Winery History

Greetings..

I started my wine journey like many knowing nothing. I came to the Napa Valley after my father’s death, to help mother prepare this property for sale. Within a month of my arrival my mother had died, what was I to do? I had inherited half of a very lovely property near Calistoga and since I didn’t have very many prospects for future jobs I decided what the hell why not plant a vineyard and start a winery. Everybody else had one.

I planted a vineyard and filed the proper authorities for the necessary permits and started a winery. My first Vintage was less than good. I bought better grapes for my second vintage and my Bordeaux style blend was the Wine of the week in the L. A. Times 1/25/90. My own vineyard produced for the third year and I was off and running. The lesson? Good grapes make good wine. My vineyard produced excellent grapes, which were in demand by some of the most renowned wineries. I decided that the grapes should make the wine and it was my job to treat them in the best manner possible, keep them clean, blend them to their best potential, put them in the best cooperage that I could afford and they would do the rest. This has been my philosophy since the beginning, harvest the grapes at what I believe is their peak flavor to reach a soft subtle elegant wine with long lasting qualities, one which is pleasant tasted alone and superb when married to fine food. My wines are very approachable when first released and tend to last at least ten years after bottling, my 1992’s are drinking very well right now and probably have a few years to age.

I failed to mention that early in the process I met James Yerkes an oenology advisor who has been my support since about 1988. Jim has put up with me for all these years and has been instrumental in my successes and absolved of any failures of which there have been none.

Richard Graeser
Owner & Winemaker