Over sixty years, Spring Mountain Vineyard has earned a reputation as one of the most distinguished estates in Napa Valley. Devoted to the classic Bordeaux varieties, the estate’s 19th-century vineyards sit high above the valley floor on the eastern slopes of Spring Mountain, where austere soils and steep hillside exposures produce wines of extraordinary structure, grace, and longevity. Originally four […]
Keep ReadingOver sixty years, Spring Mountain Vineyard has earned a reputation as one of the most distinguished estates in Napa Valley. Devoted to the classic Bordeaux varieties, the estate’s 19th-century vineyards sit high above the valley floor on the eastern slopes of Spring Mountain, where austere soils and steep hillside exposures produce wines of extraordinary structure, grace, and longevity.
Originally four individual historic properties – Miravalle (1884), La Perla (1874), Alba, and Chevalier (1891) – the vineyards were united in 1996 to create the estate as it exists today. Spring Mountain Vineyard is a privately-owned family estate producing exclusively estate-grown and bottled wines from 225 acres of vine across 135 distinct hillside blocks.
The modern era of Spring Mountain Vineyard began in 1962 when founder Michael Robbins purchased his first property on Spring Mountain. In 1964, he formally founded the winery – one of fewer than twenty in the valley at the time. Robbins’ 1973 Chardonnay performed admirably in the famed Judgment of Paris tasting in 1976, cementing the estate’s place in Napa Valley history. The Miravalle mansion is perhaps more famously known for its role as the backdrop of the 1980s television series Falcon Crest.
Of the estate’s 845-acre footprint, 225 acres are planted to vine and delineated into 135 individual hillside vineyard blocks. Each block has unique soil, exposure, and microclimate characteristics. The great diversity of steep hillside plantings is the source of distinctive wines with concentrated flavors, soft tannins, and supreme age-ability. A substantial portion of the vineyard is planted at densities of over 4,000 vines per acre and trained to the ancient gobelet form, a vertical method invented by the Romans.
Spring Mountain Vineyard produces exclusively estate-grown wines, with a focus on Cabernet Sauvignon and the Bordeaux blending varieties. Elivette is the estate’s signature red wine, crafted to be the finest expression of the vineyard and the vintage. The Estate Cabernet Sauvignon showcases the breadth and diversity of the mountain terroir across all 135 blocks. Total production averages approximately 8,000 cases of estate-bottled wine.
The vineyards of Spring Mountain occupy a unique position within Napa Valley. Situated on the western edge of the valley at elevations ranging from 400 to 1,600 feet, the estate benefits from above-the-fog conditions, cooler temperatures moderated by elevation, and rocky, well-drained volcanic soils that naturally restrict vigor and concentrate flavors. The mountain microclimate produces wines of great structure and ageability – hallmarks that distinguish Spring Mountain Cabernet from its valley floor counterparts.
The estate has navigated significant challenges with resilience. In 2020, the Glass Fire devastated portions of the property, destroying 19 structures including the historic La Perla winery. The vineyard replant is ongoing, and the new tasting room is open for business, featuring multiple flights of library wines reaching back as far as the 1979 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. The beauty of the property, with its unique location and world-class vineyards, endures.
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