Place
van Z is comprised of two tons of the best fruit from exceptional estate vineyards in Sonoma County: Magnolia Farms and van Z.
PLACE
van Z Vineyards® is comprised of four tons of the best fruit from exceptional estate vineyards: Magnolia Farms and van Z. Veteran winemaker Matt Smith leverages a pedigree earned from his time at Maison Joseph Drouin in Burgundy, Mitchelton Wines in Australia and a sole focus on wines from the North Coast of California over the last twenty years to employ a gentle, artisan approach to winemaking. He ensures that each bottle is a true testament to a commitment to excellence and conveys the place from which it came.
MAGNOLIA FARMS ESTATE VINEYARD
The 10-acre Magnolia Farms estate vineyard, just outside of Healdsburg, sits on the southernmost reach of the Dry Creek Valley, where Dry Creek meets the Russian River Valley in a climate that is considered perfect for Burgundian varieties – and it doesn't disappoint. Owned by the vanZutphen family for 15 years, it is the source of the van Z single-vineyard estate Chardonnay and home to the barn, a private retreat where guests discover the stories and passion behind the award-winning, small-batch wines while experiencing private tastings and curated gatherings in a welcoming and relaxed setting.
VAN Z ESTATE VINEYARD
A highly prized, 5-acre vineyard planted in the '80s and located in the St. Helena AVA in Napa Valley, known for some of the region's most prized Cabernet Sauvignon. Owned by the vanZutphen family for 20+ years, they originally sold the fruit to prestige wine brands; it is now home to the single-vineyard estate van Z Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyard is planted to an unknown clone of St. George rootstock and dry-farmed the old-school way with widely spaced rows and no trellising, which produces exquisite fruit.
It's been 9 harvests since Ben & Kelly decided to pull two tons of the best fruit from each vineyard, and the van Z estate Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon continue to evolve through Matt's expert guidance from the vineyard through fermentation and into the bottle. The wines are approachable and always surprise and delight – not to mention - win a few awards. Matt has produced 50+ wines with 90-point or higher scores from significant publications throughout his career, and van Z is very lucky to have him on the team. The 2018 van Z Estate Cabernet Sauvignon received a Double Gold, 97 points from the Sunset International Wine Competition recently.
