Rombauer Vineyards

Rombauer Winery is a real nice find; the winery is located about 1/4 mile off Silverado Trail on the east side of Napa Valley in the small pine covered hills that are found in this area. Look for the large American flag flying along the Silverado Trail which marks the entrance. An expansive view of Napa Valley can be seen from the deck of the tasting room looking west.

In late August 2023, it was announced that Rombauer Vineyards sold to GALLO. The sale included the three Rombauer production wineries, the Rombauer brand and 700 acres of vineyard land.

Despite changing to an appointment only policy after years of welcoming walk-ins, a small parking lot coupled with a tiny tasting room and numerous visitors can still produce a busy experience, especially on the weekends. The hospitality center is relatively small and looks and feels like a tasting room from an earlier era; unlike numerous areas tasting rooms that try to stay contemporary, Rombauer has opted to keep an ‘old school’ feel to the space. It’s this kind of consistency and similarities that their customers have come to know and expect during visits, and to some extent parallels the same consistency in their wines. Rombauer’s Chardonnay and to a lesser extent, its Zinfandels have a remarkable almost cult like following from fans around the U.S.

Rombauer founders, Koerner and Joan Rombauer (Joan died in 2002 and Koerner in 2018) were originally from Escondido in Southern California. They moved to Napa Valley in 1972 and purchased a home on the property where the winery is now located (Koerner lived on the property until his death). Joan worked at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars for 12 years, ultimately becoming National Sales Director there. Koerner was a former airline pilot for Braniff International Airways (the company declared bankruptcy in the 1980s and laid off some 2,7000 employees). Koerner is the grandnephew of Irma Rombauer, the well-known author of Joy of Cooking.

The Rombauers’ first venture into the world of wine was as partners in Conn Creek Winery in Rutherford in 1976. The couple sold their interest in 1980 – the same year they produced the first vintage of Rombauer wine (a 1980 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Stags Leap District). Several historical items are of interest from that vintage – this first Rombauer wine was produced at Shafer Vineyards (but bottled at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars in 1982) but also produced at the Rombauer home (their four-car garage was bonded as a commercial winery). In fact, there are actually two wineries on the Rombauer property – the original garage winery and the current modern day production facility. The winery’s first release was in 1984, the aforementioned 1980 Cabernet Sauvignon and the 1982 Chardonnay.

Bob Levy, later known for his work at Harlan Estate and BOND was Rombauer’s first winemaker. He oversaw the construction of the winery in 1982. Construction began in June of that year with plans to handle the harvest later that year; today that would be impossible given the slower permitting process. Remarkably, even though the winery did not yet have power, Rombauer was able to process the first harvest at the winery although they did not yet have power and literally had to drag a large generator onto the property.

From 1982 until 2008, Rombauer was well known in the Napa Valley wine industry as a premium custom crush facility, with a number of now prominent brands producing wine there. Encouraged by Koerner, the spirit of wine making here was one of camaraderie with numerous winemakers working together. Well known Napa wineries that made their wines here at some point include Dominus, Neyers Cellars, Spottswoode, Duckhorn, Merryvale, Corison, and Etude among others.

Another interesting historical footnote involves Koerner and Rich Frank, the former Disney executive who now owns Frank Family Winery. In 1993 Koerner partnered with Rich to purchase the old Kornell Champagne Cellars on Larkmead Lane, home of the original Larkmead Winery. They named the new venture Frank-Rombauer, and made several vintages with this name, but it soon became clear, that the name was causing confusion among consumers with the already well-established Rombauer Winery. The name was changed to Frank Family Winery and by 2007 Koerner sold all of his shares in the business.

Today, the 2nd and 3rd generations of the Rombauer family are actively involved in various aspects of the winery including Koerner and Joan’s children KR Rombauer and Sheana Rombauer. Sheana’s daughter, Reagan Rombauer Blackwood, serves as Associate Brand Manager for the winery. Vice President, Viticulture and Winemaking Richie Allen has been with the winery since 2004.

The Gallo Family, GALLO
The original winery under Gallo family ownership was founded in 1933 in Modesto, California immediately following the repeal of Prohibition by two brothers, Ernest and Julio Gallo. The initial seed money of $5000 to start the company came from Ernest’s mother-in-law, Teresa Franzia who had founded her family’s winery, Franzia Wine Company in 1906. They made their first wine in 1933 at a rented warehouse built in 1928 at 401 11th Street (on the northwestern corner of the often very busy 11th and D Streets in Modesto (less then a mile from both downtown Modesto and Gallo Glass and GALLO). Remarkably this warehouse building is still standing; the exterior almost completely covered in some sort of aggressive vine growth. The site is owned by GALLO.

Interestingly this is the same year that Louis M Martini purchased his property in Napa Valley, and perhaps opening within weeks apart as both wineries began operations later in the year during the 1933 harvest. Ernest and Julio’s parents immigrated to the USA from northern Italy and both brothers were born near Modesto. Tragically Julio was killed in a jeep accident in 1983 involving his wife and his two granddaughters including now winemaker Gina Gallo (the three women survived the accident).

A milestone in the company’s rich history was the founding of Gallo Glass Company in 1958 which now the largest glass manufacturing plant in North America. A visit to the exterior of this site shows an impressive campus with trucks pulling in and out of several entrances (less than a mile from downtown Modesto) and next to the enormous bottling and shipping facility of GALLO. Along with two other production wineries located in the central valley, Fresno and Livingston (small community along the 99 freeway south of Modesto), these three winery facilities are the largest in the world. GALLO is among the top 100 highest grossing private companies in the United States.

Other milestones include the launching of the Carlo Rossi brand in 1975 and Bartles & Jaymes wine coolers in 1984. The purchase of Louis Martini Winery in 2002 was just the beginning of Gallo’s acquisition of numerous brands, wineries and vineyard properties, accelerating around 2011 and continuing today.

And in 2007 the Gallo Arts Center opened in downtown Modesto, a state-of-the-art performing arts center hosting both local, national and internationally recognized talent in one of two theatres. Owned by Stanislaus County with its namesake chosen after the Gallo family donated $10 million to the original endowment fund.

Within Napa Valley, GALLO owns William Hill Estate Winery in the southern part of Napa Valley (purchased in 2007), The Ranch Winery (purchased 2015), Orin Swift Cellars (purchased in 2016), Franciscan Winery (purchased 2019), Pahlmeyer (purchased 2019), Rombauer Vineyards (purchased 2023), Massican (purchased 2023) the iconic Stagecoach Vineyards on Atlas Peak (purchased in 2017) and the California Brandy House in downtown Napa (opened in late 2020, but permanently closed in early 2024).

Vineyards
The first Rombauer owned vineyard was Joan’s Vineyard, seven acres of Zinfandel situated on the hillside that leads to the winery and tasting room. Over the next forty years, Rombauer purchased numerous other vineyards in Napa Valley, Lake County, the Sierra Foothills and more recently, on the Sonoma side of Carneros and in Sonoma Valley in neighboring Sonoma County. Today the winery owns approximately 900 acres of vineyard land. These acres are farmed sustainably by the winery’s own in-house management (rather than hiring an outside vineyard management company).

In 2022 and 2023 Rombauer added a number of new vineyards to their portfolio under ownership including several neighboring sites in Sonoma Valley, the Sonoma side of Carneros and in Amador County in the Sierra Nevada foothills.

And while Rombauer’s vineyard holdings are significant, they are still not enough to satisfy the demand for its wines. As a result, the winery also purchases fruit from a select list of grower-partners.

St. Helena Winery experiences/tastings
For the most personalized tasting experience, we recommend making Rombauer your first stop when the tasting room is quiet. Most current releases are available for tasting, and bottles of more limited production Proprietor and other wines may also be available. Unlike many wineries in Napa Valley, Rombauer Vineyards offers wines by the glass. Visitors to their tasting room should take a few minutes to view all the old photographs of the family hanging on the walls and make a stop in front of the cork tuxedo. The small room and sales counter to the right as one enters the tasting room used to be Koerner and his secretary’s office. And a small display of Rombauer branded items are for sale including, depending on the season, a cute Rombauer Chardonnay pool floatie.

For an even more intimate experience, reserve the Joy of Wine Experience. This approximately 90-minute experience makes you feel like a VIP. Groups, limited to a maximum of 8 people are led through the 26,000 square foot caves (one of the larger wine caves in Napa) by a wine host who explains Rombauer’s winemaking process including information about how they barrel ferment their most premium wines. This is followed by a visit to the production facility followed by a tasting in the intimate VIP room located on the second floor of the main tasting room.

Your host will take you through a number of very limited production wines sold only at the winery and through Rombauer’s clubs. This is a unique opportunity to discuss these rare wines with your host and other guests. During our latest experience of this particular tour, we found the host extremely knowledgeable and engaging with the guests.

Another highlight of a visit to Rombauer, especially in April and May, are the gardens. Several stone paths near the entrance to the hospitality center lead down the side of the nearby hillside where (especially in Springtime) beautiful flowers are in bloom. An added bonus: guests may bring a picnic lunch to enjoy at one of a number of picnic tables on site.

Although its first wine was a Cabernet Sauvignon, Rombauer is most associated with the Chardonnay and Zinfandel varieties. When it comes to Chardonnay, Rombauer is one of the most talked about wineries in the Napa Valley. The style they have historically produced from this variety is beloved by many, often described as fruit-forward, buttery and creamy with noticeable influences of toasty oak. Rombauer also helped popularize the jammy, ripe, (and during our tastings, a perceptible slightly sweet fruit) fruit-forward style of Zinfandel.

Rombauer’s Carneros Chardonnay is sourced from estate and grower vineyards in the Carneros AVA. The wine is barrel fermented and aged in both new and seasoned French and American oak barrels. The generous mouth feel associated with this wine arises from regular stirring of the lees (battonage) as it ages. The Chardonnay is also put through full secondary (malolactic) fermentation. A tiny bit of residual sugar is left in the wine.

Rombauer’s wines are approachable in their youth yet also are age-worthy and are available at reasonable price points.

Select Wines
Whites
The 2022 Rombauer Sauvignon Blanc is made with 76% of the grapes from Sonoma County and 24% from Napa Valley. This wine is medium yellow in color; the two aromatics that immediately jumped out at us were of ripe pineapple and honeysuckle. But the wine offers a wide diversity of additional scents including of lime, apple, comise pear, citrus blossom, passion fruit, jasmine, honeycomb, and stone fruits (apricot, peach and yellow nectarine). Fresh and bright across the palate in its early youth, this wine offers a bright but balanced acidity. It reveals flavors of white peach, kiwi, lemongrass, grapefruit (without the tart character) and green apple. The rich finish lingers crisp and clean and invites another sip. This wine was aged in 87% stainless steel tank, 10% neutral French oak barrels and 3% in concrete tanks.

The 2021 Rombauer Carneros Chardonnay is deep gold in color; one can tell a Rombauer Chardonnay immediately just from the aromatics alone. This wine offers notes of warm butter, crème Brule, vanilla, ripe apricot, baked pear, melon, pineapple and brown sugar. The notes of butter on the bouquet are also echoed on the palate as rich flavors along with pineapple and caramel and lingering notes of vanilla, toasted oak, a perceived sweetness and medium supporting acidity. The mouth feel is creamy and rounded; its textural feel is like running one’s fingers across soft velvet. This wine was aged 9 months in American and French oak barrels of which 30% were new.

The 2016 Rombauer Proprietor Chardonnay is golden in color, showing notes of pineapple, toasted oak, a wood spice nuance and some tropical floral notes including honeysuckle and jasmine. Rich, creamy and well-layered, the wine also reveals a slight sweetness across the palate along with subtle hints of vanilla on the finish. Rombauer’s Proprietor Selection Chardonnay is only made during excellent vintages, historically about once every four years on average.

Reds
The 2019 Rombauer Napa Valley Merlot is a blend of 84% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petite Verdot. This bottling is deep ruby in color; the bouquet immediately offers some savory notes including light scents of dark pepper, tonka beans (pat yourself on the back if you know what these are), old cedar, red plum, black cherry, mocha and espresso. Dark fruited and well-layered on the palate, this wine offers flavors of blackberry, dark plum, cherry, a very subtle note of mint and some darker woodsy spices lingering on the finish. One can feel the textural dense plushness and softness of the rounded and light grained tannins. About one quarter of this wine was barrel fermented, it was aged 15 months in 40% new French oak before bottling.

The 2012 Rombauer Le Meilleur du Chai shows sweetly fruited aromatics on the bouquet, a perceptible smoky quality, hints of brown chocolate and an herbal note including nuances of sage. The wine offers darker fruit aromatics rather than red fruit as well as flavors of black cherry and a spiciness on the finish including white pepper. It has a very nice feel and texture with well-integrated tannins. Rombauer’s Le Meilleur du Chai – translated from French means “the best of the cellar”. It is a proprietary Bordeaux-style red blend created from approximately 8 barrels each year, selected by the wine making team through blind tasting of numerous barrel samples.

And for the first time in Rombauer’s history they produced a Pinot Noir in 2021 from several premium vineyards in the Santa Lucia Highlands of Monterey County including Garys’, Sierra Mar, Lemoravo, Rosellas and Soberanes. Perhaps the first public tasting of this wine was at the annual Sun, Wind & Wine Festival hosted at Mer Soleil Winery on May 13, 2023.

The 2021 Rombauer Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands is is pale to medium ruby in color; the bouquet is focused on red fruits with a light accompanying oak spice. It offers a rounded and slightly creamy texture, bright red fruits and balanced acidity. There is a touch of darker spice on the finish including white pepper and a subtle hint of toasted oak. This wine has plenty of flavor, depth and intensity. It reveals a richness of flavors including red plum, red cherry, currant and cranberry but without any tartness. There is a pleasing tension between texture, flavor and acidity – all equating to one word, balance.

The 2014 Rombauer Stice Lane Cabernet Sauvignon initially shows nuances of dust on the bouquet, with chocolate and wood spice. As the wine breathes it becomes more open in its fruit aromatics showing aromas of blackberry and blueberry. It is quite balanced for a young wine at the time of our tasting, showing a hint of cedar box notes on the finish. Nicely integrated tannins.

The 2015 Rombauer Proprietor Selection Zinfandel offers an intriguing bouquet of rhubarb, cranberry and cracked black pepper, reveling bright fruit aromatics and lively fruit flavors. A thread of berry fruit forms the core of this wine with hints of blackberry jam and dessert spices. Balanced with a sweetness of fruit, this is Rombauer’s signature Zinfandel, a crowd-pleaser among those who enjoy a fruit forward wine of this variety.

Dessert
Dessert wine lovers should take note of Rombauer’s Joy Late Harvest Chardonnay made from Chardonnay grapes grown in the Carneros AVA in the cool southern cooler part of Napa Valley. Produced only in certain years when the conditions are right, Joy is made from grapes that hang on the vines much longer than a normal Chardonnay. During this time, they develop botrytis due to moisture, a beneficial (ugly looking to some) mold otherwise known as “noble rot,” which gives this late harvest wine its signature profile of honeyed citrus, ripe apricot and toasted nuts.

The 2015 Rombauer Joy, Late Harvest Chardonnay is golden amber in the glass, revealing sweet aromatics including honeysuckle, apricot, honey and baking spice. Rich and sweet on the palate the wine feels silky and somewhat creamy showing flavors of apricot and nuances of vanilla. Joy is barrel fermented in American oak barrels toasted the morning the wine is put into them, then aged in barrel for six months until bottling.

During select visits we have noticed that sometimes Rombauer pours their bigger red wines before their Chardonnay and or Zinfandel. You know when you have tried one of Rombauer’s classic Zinfandel wines – with ripe fruit and jam-like characteristics including often flavors of strawberry, raspberry and blackberry jam all rolled up into one wine. During our visits to Rombauer, some of the Zinfandel wines have been so concentrated and fruit-forward that one’s palate may be tricked into thinking it is sweet but in actuality the residual sugar is minimal.

Rombauer offers a variety of wine clubs ranging from varietal specific clubs to their Classic Club which includes current release wines and more limited production releases.

Rombauer Winery, Sierra Foothills
In early 2019 Rombauer purchased Renwood Winery in Plymouth (Amador County). Prior owner, an Argentina investment group led by ‘vintner’ Alejandro Bulgheroni purchased the property in 2009 (one of Alejandro’s numerous wine ventures is Alejandro Bulgheroni Estate in the Napa Valley. Rombauer tried to purchase this property in 2011 from Bulgheroni. Included with the sale was 20 acres of vineyards, the winery and the tasting room. The sale did not include the Renwood Winery brand. Rombauer needed more winery space at their production facility in St. Helena and with a growing demand for their Zinfandel wines, this was a timely purchase.

This is not Rombauer’s first entry into the Sierra foothills. The winery has sourced grapes from this part of California since the mid 1990s and in 2011 the company purchased the 148 acre El Dorado Vineyard mostly planted to Zinfandel.

Rombauer’s Sierra Foothills tasting room is only about a 10-minute drive from the tiny sleepy town of Plymouth. Numerous other wineries are within a very short distance of Rombauer. The tasting room was closed for several months during the transition in ownership and reopened in early April 2019 – with a new look. Visits from Friday through Sunday are by appointment and by walk-in the rest of the week. Visitors are welcome to picnic at one of the tables on the grounds – with a purchase of wine – served outside by either the bottle or glass.

Charcuterie items are also available for purchase on site. Unlike select Napa Valley based wineries that operate tasting rooms outside of Napa and focus on that particular non-Napa Valley site’s wines, the full line up of Rombauer wines are available for tasting here (the same lineup as at the St. Helena winery). And a feature we rarely see built into tasting room counters: Rombauer’s tasting bar features several back lit bright lights installed underneath the counter – this is really nice for examining the color of the wines.

Napa Valley Vintage Home
Napa Valley Vintage Home is owned and operated by KR’s wife, Laura Rombauer; she founded the business in 2003. This chic wine country store is located on the corner of Main Street and Spring Street in downtown St. Helena. The interior features a wide variety of delightful home decor including linens, culinary items, clothing, pillows, soaps and books among numerous other collectibles. The focus is on both local and European artisanal goods.

This historic brick building has housed numerous businesses over the decades including Bulotti’s Grocery Store. In the 1970s it was the location of The Compleat Winemaker, a shop selling winery supplies and equipment.

Napa Valley Vintage Home participates in the twice a year St. Helena ‘sidewalk sale’, once in early May and again in early October. In addition to their always rotating selection, the store offers seasonal items.

Parking is curbside along Main Street or Spring Street with a small public open-air parking lot available nearby with access off of Oak Avenue or the narrow Money Way (alley).

Napa Business Park Winery
And Rombauer operates a third winery, not open to the public located minutes from the Napa County Airport on nearly 6 acres of land.

The winery is in a business park which houses a number of other wineries and wine related businesses. A significant amount of their production is done here.

For more information about Rombauer, to make an appointment at either the Napa Valley or Sierra Foothills tasting rooms, or to join the mailing list, visit: www.rombauer.com

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