N.V. Caldwell Vineyards The Outlier

Caldwell Winery is in Napa. The 123-acre Caldwell Vineyard is a grape source for such vintners as Merus, Pahlmeyer, Joseph Phelps, Patz & Hall and other artisanal Napa producers. The estate grows numerous grapes, from Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay to Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Carmenere, among others. The estate was founded and is still owned by John Caldwell, a Napa Valley legend for having planted grape clones from Bordeaux on his land in 1984. No one else was experimenting with French clones at the time, and though he was a shoe store owner and developer, completely lacking in formal agriculture or winemaking education, Caldwell’s imported clones thrived. He later went into the business of importing them. His vineyards still grow primarily French clones. Cadwell focused on growing high quality grapes until the late 1990s, when he started making wine under his own label.

Carneros AVA, also known as Los Carneros, is at the southern end of the Napa and Sonoma Valleys at the top of the San Francisco Bay. The 8,000 vineyard acres are mostly planted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, both of which thrive in the district’s cool, marine climate. Carneros became an AVA in 1983 and it has attracted foreign wine companies along with local producers. It has been especially appealing to European producers of sparkling wines including the giant Spanish cava producers Codorniu and Frexinet, and the French Champagne house Taittinger. Codorniu in Carneros is called Artesa, and Frexinet’s Carneros brand is Gloria Ferrer. Taittinger calls its Carneros winery Domaine Carneros. The European producers also make still wines in Carneros. ?