Every once in a while, we stray outside of our Napa borders to bring a gem of a vineyard into our family of wines. One such beauty is the Las Madres Vineyard, owned by John Painter and Jean Gadiot. These two stewards of the land watch carefully over their 8.5 acre vineyard, which is split into two blocks, each named for their mothers, Esther and Hulda. This vineyard is nestled into a naturally occurring “bowl” that creates excellent exposures to the sunlight throughout the growing season.

Growing Season
The 2019 growing season will be remembered as a “Goldilocks” vintage. Not too cold, not too hot . . . but just right. Late rains in May had growers biting their nails as these storms can cause damage to vines that are flowering, leading to reduced crop. However, sunshine won that battle and the rains disappeared giving way to a long, consistent growing season throughout the summer. No major heat events appeared during harvest time allowing for beautiful ripening at an even pace. Juuuust right.

Vinification
All fruit is hand harvested at night, preserving berry integrity. After a 5–7 day cold soak, the fruit is fermented with native yeast in open top tanks. The wine is then drawn off and the must placed into a basket press for gentle pressing. Malolactic fermentation is completed in oak barrels, where the wine will age for 18 months before final assembly just prior to bottling.

Tasting Notes
Winemakers love good gossip—the juicy, succulent, good dirt. Juicy gossip is how we found the Las Madres Vineyard on the Sonoma side of Carneros. This beautiful vineyard sits in a natural bowl and is farmed lovingly by John and Jean Painter. We are very thankful we received gossip on this site, as we were able to craft a lush and succulent Syrah from the good dirt!