Chappellet Vineyards

Pritchard Hill, Napa, CA

We thought our day of tasting a month or so ago where we tasted at both Hunnicutt and Titus Vineyards was fantastic, well the day of tasting we had last Sunday was equally if not better than that one.  We tasted at three new (to us) wineries last weekend and had lunch at Hall Vineyards in St. Helena, where we are members.  Two of the three wineries were fantastic while the third (name not to be mentioned) was horrible (and really had no business being this way).  The next two weeks we’ll talk about our two great stops at Chappellet and Larkmead both located in the Napa area.

 

Chappellet is on Pritchard Hill which is Highway 128 turning up from Conn Creek Winery off the Silverado Trail.  A couple of the other wineries up this way are Kuleto and Brown Family, and I think there are some really high-end establishments up this way also.  Turning up from the reservoir the Chappellet vineyards reside at 800 to 1800 feet.  Chappellet is a family organization and one of the oldest post-prohibition wineries in Napa.  The winery was started by Molly and Donn Chappellet in 1967.  Both are still active in the organization.  In fact the single magnum of Cabernet I purchased on our visit was signed by Donn. 

Tasting Room Entrance

The head winemaker at Chappallet is none other than Phillip Titus, the partner in Titus Vineyards where we had tasted and loved the wines just last month.  Phillip joined Chappellet in 1981, left for a few years to pursue other winemaking interests, and then returned in 1990 and has been there ever since.  Having been with Chappellet for so long according to Phillip has given him the opportunity to have a good knowledge of every block of grapes on the property.

 

Chappellet is an appointment only winery.  In fact there is not even a sign at the base of the road that leads up to the property.  You find the address and eventually there are a couple of signs pointing here and there up to the winery.  The winery itself has a large roof that blends into the hillside and you barely see the building as you arrive.  The Chappellet’s have built a new facility where much of the winemaking operations will soon move into and this too blends into the landscape.  We strolled up the natural wooded path to the winery entrance and found the two large glass doors leading into the waiting room.  We arrived a few minutes early for our 10AM appointment and eventually were seated at the tasting table inside the winery.  The table had been set with three glasses, one for water, one for wine and the third for the Pritchard Hill Cabernet.   



Tasting Room Table inside the winery

Our host was Gabriel.  Gabriel has been with the winery four years and is one of the most likable hosts we have ever run into.  He had a lot of information to convey with each wine but never came off as arrogant or wordy.  He was a big part of our excellent tasting.  We were joined by five young women from San Francisco, three of whom were wine club members, who were running a bit late, but this only meant we had to revisit our first pour.  This group also enhanced our tasting experience and for a couple of reasons; they were a fun and knowledgeable group of gals and because they were wine club members we got to participate in a couple of bonus pours. 

 

The first pour was a Chenin Blanc.  I’m sure most of you agree that your first white wine taste in a day is usually pretty good and this was.  And it was nice to have a white wine that was not Sauv Blanc or Chardonnay but just a nice wine with subtle floral aromas and fruit flavors.  The Chardonnay was nice also.  It had subtle oak and little malolactic flavors, just nice fruit.  But again the reds are what Chappellet is known for and they were all terrific.  Because of our wine club tasting partners we were able to taste a Pinot Noir that does not even appear on the wine list.  And then we tasted three Cabernets.  The first was the 2010 Signature Cabernet grown on property.  Now of course it was early in the day but, wow did this taste good.  We then had the 2009 Pritchard Hill Cabernet which is the limited production pinnacle of Chappellet winemaking.  This was poured in a special larger glass and was also excellent.  For the price, $52.00 vs. $135.00, I thought the first Cabernet was the deal.  We then tasted another wine club wine, the 100% Clone 4 Cabernet.  You certainly noticed the difference between the blends of the first two Cabernets from this 100% wine.  The Clone 4 was a bigger, more tannic wine, but still excellent.

The tasting went fast.  We sat at the tasting table more than an hour but had to get a move on.  What a great spot.  Everything about the tasting was great.  The normal fee for this tasting is $25.00 and it was well worth it (although we received a complimentary tasting through our GEMS program).  At some wineries you pay this fee and sit in a large tasting room where the host is servicing four or five groups.  At Chappellet, Gabriel was dedicated to our table of nine.   This is an appointment only tasting and I would recommend this tasting to anyone. 

 

What we liked- The ride up to the winery, the private nature of the winery, the location and grounds, the tasting in the winery, the host Gabriel, and of course the wines.

What we bought- We bought a magnum of the Signature Cabernet.  What better way is there to revisit our great tasting experience than with a big bottle of wine with friends?   

 

Vitals- 

Chappellet

1581 Sage Canyon Road

St. Helena, CA  94574

(800) 494-6379

www.chappellet.com