Vineyards

The Black Sears Estate site lies at the very northern edge of the Howell Mountain appellation. The elevation is 2400 ft., making this the highest vineyard on Howell Mountain. The soils are Red Aiken and Forward Loams on an east-facing slope. The terrain varies from steep slopes, to rolling hills to relatively flat. The first plantings, in 1975, were devoted to Zinfandel. There are approximately 20 dry farmed acres of this planting on St. George rootstock with the bud wood coming from the Hayne Vineyard in St Helena. The 6 acre Cabernet Sauvignon parcel was originally planted on AXR rootstock in 1985 and was replanted in 2004 and 2007 to Cabernet Sauvignon on 420A rootstock and to small quantities of Cabernet Franc and Syrah. The entire estate is being farmed biodynamically.