Taub Family Vineyards

Taub Family Vineyards produces wines bottled under both their namesake and the Heritance label. Heritance Wines were built upon decades of combined experience in the wine industry. Original founders and general partners were winemaker Bernard Portet and Don Chase. Bernard’s son was also involved for some time as their national sales manager; we met with both partners prior to its transition in ownership (see below).

Wine education for Bernard started early on; his father was a technical director at Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Bernard grew up tasting each vintage. In 1970 he was hired to search for a premium location to grow and make wine and came to the Napa Valley. He determined the site location for Napa’s Clos du Val Winery, their initial vineyards and was their co-founder and founding winemaker in 1972. It was his first vintage (1972) that was one of only 6 Cabernet’s selected for the now historic famous Paris Tasting of 1976. Ten years later in 1986, the same wine in a rematch took first place.

After 38 years at Clo du Val Bernard “retired” but when one has been involved in the wine industry for so long – “retirement” is often just an excuse for a short break. With such a lengthy history in the valley, Bernard has cultivated a number of vineyard relationships over the years and was able to secure grapes for the Heritance wines from premium vineyards in Oakville, Rutherford and Carneros.

Since we originally met with Bernard, Heritance was acquired by Taub Family Vineyards in 2013, a company with wine roots dating back to the day after Prohibition; today the Taub family operates a number of brands relating to wine and spirits. Taub Family wines is overseen by proprietor Marc Taub whose father David (died 2012) and grandfather Marty were involved in the wine industry. David with the help of his father founded Palm Bay International in 1977 focusing on importing Italian wines into the U.S. The company is based in West Palm Beach, Florida with an additional office in New York. And in 2021, Marc was named Person of the Year by Wine Enthusiast for their 2021 Wine Star Awards.

As of our latest update to this review, Thomas Hinde is the winemaker; his first vintage with Taub Family Vineyards was in 2012. We originally met with him when he was crafting the wines for Yao Ming Wines. Tom has enjoyed a long career in both Napa and Sonoma including as General Manager for Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates; he was part of the wine making team that helped develop the wines for Cardinale and Lokoya wineries. Later he was President, CEO and Director of Winemaking for Flowers Vineyard and Winery based in neighboring Sonoma County.

Under the ownership of Portet and Chase, two wine brands were originally produced under the name Polaris including Heritance, focusing on Napa Valley grown grapes and Nandu, the name for a bird about the size of an Emu in Argentina, which focused on Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina. The name Polaris is commonly referred to as the north star and tied in well with Bernard’s interest in sailing.

The Heritance Napa Valley production continues to focus on two wines: a Sauvignon Blanc and a Cabernet Sauvignon. Today Taub Family Vineyards continues to produce both wines but have also added several other Napa Valley wines including several prominent vineyard designate Cabernet Sauvignon and wines from select Napa Valley sub appellations. The labels on the early Heritance wines originally showed three important numbers, 1-9-4 – 1 for the Portet family, 9 representing their nine generations of making wine (Bernard’s family has owned vineyard property in France dating to the late 1600s), and 4 represented four continents that Bernard has made wine on (Europe, South America, Australia & North America).

Bernard’s style of wines never wavered over the years; he was trained in classic French winemaking and continues to strive for that style. As he says, “my wines are a reflection of culture” referring to France where meals are usually accompanied by wine. In the early 1970s at Clos du Val, he was making wines that were balanced and meant to pair with foods; these wines were also blended to try and bring out additional complexities. This was opposite to many winemakers at the time who were trying to preserve varietal characteristics (single varietal wines) and were trying to highlight the richness of the Napa fruit both in the aromas and on the palate.

Bernard believes in “defining a wine label over the years by continuous style” rather than trying to keep up with stylistic trends. He strives to produce balanced and elegant wines that are not overly powerful. These are wines that have bright acidity and lower alcohol levels. The Heritance wines strive to showcase a vineyard’s location rather than over-riding terroir, preferring to highlight influences from individual soil types and varieties. He told us that one should be able to appreciate where a wine originates from and distinguish its varietal characteristics.

Select Wines
Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2017 Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley is deep ruby in color and nearly opaque; the bouquet is initially a teeny bit brooding and moody, expressing itself with darker characteristics including of leather, damp potting soil and a light barnyard note. We wouldn’t argue with you if you want to describe its aromatics as savory. But as it evolves in the glass, these aromatics quickly dissipate in favor of its fruit core including scents of dark plum, boysenberry, Persian mulberry and blackberry. And eventually some barrel influences including milk chocolate, mocha and espresso. On the palate there are generous flavors of red plum, blackberry, boysenberry, red licorice and cherry pie. Fruity, fun and expressive, this wine falls into the category of being an approachable ‘crowd pleaser’. The tannins are ripe, rounded and linger with a lightly grainy and dusty grip. Neither tannins nor flavor fall off quickly on the finish. For reference, we tasted this wine 7 years post vintage. It is still very much youthful and is showing in a sweet spot at this age.

The 2015 Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. Medium to dark ruby in color the bouquet offers ripe but not over ripe aromatics including cherries, plums and blackberries. The fruit aromas are complemented nicely by a sweetness – a cherry liquor, brown chocolate and cassis. Also hints of leather and toasted cedar. The bouquet is perhaps more appealing to our senses then the palate. Balanced from start to finish – lingers with a light grip of tannins, a slight tartness (rhubarb, red cherry), an espresso note and hints of cedar. Medium bodied. Very reasonably priced for the quality.

The 2010 Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley contains 8% Merlot. Initially as the wine opens in the glass notes of spice, a smoky characteristic, forest floor and mushroom notes show. As the bouquet opens it reveals more fruit – more elegant in style rather than a rich dominating bouquet which can overwhelm the nose. The entry is rather soft but by the mid palate you can tell there is some complexity to this wine – more black fruit than red shows. Bernard compares this wine to a rugby ball – its soft and smaller on the front end, rounded and bigger in the mid palate and again soft and smooth on the finish.

Heritance Sauvignon Blanc
The 2010 Heritage Wines Sauvignon Blanc includes 9% Sémillon. This wine is made in the French Graves style; the Sémillon adds pleasing floral and tropical notes to the bouquet as well as some weight or what Bernard called “fleshiness” to the mid palate and finish. The nose shows notes of tangerine and other citrus, and as it opens more tropical notes are revealed including honeysuckle and passion fruit. It takes some time for the aromatic contributions of the Sémillon to develop in the glass. The wine has some weight yet retains a nice “freshness” or crisp character. The finish lingers nicely for some time with tropical flavors including guava.

AVA Collection
The 2019 Taub Family Vineyards Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley is deep ruby and opaque; dark and berry fruited, the beautiful bouquet offers scents of blackberry, boysenberry, dark plum and dark cherry with lingering aromatics of sweet tobacco spice, old cedar box, clove and dried sage. and as the bouquet evolves, deeper in the aromas is a note of mocha and espresso. Fresh, savory and deeply layered both on the bouquet and the palate, at 5 years post vintage at the time of our tasting. The palate is dark fruited with flavors of plum, blackberry, boysenberry, Coral cherry at the peak of its ripeness and lingering notes of mocha and milk chocolate. The finish lingers with a pronounced darker spice character, including of dried bay leaf, crushed black peppercorn and toasted cedar. The tannins are resolved, rounded and linger with a dusty and a chalky character on the finish. Balanced. Tasting this wine made us want to pair it with a warm summer evening, a well-marbled cut of wagyu covered in a spicy dry-rub, a BBQ and a gathering of friends.

Single Vineyard
Tasting notes coming soon!

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It certainly can help to keep the price affordable when your production is more than several hundred cases. Some of the more affordably priced wines for quality in Napa Valley that we have discovered have been in the 5,000 to 15,000 case range. The Heritance wines are among some of the top quality to price values in Napa Valley.

Production for the Heritance wines is currently around 5,000 cases annually with national distribution including at Total Wines & More. Locally one can sometimes find the wines at Backroom Wines in the city of Napa. For more information or to purchase wines, visit, www.heritancewines.com

Saracina Vineyards, Mendocino
Marc also owns the 400-acre Saracina Winery located near the 101 freeway a few minutes north of Hopland in Mendocino County (founded in 2001 with their first vintage in 2002). Winemaker Alex MacGregor has crafted the wines since their inaugural vintage. From Santa Rosa Saracina Vineyards is about a 50 minute drive and from Calistoga about a 60 minute drive. The winery features Mendocino County’s first wine cave (8,000 square feet) which is still one of only three wine caves in the county.

This property was previous owned by John Fetzer and his wife Patty Rock and was part of the original Sundial Ranch. Fetzer Winery continues to produce a popular and inexpensive brand of Chardonnay known as Sundial. Fetzer launched Saracina in 2001, paying homage to La Saracina, a still active boutique hotel of the same name located about an hour outside of Siena in Tuscany. And where John and Patty spent their honeymoon. Part of the property extends on the east side of the 101 freeway. And those who visit the property in August are treated to mesmerizing vistas of fields of yellow sunflowers blooming in the front of the property next to the highway.

La Saracina, Italy

The gorgeous property features a diversity of exposures and slopes with approximately 100 acres under vine including to varieties such as Chardonnay, Roussane, Grenache, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Alicante Bouschet and Zinfandel. A significant amount of the vineyard was replanted between 2020 and 2024.

In addition to wine, they produce a limited amount of olive oil each year from 500 Spanish and Italian cultivars growing on site; while there is no olive oil pressing operations on the ranch, their olives are pressed locally at a cooperative in nearby Hopland. And they maintain approximately 70 bee hives and sell some of their honey in the tasting room. A number of farm animals are kept on site including alpacas and mini goats. And the ranch offers a number of locations for weddings or wedding rehearsals.

Visits are casual and are hosted at your own pace. The small tasting room is located in between the winery and their cave with seating at either the bar or several tables. And we immediately noted that the vine age of each wine is listed on their tasting menu (a rarity to see this). Weather permitting, a number of outdoors chairs among the olive trees is an ideal place to enjoy a picnic following a wine tasting.

Total production each year is around 7,000 cases with distribution overseen by Palm Bay International. Visits are by walk-in or by appointment. For more information, to join one of their two wine clubs named after Italian olive varieties (Pendonlino and Coratina) or to schedule a tasting, visit: https://saracina.com

Select Wines
In addition to producing wines from grapes grown on the estate, Saracina also sources from family owned vineyards in Mendocino County.

The 2023 Saracina Vineyards Rosé of Grenache is light salmon in color. The bouquet features bright fresh and minerally aromatics, including a flinty character along with raspberry. On the palate there are flavors of raspberry, cranberry and pomegranate, watermelon, white strawberries and a light note of lime. And the finish lingers with a subtle nuance of tarragon and dried dill seed, an attribute we often notice in wines from this variety. The winery recommends pairing this wine with fresh tomato salad and basil. Or go in a more exotic direction, and take your pick of Indian curry.

A rare and truly special white wine is the Saracino Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc. The grapes for this wine are sourced from the organically farmed Lolonis Vineyard in Mendocino County’s Redwood Valley, home to the oldest Sauvignon Blanc vines in the U.S. The oldest of these dry-farmed vines date from 1942, even pre-dating another ancient Sauvignon Blanc block in Napa Valley – the I Block within To Kalon Vineyard dates to 1945.

The 2021 Saracina Vineyards Lolonis Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc is 97% Sauvignon Blanc and 3% Semillon. This wine is medium yellow in color; the sweetly fruited bouquet offers an initial union of pineapple and grapefruit, two fruits we eat a lot of. But there are additional aromas at play here including honeycomb, nectarine, yellow peach, honey dew melon, white florals, green apple, a saline character and a hint of lemongrass. And we noticed a very subtle note of petrol. The minerally, brightly lit and intensely flavored palate reveals nuances of both citrus and stone fruits. These flavors include tangerine, yellow nectarine, apricot, white peach, Golden Delicious apple, dried apples and pineapple. The flavor filled finish persists for quite some time with a light tangy character. The grapes for this wine were hand harvested, then whole cluster pressed and fermented using indigenous yeasts in 3-4 year old Burgundian barrels where the wine remained on the lees for 4 months prior to bottling with a single battonage.

The 2018 Saracina Vineyards Winter’s Edge Redwood Valley, Mendocino County is an old vine field blend sourced from Casa Verde and Niemi Vineyards which includes 50% Grenache and the remainder Carignane and Colombard. The grapes for this wine were picked on November 6, 2018 after the first frost of the season. It is medium ruby in color; bright and fruity, the bouquet delivers aromas of red cherry, currants, plums and dark raspberries along with licorice, dried rose petals and lighter baking spices. Driven by its energetic acidity from the get go, this fresh and still highly youthful wine (tasted 6 years post vintage), offers red fruited flavors including plum (the most dominant fruit) currant, cranberry, cherry and raspberry. The juicy, crunchy, tart and mouth watering finish immediately asks for another sip. The tannins are lightly grainy and persist in tandem with the flavor on the finish. The grapes were destemmed and then fermented 80% whole berries in open top fermenters. The free run juice was aged for 19 months in used French oak barrels. Looking for a Tuesday night pizza wine? You might just have found the perfect bottle with this wine.

Winery/Hospitality

Bella Cita

Vineyards

Taub Family Outpost
Until 2023, the Taub’s operated Taub Family Outpost, a restaurant, cocktail bar (The Beacon), wine shop and tasting room, and espresso bar located on the southwest corner of the Sonoma Plaza. Today, only The Beacon continues operating, a speakeasy type cocktail bar with a cave-like vibe serving classic cocktails as well as seasonal cocktails. The Beacon is located upstairs – dimly lit, the bar is the best place to hang for an hour or two for communal conversation, imbibing from a menu that includes a number of house crafted cocktails. But if you want to slink into the shadows and keep an eye on the action from your lowered perch, choose seats in one of the two corner locations.

If wine tickles your fancy, you will spot several bottlings from Saracina Vineyards on the drinks menu.

Au Contraire
Taub also owns the Sonoma County wine brand, Au Contraire founded in 2014. We will add tasting notes for select wines as time and budget allow.