Images Courtesy of Suzanne Becker Bronk
The Mt. Veeder AVA is one of the coolest of Napa Valley's mountain AVAs and the rugged mountain terrain of this AVA results in low grape yields and high ageability of its wines.
The Mount Veeder AVA is a sub-appellation of the Napa Valley AVA and is located in Napa Valley, California, on the eastern slopes of the Mayacamas Range that separates Napa Valley and the Sonoma Valley. Because of its proximity to San Pablo Bay and its steep, mostly east-facing slopes which enjoy the gentle morning sun, Mt. Veeder is the coolest of Napa Valley's mountain AVAs. Therefore, the Cabernets tend to be very high in tannin and acidity and are capable of great age. Many Mt. Veeder Cabernets also feature a distinct mintiness.
This is one of Napa Valley’s largest AVAs yet is one of the least planted, due in large part to the extreme cragginess of the terrain. The few locations genial enough to host vineyards tend to be rather small in size, so Mount Veeder is mostly home to small-scale artisan operations. Mount Veeder’s soils are a complex jumble of substrates (Franciscan Mélange), with only the rare pocket of volcanic material.
The Mount Veeder AVA is named after the Reverend Peter V. Veeder, who was a Presbyterian pastor in the 1850's. The exact date when his name was applied to the area is unknown, although the name Mount Veeder is mentioned in "The History of Napa and Lake Counties", published in 1881. Mount Veeder is the most prominent peak in the area at over 2677 feet elevation and has been acknowledged as a significant wine producing area since the 1870's . The first winery in the area was built by John Hein in 1880 and six other wineries were known to exist in the area by the mid 1880's.
Wine production in the Mount Veeder area was significantly diminished with the onset of Phylloxera in the late 1880's and while some small scale winegrowing remained, many of those producers later converted to grape juice, or were closed by the passing of Prohibition in 1920. One of the only wine producers allowed to continue production during Prohibition was the Christian Brothers, or "Brothers of the Christian Schools", a religious Catholic group devoted to education. The Christian Brothers produced Altar Wines, or wines made specifically for use as Communion wine and intended for use as part of the celebration of the Eucharist. However, after the passing of the 21st Amendment in 1933, the Christian Brothers began making table wines as well, from their Mont LaSalle winery on Mount Veeder.
Since prohibition, wine production in the Mount Veeder AVA has continued to grow, with over 1000 acres of land planted with grapevines and over 35 vintners producing wine. Mount Veeder was officially recognized as an American Viticultural Area in 1990.
"The Mount Veeder AVA encompasses a large area but it is so rugged that the vineyards are mostly small and isolated, constituting a patchwork when viewed from above. Mount Veeder combines the shallow soil of its mountain location with the cool marine air flowing up from the nearby San Pablo Bay, a combination that yields small berries of concentrated complexity."
- Carole Meredith, Lagier Meredith Vineyard
From Robin Williams' 17 acre Pym Rae vineyard situated at 1850' on the north end of the Mount Veeder AVA. The rocky, sparse, Franciscan soils and the vines which are over 25 years old produce a dense, deeply colored and powerful wine each year from this vineyard site. There is an abundance of fruit to balance the massive tannins present in the finished wine. 2015 will be our final vintage buying the fruit from this property which will now go to the Tesserons of Pontet Canet fame. In 2016 we will harvest fruit from the neighboring vineyard that we purchased this year. The 2014 wine is numerically humongous, yet it has managed to retain a class and suppleness that are hallmarks of the site.
A single vineyard Viognier from a vineyard high up on Mount Veeder.
Our 22-acre Sage Vineyard estate, perched atop Mount Veeder, is comprised of 30 distinct vineyard blocks of Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon, each with unique soil, water, and sun aspects. Modeled to compete with the finest blends from France, Tuscany, and beyond and produced only in certain vintages, Sage Vineyard wines are powerful, polished, and uniquely site- and vintage-expressive, displaying the complex aromas and flavors of their varietals and hillside origins.
Alpha Omega’s Drew Vineyard takes its name from George Drew, who first purchased this property in 1889. Realizing the amazing potential of this vineyard, Alpha Omega acquired the property in 2015. 1,500 feet up Mount Veeder on the slopes of the Mayacamas Mountain range, this site is comprised of 18 acres of well-drained, rocky soils producing small clusters of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes high in both flavors and tannins.
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