Joseph Phelps Vineyards
Founded in 1972, Joseph Phelps Vineyards is
an independent, estate-based winery located outside of St. Helena.
Perched on a knoll in bucolic Spring Valley, the graceful redwood
winery overlooks vineyard-studded hills, the town of St. Helena and
the Mayacamas Mountains to the west.
Phelps has developed estate-owned vineyards in the premiere growing
regions of Stag's Leap, Rutherford, Oakville, Oak Knoll and the
eastern foothills of Napa. In Sonoma County, an ambitious project
was undertaken in 1999 to purchase land and develop vineyards along
the western frontier of the Sonoma Coast, and today Phelps has 80
acres of Pinot Noir and 20 acres of Chardonnay planted in Freestone.
A small winery in the midst of the Freestone vineyards is currently
under construction.
Varietals produced annually at Phelps include
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Backus Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon,
Insignia (one of California's most successful first growth luxury
blends), Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, several Rhône-style wines, and
a luscious dessert wine made from Scheurebe.
Joe Phelps pioneered a number of "firsts" in the early years of the
winery. The 1974 Insignia — released in the spring of 1978 — was the
first Bordeaux-style blend produced in California under a
proprietary label. The release of the 1974 Syrah in 1977 sparked
industry-wide interest in a remarkable French varietal whose
plantings in California had disappeared and been virtually forgotten
for over half a century. And in 1990, after years of research, a
whole new family of Rhône-style wines was introduced which today
includes Syrah, Viognier and a Chateauneuf-du-Pape style blend
called Le Mistral.
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