|
|
theCompass mobile application is a winery, brewery, and distillery locator for North America. |
|
|
Schweiger Vineyards
|
|
In 1960, Fred Schweiger's parents, Tony and Theresa Schweiger, purchased 53 acres on Spring Mountain and in 1961; Fred purchased an additional eight acres. The property, located at an elevation of 2,000 feet (above the fog line), features rich volcanic soils and unique microclimates particularly favorable for Cabernet Sauvignon. Clearing for vineyard purposes did not begin until the late 1970's and was started as a result of slow times for Schweiger Construction, partly because of high interest rates. Fred was able to maintain his construction crew of four men keeping them busy preparing the Spring Mountain property for grape vines. During the clearing process, old redwood hand split grape stakes spaced at 1x1 meter intervals were discovered, reconfirming the notion that the property had once been a prime viticulture area dating back to the late 1870's. The first Schweiger vines were planted in 1981 and the first harvest was in 1984. For the first 10 years, the Schweigers sold their fruit to Joe Cafaro, ZD, Newton and Stags Leap Winery. In 1994, Schweiger Vineyards became a bonded winery and the family began bottling wine under their own label, though they continued to sell most of their grapes to contracted wineries. Finally, in 1999, Andrew Schweiger joined the winery as the full-time winemaker. The family discontinued selling their grapes and began using 100 percent of their estate fruit for Schweiger Vineyards wine. As wine production increased, additional winery square footage became necessary and construction was completed on the new fermentation room in 2002. Additionally, the garden terrace area, used by the family for entertaining during the seasonal fair weathered months, was completed in 2002. Today, Schweiger Vineyards includes 25 acres of cabernet, five acres of merlot, four acres of chardonnay and, a small block of petite sirah (yielding 200 750 m. bottles per year). Annual harvest yields vary from 1.5 to 3.5 tons per acre.
|
|
|
Directions
From Highway 101 - Santa Rosa: Take 101 to Santa Rosa. Take the Sonoma-Sebastopol/Highway 12 EAST exit. Follow the Highway 12 toward Sonoma signs. Go 1.4 miles to the stoplight at Farmer's Lane. Turn left on Farmer's Lane. Go .9 miles to Fourth Street/Highway 12. Turn right on Highway 12 at the Flamingo Hotel. Go 2.4 miles to Calistoga Rd. Turn left on Calistoga Rd. Go 3.3 miles to St. Helena Rd. Turn right on St. Helena Rd. Go 6.6 miles (check your mileage at the corner of St. Helena Rd. and Calistoga Rd.) to the vista point look out of the Napa Valley (left hand side of the road). Look for our sign at the driveway. Ring the call button at the gated entry. From Highway 29 - St. Helena: From Napa, take Highway 29 North to the third traffic light in St. Helena. Turn left on Madrona. (From Calistoga, take Highway 29 South and turn right on Madrona at the first traffic light in St. Helena). Go three blocks on Madrona and take a right on Spring Mountain Rd. (sign will say Santa Rosa - 20 miles (Check your mileage at the corner of Madrona and Spring Mountain Rd.)) Go 4.9 miles up Spring Mountain Rd. to the vista point look-out of the Napa Valley (right hand side of the road). Look for our sign at the driveway. Ring the call button at the gated entry.
View Map
|
View Weather
Cabernet Sauvignon
At long last, we are pleased to release our 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon…and heaven knows we made you wait! The complexity and depth of character of the 2001 harvest inspired a new direction in winemaking for us; adding a third year of barrel aging to our Cabernet program. Doing this enabled us to further soften and round out the full mountain fruit that is “classic Schweiger.” The color is deep and inky. The nose is intensely layered and very fruit forward, led by blackberry, currant, pomegranate, and plum. Very subtle layers of cigar box/cedar and well-integrated oak further complement the aroma. Careful tannin management has blessed this wine with a full and velvety structure. The sweet supple entry crescendos into a deeply intense middle. The fruit characters from the nose fill the mouth as the tannins build and combine to create a pleasant lingering finish.
|
Chardonnay
Our 2003 Chardonnay is a full bodied wine with true varietal characteristics, hints of pear, kiwi, apricots, with delicate undertones of oak, spice, and a slight flinty note. The body of the wine is rich and supple, filling the mouth with soft fruit flavors. The true nature of Spring Mountain District Chardonnay comes through in the mineral character, more reminiscent of a white premier cru Burgundy or Chablis than your typical "buttery" California Chardonnay. This wine is best served between 60ºF and 68ºF.
|
Chardonnay
|
Dedication™
During the harvest of 2000, one lot of Cabernet Sauvignon took on the most intense, inky character I had ever observed from our estate vineyards as early as the second day of fermentation. With the broad structure this wine possessed early on, I realized that it should be balanced with more oak complexity than we typically use, in this case, 100% French Oak. Once I established that the Schweiger Vineyards “traditional label” Cabernet Sauvignon would surpass the quality of previous vintages, I set about making this one small lot by itself. The proprietary name Dedication™ was chosen to reflect towards our continued dedication to quality from vineyard to bottle.
|
Merlot
2001 was a dream of a growing year which produced rich, ripe fruit flavors. Our Merlot continues to maintain its signature style of a 'Cabernet drinker's Merlot.' It is unique in the world...being one of the few 100% varietally pure Merlots. The wine has a bright nose full of mixed berry and black cherry, with soft layers of cocoa, cedar, toast, hazelnut, and caramel. On the mouth, vibrant fruit shows off a richly layered mid-palate with a lingering finish.
|
Port V
This is the "Fifth Edition" port from the Schweiger family. From our estate Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, we created this smooth, intense port. Crushing of the berries is minimized to increase color extraction resulting in a fermentor filled with whole berries. During the fermentation, the wine is punched down three to four times a day, slowly liberating juice from the berries to the fermenting must. Around twelve degrees brix is when the real magic occurs: the brandy addition. The brandy is produced from wine made from either Pinot Noir or Chenin Blanc grapes, which is then double distilled in a traditional alambic still to 143 proof. The sudden spike in alcohol content from the brandy addition arrests the fermentation, leaving the natural sugar from the grape in the finished wine. The wine is then aged solera style, with different vintages being blended together to produce the most complex aromas and flavors possible. Enjoy with family and friends.
|
Sauvignon Blanc
This is our fourth release of Sauvignon Blanc from Uboldi Vineyards in Kenwood, CA. As always, our goal is to preserve the fresh fruit quality while enhancing the mouth feel. The aromatics of this wine blend a broad spectrum from lemongrass, citrus, and green apples to gooseberry, melon, and tropical fruits. This wine is best served between 52 and 58 degrees F (an average refrigerator after two hours.
|
Add New Review
|
|