1991 Jade Mountain Provencale

Jade Mountain in Napa Valley was founded in 1984 when San Francisco attorney Jim Paras purchased 22 acres on the eastern slope of Mount Veeder. By the late 1990s the estate was producing 10,000 cases annually of Syrah, Merlot, Mourvedre and Viognier. In 2000 the estate was purchased by the Chalone Group, a conglomerate of wine and spirits companies, and in 2004 the Chalone Group was purchased by the international beverage group Diageo. Jade has always been well known for its estate Syrah. Today the estate sources grapes from Lake County, Napa County and Sonoma County. Jade produces red and white Rhone Style blends called la Provencale, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay.

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,