Tasting at Summit Lake Vineyards...this is the REAL Napa

In defense of Napa:

I’ve had a lot of interesting conversations with people regarding their impression of Napa. I’m often saddened by what I hear. There are many misconceptions about Napa that I am here to dispel.

Napa is all Corporate Big Wineries:

I have to admit I thought so too. The first boutique winery I learned about in the Napa Valley was when I took a job at Hartwell Vineyards in ’08. I was fascinated by the small production and hands on method of wine making. It was a whole new world, but one I thought only existed at Hartwell. Visitors would often ask me, “Do you know of any other small wineries like this one?” I would honestly answer “no.” This led on a quest to search out small wineries. I was surprised by what I discovered. If your definition of a small winery is less then 10,000 cases per year…then of the 700+ bonded wineries in Napa County, about 95% of them are small. Don’t believe me..get the Priesers Key ( a booklet that contains the most comprehensive list of wineries in Napa) and do the math for yourself. The majority of them ARE NOT on Silverado Trail and HWY 29.

Napa is Snooty:

There are snobs everywhere. This is not a geographical characteristic. I can cross the mountains on the west side and find super snots in Sonoma or I can cross the mountains on the east side and find super snots in Solano. To say we have a higher concentration of them is false. Our snooty image has a lot to do with the big corporate conglomerates on HWY 29,  ran by people who, by the way,  are not usually from Napa. If snooty is being met by someone in shorts and a t-shirt who tells me to wait while they feed their horse such as at Summit Lake Vineyards, or meets me in their barn after running from their trailer like at Rustridge, then I guess you are right, we are super uppity and snotty.

Napa Wineries do Wine Clubs for “Fun.”

I actually heard someone say that. They were saying that Napa wineries don’t rely on wine club members for sales and it was just sort of a hobby. Maybe that’s true for big wineries….everywhere…not just Napa. But for most small wineries (which again, makes up 95% of Napa wineries) the wine club is their bread and butter, especially in today’s economy where direct to consumer sales are the key to survival. I just had a conversation with Suzie Reynolds, of Reynolds Family Winery, about her goals to increase their wine club membership. Wineries such as Delectus are not only surviving the economy, but thriving as their direct to consumer sales increases due to membership. Wine clubs are a winery’s bread and butter, everything else is just gravy.

Rather then learn about Napa by going to the big wineries or listening to what others have to say, have Small Lots Big Wines help you discover the real Napa via the many services we offer, we think you’ll be happily surprised.