Howell Mountain Vineyards

The Beatty Ranch and Black-Sears Vineyard are generally recognized as being among the finest vineyard sites in Napa Valley. A source for such prestigious producers as Dunn Vineyards, Cornerstone Cellars, Turley, Duckhorn, Rocking Horse, and Ridge, the fruit from these sites has garnered acclaim in the media, and respect in the valley. In 1988, with the goal of producing world-class wines under their own label, the owners of these vineyards, Mike Beatty and Jerre and Joyce Black Sears, formed the partnership that is now Howell Mountain Vineyards.

Mike Beatty manages the vineyard operations. With a degree from Stanford and several years in the scientific/medical world, he returned to his family heritage of farming in the late seventies. The vineyard he has farmed for better than 20 years is located at 1800 feet of elevation and contains plantings of mature Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel that at more than 80 years old are the oldest on Howell Mountain. At this elevation, the ranch sits in Napa Valley‚s inversion layer, where temperatures are somewhat cooler during the day and warmer in the evening than sites on the valley floor.

Joyce Black Sears, a native of Napa Valley, has a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley and was a therapist for many years. Jerre comes from a business background of investing and venture capital and has a Ph.D. in Psychology. Their 25-acre vineyard is planted primarily to Zinfandel, with about 5 acres devoted to Cabernet. Located at 2400 feet of elevation, it is one of the highest vineyard sites in Napa valley and among a handful of sites that are located above the inversion layer, giving it a truly unique climate. This site is at the edge of developed Napa, and both Bears and Mountain Lions frequent the property.

In addition to top-notch vineyards, the winemaker, Ted Lemon, is recognized as one of Napa Valley's finest. Ted has experience both in Burgundy where he was the first American winemaker at a Burgundian domaine and in California where he has been the winemaker and consulting enologist on a number of notable projects. He is committed to producing wines of exceptional depth and character, maximizing the inherent qualities of the fruit from each of these outstanding vineyard sites.

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