I want [Alexander] to be extremely well-prepared for the time after me,” says Eisele, who’s farmed organically from the beginning.
“There was a time at UC Davis when the professors would tell you not to do that. I asked one about fertilizer for organic farming and he said, ‘Oh yes, you went to Berkeley; that’s why you farm organic,’ then laughed and said, ‘You’ll find out.’ Everybody thought I was an idiot. Now it’s ‘cutting-edge.’”
In the vineyard, the Merlot is planted with an eastern exposure (cool); Cabernet Sauvignon is planted with western exposure because it’s warmer and gets the afternoon sun. The big, strong vines have open-trellises so the sun and air can get between them.
In the bottle, Volker Eisele wines are elegant, multilayered and highly approachable, with the backbone to remain in the cellar if you can wait. The 2007 Gemini is a blend of 70 percent Semillon and 30 percent Sauvignon Blanc, aged in French oak. It has a sweet nose and crisp flavors with elements of apricots and figs. “I could call it Semillon, but people don’t understand [that varietal] well. Semillon ages in the bottle. So if you wait five to 10 years, it’s incredible,” says Eisele.
“The elements of a good wine are fruit, flavor, acidity and tannins,” he continues. “As wine ages, the fruit flavors integrate with the tannins and acidity.
“It’s the temperature that matters the most,” he continues, “not the soil. Yes, soil affects flavor. But the cooler years here are better—there are better tannins and acidity and not as much sugar. Balance is the key, especially if you want it to age.
“Ninety-five percent of what you drink starts in the field. It isn’t the winemaker who makes the wine; it’s the field. You can’t make good wine with the wrong vineyard. A lot of companies get away with it by blending. Here, we can’t do that. Our 60 acres have to deliver.
“Now that my son is involved in the business, we have to think of the future. I’m telling my kids everything so they don’t need to reinvent the wheel. We don’t have plans right now to expand, because it’s more important that the current 60 acres are in top shape.”
The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon was blended with 20 percent Merlot. It has dark fruit, with a blueberry/blackberry nose, anise and cocoa on palate, with great acid balance. “This is a Cab to go with a BMW,” he says. I have to agree.
The 2005 Terzetto is a blend of equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. “This is a woman’s wine,” says Eisele. “Generally, women think it’s fabulous.
“I was looking for a ‘fanciful’ name [for it]. One Saturday, I was home listening to Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutti opera and following along with the Italian text. When three people sing,the Italian word is terzetto. The word just jumped out at me.” The wine certainly sings. “The Merlot gives it a softness, so it’s more seductive,” he says. No wonder women like it.
Aside from those three offerings, Eisele also makes an exclusive, limited-production Cabernet Sauvignon called Alexander, after his son. It’s 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, the oldest block the family has (35 years old) and is aged in 100 percent new French oak.
So why not Zinfandel? “There are others in the valley who bank on Zinfandel,” he says. “It’s OK, it generally does well on Cabernet Sauvignon sites. But I wish more wineries here would make high-end Cabernet Sauvignon.”
To each his own—and that’s part of what makes Chiles Valley so unique.
RustRidge Ranch, Winery and B&B
One doesn’t always think of wine and racehorses going hand-in-hand. But at RustRidge Ranch, they absolutely do. There’s even an exercise track in one of the vineyard rows, where owner/trainer Jim Fresquez, who once worked with one of Seabiscuit’s trainers, M.E. “Buster” Millerick (and now owns Seabiscuit’s saddle and some tack) works his thoroughbreds.
“Buster had the strangest and most unbelievable personality,” says Fresquez. “I learned he became this way later in life because of his experience training Seabiscuit. Besides not getting credit for it, he hated the media circus Seabiscuit’s success created. When I asked what he thought of Silent Tom Smith [who did get the credit], his hands tightened on the reins and he looked off to the sky and said, ‘Once he got in that three-piece suit, he never got out of it.’ He was the kind of man that, if you talked to him too long, he’d punch you. He never submitted to an interview. There was a joke he played on young journalists to go interview him, so they’d go down [to the stable] and get chased out.”
Thank goodness I wasn’t one of those young journalists….
Jim’s wife Susan Meyer’s parents purchased the property from thoroughbred breeders (who also had cattle) in the early 1970s. So it seems fitting the family has kept the tradition (Susan’s mother purchased their first stud, named Napa Valley, in 1984). Aside from raising thoroughbreds, the idea was to plant grapes. So they spent a few years preparing the land and began planting in 1975. To prepare, they created reservoirs, since none existed on the property. (Chiles Valley is not entirely easy to irrigate, so providing one’s own water source is essential. There’s also a greater likelihood of severe frost in Chiles Valley than in other areas, so water-based frost protection is a must, since wind machines don’t work when temperatures dip below 30 degrees.) Their first harvest was in 1980-1981. In 1985, they were established as a winery.
RustRidge is named for how the sun sets over the valley’s hills, but its theme is horses. It even has a second label: Racehorse White (a fruity Chardonnay with pear, jasmine, almond and vanilla elements) and Racehorse Red (a blend of Cabernet, Zinfandel and sometimes Petite Sirah, with a spicy nose and palate).
And as if racehorses and winemaking weren’t enough, RustRidge also has a bed and breakfast (ranch style, of course). So with Fresquez doing the training as well as marketing for the winery, and Meyer handling winemaking (with help from partner/consultant Ken Rosenblum) and general management of all three businesses, everything somehow gets done.
The house, which serves as the bed and breakfast, was built in the late 1930s. “It was the only way to stay here, essentially,” says Meyer. “People would come and visit and they’d all want to stay.”
The home has a commercial kitchen where a ranch-style breakfast is prepared, and where guests can also cook. Wine tasting and appetizers are served in the afternoons. One of the reasons guests may want to cook is that Chiles Valley doesn’t offer any restaurants. And although St. Helena is only about 15 minutes away, it seems much farther removed. It could be the rustic landscape and secluded estates, or it might be the chill in the air.
“There’s a lot of pepper, cinnamon, clove and other spice in Chiles Valley wines,” Meyer says. “It carries into all varietals.” Her style is to bring the fruit into the bottle with little intervention. She picks the grapes at a pretty high brix level (24 or 26), even Sauvignon Blanc. “It’s not your typical style of Sauvignon Blanc,” she says. “We ferment it in neutral oak, sur lies, and it’s smoother and creamier but still crisp.”
The winery’s biggest production is Zinfandel and Cabernet. The 2006 Zinfandel has bright red fruit and pepper. The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon will be released this spring. Chardonnay production is sometimes diminished because of frost (the 2006 has elements of honey, butterscotch and citrus blossom). It’s also organically farmed, and while young plants have drip lines to get them going, the vineyards are mostly dry farmed. “Overhead frost protection is necessary, but if there’s a drought, there may not be enough water in the reservoirs to protect the vines,” says Meyer. All together, the winery produces about 3,000 cases per year.
“For the most part, Chiles Valley is unpretentious. We do have one castle [she laughs]. Otherwise it’s pretty low key,” says Meyer.
Green & Red Vineyard
Jay Heminway, owner and winemaker at Green & Red Vineyard, describes his wine as “reflective of the site.” The winery is named for its red iron and serpentine green soils. “People ask me if Green & Red refers to chilies, and if that’s why the wine is so spicy,” he laughs. (Probably because they don’t know how to pronounce Chiles Valley properly either—but you do!)
Heminway moved to Chiles Valley from Berkeley in 1970, but says he wasn’t really looking to grow grapes. The dilapidated 160-acre property [it’s now 200, with only 31 planted to vineyards] “needed a lot of work but was remote and very pretty.” It ranges from 900 to 2,000 feet in elevation, and its three vineyard sites each have their own elevation and exposure.
It also had a vineyard (which he now calls the Catacula Vineyard and is at 1,400 feet) that was originally planted in the 1890s and still had some live rootstock vines when he arrived. He decided to prune and train them, and found they were French hybrid grapes. Today it’s planted to Zinfandel, as is most of his planted land, with the exception of two acres each of Sauvignon Blanc, Petite Sirah and Syrah.
Heminway began making his own wine in 1977, with a yield of 300 cases. Today he makes about 5,000 cases per year (and a bit of olive oil for friends and family).
The vineyard that surrounds the property’s home, at 1,000 feet elevation, is the Chiles Mill vineyard, named as such because it’s planted near where Chiles’ mill once stood. Its highest vineyard, at 1,750 feet, is called Tip Top. Both the Catacula and Tip Top vineyards face northeast. The entire property is powered by solar (22 kilowatts).
“The industry has changed dramatically since 1972,” he says. “When the winery became bonded in 1977, there were 18 wineries in Napa. Now there are around 500. This area, surprisingly enough, has changed very little. Large parcels haven’t been subdivided.” He gives a nod to Volker Eisele’s advocacy regarding land use for some of that.
“People like this area mostly for its red varieties. Zin historically does well. The vines tend to have a lower pH and higher acid, which makes for very structured, stable, multidimensional wines,” he says.
“The soils aren’t very fertile, and Zinfandel grows well on the hillside. The Tip Top Vineyard is steeply terraced. The two highest vineyards [which are as much as 30 percent sloped] miss the very hot hours in the summer due to their north/northeast exposure, which is good, because Zin and Petite Sirah are prone to sunburn and shriveling, so less southern exposure always helps. People also find that by planting east to west, the canopy will shade the fruit more. You’ll notice with white varieties especially; one side is more ripe than the other if there’s not enough shade.”
Like many wineries in the area, the vines are monitored carefully with soil moisture probes and micro-irrigated as necessary, since there’s a limited water supply.
The 2007 Chiles Mill Zinfandel is earthy with a peppery aroma and spicy flavors. Lively on the palate, it’s very fun with bright red fruits and acidity.
“The Tip Top vineyard has riper grapes; so the wine is more full-bodied and jammy,” he says. The Chiles Canyon Vineyards Zinfandel is a blend of all three vineyards, and is the largest in production. It also has bright, spicy elements.
The winery will be releasing the 2008 Chiles Canyon Vineyards Zinfandel soon. The 2007 Chiles Canyon got put into the top 100 wines in the San Francisco Chronicle and also got a best buy in Wine Spectator. Looks like some people have already discovered this particular hidden gem.
Brown Estate Vineyards
When Bassett and Marcela Brown purchased their Chiles Valley property in 1981, it included 450 acres, a run-down 1885 Victorian and a barn that was built in 1859—when Abraham Lincoln was running for president. But they knew at first sight it was the place for them.
They moved from Pasadena, not full-time at first, and spent years completely renovating the house and barn (which now serves as the winery and tasting room). Bassett (from Jamaica), a retired physician, and Marcela (from Panama), a retired medical administrator, have three children: David, now the winegrower/winemaker; Coral, director of sales and marketing; and Deneen, who’s the company president. And it was the kids who got the winery business going.
In the beginning, they planted Zinfandel grapes and sold them to White Zinfandel producers. In 1995, some red Zinfandel grapes were sold. In 1996, Brown Estate started custom crushing at Rombauer Vineyards, where Duane Dappen was assistant winemaker. The following year, they brought Dappen on board as consulting winemaker. This year, they’re celebrating 30 years of grapegrowing and their 15th crush. They no longer sell their grapes (except to Dappen, who uses them for his D-Cubed Cellars Brown Vineyard Zinfandel) and have planted more than 50 acres of mostly Zinfandel (they make three kinds) as well as some Cabernet Sauvignon, a bit of Chardonnay, Petite Sirah and Tempranillo.
Brown Estate isn’t open to the public, but offers tastings by appointment and numerous events throughout the year for its wine club members. February 1 marked the release of the family’s first Petite Sirah (made with purchased grapes—the Petite Sirah on the property was just planted, so will take a few years to mature). The release party that day began in the family’s home, where guests learned about the estate’s history and about its proprietors. From there, a tour through the wine caves (they were finished in 2005) ended up in the tasting room, which is on the bottom floor of the original barn, and can be entered via the caves.
Inside, there were absolutely delicious pairings for the various wines being poured, as well as fun music being piped in and a lot of happy, friendly people. One regular event they hold there is a Kentucky Derby party, where the race is projected onto one of the room’s walls. Looks like the RustRidge folks aren’t the only horse racing fans in the valley.
The winery produces three Zinfandels (Napa Valley, which is rich in texture and has nice acidity; Chiles Valley, which is very bright and has lower alcohol levels; and Westside, which is jammier and has a higher alcohol content), all from different vineyards, and a little something for everyone. It also offers Chaos Theory (a Cabernet/Zinfandel blend originally made for the Napa Premiere event), Cabernet Sauvignon and a very limited amount of Chardonnay and Petite Sirah. A Sauvignon Blanc (also with purchased grapes) will be released this summer. About 75 percent of the production is devoted to Zinfandel.
“Zinfandel is a relaxed and friendly wine without a direct European line, so it can be more diverse and fun,” says Dappen, who is the current president of Zinfandel Advocates and Producers (ZAP), which will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year. “It can be whatever you want.
“The Zinfandel from Chiles Valley, in particular, has higher acidity, black cherry and is brighter, softer and more supple. We’re known for Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley, but we also have some great Zinfandel producers. It can grow where Cabernet Sauvignon grows, but not always vice versa.”
Dappen’s 2006 D-Cubed Brown Vineyard Zinfandel has a raspberry/caramel nose with some cherry. It’s a 100 percent Zinfandel with a lot of texture in the mouth. Not sweet or dry, it has good acid balance and is rich on the palate without a lot of tannins.
The Brown Estate Chaos Theory is really fun and lively. “It has the front and back palate pleasers of Cabernet Sauvignon, then Zinfandel fills in the middle,” says Dappen. “It’s a wonderful, rich wine that goes with a lot of dishes, even heavier meat ones.”
I couldn’t agree more. Think I’ll take some along next time I go to a party.
