VINEYARDS
THE APPELLATIONS BEHIND WILLIAMSON WINES
Where Our Wines Begin
We find the place where each grape can become its finest wine.
Northern California gives us mountain vineyards, cool coastal valleys, volcanic hillsides, ancient riverbeds and a remarkable range of growing conditions.
Each appellation contributes something different. Some give us fragrance and freshness. Others provide color, structure, richness or the ability to age.
Open an appellation to discover what we grow there, what makes the place distinctive and how its fruit finds its way into Williamson wines.
EXPLORE THE APPELLATIONS
Different Places. Distinctive Wines.
Every accordion begins closed so you can explore only the appellations that interest you.
Atlas Peak
Stagecoach Vineyard
Stagecoach Vineyard occupies rugged terrain high in the Vaca Mountains on the eastern side of Napa Valley. Its elevation, volcanic soils and exposed mountain position give the vines a very different life from those growing on the valley floor.
Boulder-strewn clay loam and rock outcroppings create shallow, well-drained soils. Cooling breezes from San Francisco Bay moderate the summer heat, while the vineyard’s elevation often places it above the fog that settles over the valley.
Warm, bright days are followed by distinctly cool nights. This allows the fruit to mature steadily while retaining the balance and freshness needed for a complete wine.
WHAT WE GROW
Our vineyard blocks provide Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties for single-vineyard Stagecoach wines and selected Reserve Bordeaux blends.
HOW WE FARM IT
At approximately 80–85% veraison, when the grapes are changing color, we perform a green harvest. Clusters that are behind the main ripening cycle are removed by hand, encouraging greater uniformity in the remaining fruit.
It is slow, demanding work. Vineyards are not especially interested in efficiency.
Low yields and challenging mountain conditions produce small quantities of fruit with concentrated flavor, firm structure and distinctive varietal character.
EXPLORE STAGECOACH WINES
Dry Creek Valley
Home Ranch Estate
Our Home Ranch Estate covers approximately 50 acres along the banks of Dry Creek. The soils are principally sandy loam over layers of clay and gravel—deep, well drained and capable of supporting several grape varieties.
The estate contains three distinct microclimates, providing different growing conditions within a single ranch. The vineyards share the property with several hundred Tuscan olive trees, which seem quite content with the arrangement.
These estate blocks provide fruit for a broad range of Williamson wines, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Chardonnay and traditional-method sparkling wine.
Hillside Rhône Vineyards
Across the valley from our Home Ranch, high hillside vineyards planted in shale and serpentine rock provide Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre.
Water drains quickly through the rocky ground, encouraging the vines to work hard and limiting excessive growth. The conditions remind us of the hillside vineyards of the Rhône, though the fruit remains generously Californian.
Sauvignon Blanc
Farther south, the vineyard producing Joy Sauvignon Blanc lies near the banks of Dry Creek. Sunshine, cool nights and free-draining sandy-clay soils produce fruit with fragrance, freshness and concentrated flavor.
DISCOVER JOYZinfandel
Our low-yield Scandal Zinfandel vineyard occupies a south-facing slope of well-drained clay loam close to the celebrated Maple Vineyard.
We also work with heritage Zinfandel sites, including head-pruned, dry-farmed vines planted near the end of World War II and old vines growing within the Healdsburg city limits.
These vines produce little fruit, but what they surrender has serious intensity.
DISCOVER SCANDALEXPLORE DRY CREEK VALLEY WINES
Chalk Hill
Cabernet Sauvignon
In 2018, we added a well-established, carefully farmed Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in the Chalk Hill appellation.
The vineyard is planted to Clone 337, one of Bill’s preferred Cabernet Sauvignon clones. It is known for producing small berries with concentrated flavor, firm structure and beautifully defined Cabernet character.
Chalk Hill provides another distinctive expression of Cabernet for our single-vineyard collection and selected Bordeaux blends.
EXPLORE CHALK HILL WINESKnights Valley
Cabernet Sauvignon
In 2023, we added a young Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in Knights Valley, a warm inland appellation tucked between Alexander Valley and Napa Valley.
Warm days give Cabernet Sauvignon the time and sunlight needed to build deep flavor and structure. Cooler nighttime temperatures help the fruit retain freshness and balance.
The vineyard brings another layer of regional character to our Cabernet collection and selected Bordeaux blends.
EXPLORE KNIGHTS VALLEY WINESRussian River Valley
Our Russian River Valley vineyards occupy cool, fog-influenced sites selected for aromatic white wines, Pinot Noir and Burgundy-inspired wine styles.
Foggy mornings slow the beginning of the day. Afternoon sunshine ripens the fruit gently, while cool nights preserve fragrance, freshness and natural acidity.
Gewürztraminer
The Gertie Gewürztraminer vineyard lies close to the Russian River, where the cool growing conditions help preserve the grape’s characteristic perfume and freshness.
DISCOVER GERTIEPinot Noir
We farm a hillside planted entirely to the Pommard clone of Pinot Noir. Beneath approximately 18 inches of Goldridge sandy loam lies clay and gravel.
The soil is not especially fertile and holds little water, encouraging the vines to struggle and the fruit to develop concentration.
Farther toward the Pacific, three small vineyards provide Pinot Noir Clones 23 and 667. These sites contribute to our rich, elegant Passion and Rapture Pinot Noirs.
Alexander Valley
Malbec
Alexander Valley is one of Sonoma’s warmer wine-growing appellations and an excellent home for Malbec.
The fruit develops deep color, generous flavor, firm tannins and the natural freshness needed to keep the finished wine balanced.
We use Alexander Valley Malbec in Bubbles, our traditional-method Sparkling Malbec, and as an important component in several Bordeaux blends.
DISCOVER BUBBLESMcDowell Valley
Viognier
To find the right growing conditions for Viognier we travelled north to sunny McDowell Valley.
The vineyards lie between a river and a lake. They receive long hours of sunshine while the cold water moderates the surrounding air and helps extend the growing season.
This extended season allows the fruit to develop its full aromatic character while retaining the freshness needed for balance.
McDowell Valley provides the fruit for Frolic Viognier.
Red Hills Lake County
Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon
The Red Hills appellation sits high in the northern Mayacamas Mountains amid a landscape shaped by volcanic and tectonic activity.
Its striking red soils contain black obsidian, quartz crystals and volcanic gravel. They drain readily and encourage the vines to send their roots deep into the hillside.
Our Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard stands at more than 2,600 feet. The elevation brings intense sunlight, clear mountain air and cool nighttime temperatures.
Clone 4 Cabernet Sauvignon develops deep color, firm tannins and concentrated mountain character. It contributes structure and depth to our Cabernet collection and Bordeaux blends.
EXPLORE RED HILLS WINESKelsey Bench–Lake County
Old-Vine Riesling
Kelsey Bench occupies the transition between volcanic mountains and an alluvial floodplain.
Ancient volcanic activity and later erosion created a varied mixture of red volcanic earth, clay, loam and well-drained gravel.
The warm valley setting gives Riesling abundant sunshine, while the elevation and surrounding landscape help the fruit retain its aromatic freshness.
This is one of the area’s remaining old Riesling vineyards. Its fruit becomes Frisky, our dry, Alsace-inspired Riesling—fragrant, lively and made for the table.
DISCOVER FRISKY
VINEYARD → WINE → TABLE
Every Appellation Has Something to Say
Some vineyards give us a complete wine all by themselves. Others contribute fragrance, structure, color or depth to a blend.
We taste each vineyard separately, understand what the place has given us and bring wines together only when the result becomes more complete.
The vineyard begins the story. The final judgment comes at the table, where the wine must make the food taste better and give everyone a good reason to remain seated.