Tag: rhone

Tucked in a quiet spot, just two miles south of the flag pole in downtown Los Olivos, California, Beckmen Vineyards has spent the last two decades earning its reputation as one of the nation’s premier producers of Rhône varietals.

The winery was founded in 1994 by Tom Beckmen and his son Steve. Tom, who grew up on a farm outside of Chicago, began searching for promising vineyard property in the early 1990s. He purchased an existing small winery on 40 acres and established Beckmen Vineyards. Two years later, Tom and Steve purchased another parcel: an amazing unplanted 365-acre Santa Ynez Valley ranch.

David Girard vineyards in Placerville, California, is dedicated to creating classic Rhône wines that capture the true character of El Dorado County. The winery was founded by David Girard after he fell in love with Châteauneuf-du-Pape on a trip to France's Rhône valley.

David, an attorney and former college professor, was intrigued with the similarity between the terroir of the Rhône Valley and that of his home in El dorado County, in the heart of the Sierra Foothills.

Nestled against the northern flank of the Santa Ynez Mountains in California, and just south of the Santa Ynez River, Refugio (rey-FOO-he-o) Ranch is a splendid, rustic 415-acre estate dotted with oak trees and 26 strategically planted vineyard acres. Owners Kevin and Niki Gleason and their family planted the vineyard and remain its careful shepherds as they sustainably farm the grapes in blocks, and at harvest, pick them by hand in the cool of the night.

The Gleasons are extremely grateful for the expert knowledge of vineyard manager Ruben Solorzano (they call him the Grape Whisperer)

The name Hope appears in every chapter of the 30-plus year wine industry history of Paso Robles, California. Chuck Hope planted one of the first vineyards just east of the Salinas River in 1978, and helped establish the Paso Robles region’s solid reputation for high quality grape growing. He helped other vineyards get their start and helped found what is now the Paso Robles Wine Alliance.

Chuck’s son, Austin Hope, grew up sharing his father’s passion for grape growing and the Paso Robles region, and became a winemaker. Today, this innovative farming family owns Hope Family Wines, producer of the Liberty School, Treana, Candor, Troublemaker, and Austin Hope brands.

Robert Hall Winery bears the name of its founder, Robert Hall, an industrious entrepreneur who decided he wanted to own a winery during a family trip to France in the late 1970s. Robert was drawn in particular to Rhône varietals and—after a thorough search—he knew the terroir he was looking for was in Paso Robles, California. With the vision of building a winery that could handle a case production of 100,000 or more, he acquired his first vineyard, Home Ranch, in 1995, and Terrace and Bench vineyards shortly thereafter.