Spottswoode Estate Winery – NAPA GALA

SPOTTSWOODE ESTATE WINERY

Spottswoode is an historic, family-owned estate vineyard and winery located on the western edge of St. Helena in Napa Valley. As stewards of this beautiful estate, we are guided by both intuition and respect for Mother Nature’s unique seasonal offerings. We treat the land with great care by hand tending and organically farming our vineyard, olive trees, and gardens. The attention given to each vineyard block is also applied to the crafting of our wines, contributing to their quality, consistency, and individuality. Among the first to introduce organic farming practices in the Napa Valley in 1985, we are proud to have enjoyed the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) certification since 1992.

The 46-acre estate was established in 1882 by George Schonewald, whose historic Victorian home is depicted on our label. Spottswoode was christened by Mrs. Albert Spotts, whose family owned the property from 1910 until its purchase in 1972 by Mary Weber Novak and her husband, Dr. Jack Novak. The Novaks restored the original home and replanted the pre-Prohibition-era vineyard. After Jack died unexpectedly in 1977, Mary carried out their shared dream, and Spottswoode’s debut Cabernet Sauvignon was produced in 1982, exactly one hundred years after the estate’s founding. Today, Spottswoode is renowned for its exceptional estate-grown Cabernet Sauvignon. Our vineyard is planted primarily to Cabernet Sauvignon, with small amounts of Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, and Sauvignon Blanc. Beyond wine grapes, the property includes 115 olive trees bordering the estate and 2.5 acres of historic gardens, with groves of linden and redwood trees, plus stately Canary Island palm trees, a rare Chinese pagoda tree, a cork oak, large Valley Oaks and an abundance of roses, camellias and hydrangeas. An organic vegetable garden now thrives in a former horse riding ring.

At Spottswoode, our goal is to consistently produce exceptional wines that honor their terroir and vintage in a distinct, refined style—in short, wines that are worthy to stand among those of the world’s great wine estates.

WWW.SPOTTSWOODE.COM

Aron Weinkauf

Vineyard Manager & Winemaker

As both vineyard manager and winemaker, Aron leads and works alongside the winery’s in-house vineyard team to achieve the full potential of the Spottswoode Estate Vineyard’s 24 individual blocks. In addition to being the steward of Spottswoode’s legendary vineyard, Aron ensures that each wine authentically reflects its vintage and vineyards, and that it is true to the elegant, energetic, and age-worthy style for which Spottswoode has been recognized since 1982. Since his childhood growing up in Nevada a deep connection with the land has been an important part of Aron’s life. Later, while earning a degree in Spanish from Berry College, Aron was introduced to the culture of wine while studying in Seville and Barcelona, Spain. In winemaking, Aron saw a way to combine his love of the land with his fascination with wine, and upon returning to the United States he moved to California and enrolled in the viticulture and enology program at Fresno State University. While still in school, Aron worked as assistant winemaker at the family-owned Ficklin Vineyards, America’s oldest Port winery.

In 2006, Aron joined the Spottswoode team as assistant winemaker. In 2009, in addition to his role as assistant winemaker, Aron was named Spottswoode’s vineyard manager. Two years later, Aron was named the fifth winemaker in the storied history of Spottswoode. “When you have the honor of working with one of the world’s great vineyards, you realize you are part of an ongoing story,” he adds.

Aron expanded on a quarter century of organic viticulture when he introduced biodynamic farming to the estate, culminating in the vineyard’s Demeter Biodynamic Certification in 2020. As a champion of the environment, Aron has helped to spearhead new initiatives with Spottswoode’s acclaimed grower partners to encourage their transition to organic farming through technical support and financial incentives.