LEGACY TERROIR EXCELLENCE

LEGACY
TERROIR
EXCELLENCE
Lail Vineyards
Robin Daniel Lail, Founding Partner, 1995
Heidi Peterson Barrett, Ann Colgin, Cathy Corison, Celia Welsh, Nakao Dalle Valle and Robin Daniel Lail
were featured in LE PAN’s September issue in “The Women Who Rule Napa.”
I grew up at the fabled
Inglenook Vineyards, home to
four generations of my family
and their legendary wines.
When the winery was sold in 1964, I thought this beautiful
family tradition had ended. My father, John Daniel, Jr. placed
the legacy in my hands shortly before his death in 1970, with
my sister and I retaining the Napanook Vineyard in Yountville.
FOURTH GENERATION VINTNER
ROBIN DANIEL LAIL
During the 1970’s I worked with my mentor, Robert Mondavi,
who encouraged me every day to honor my legacy and my
father by carrying forward his work.
Lail Vineyards Founding Partner with Erin and Shannon Lail -1995
(L-R) Shannon and Erin Lail Merryvale Founding Partner with
Bill Harlan - 1983
President
Dominus
Founding Partner with
Christian Moueix - 1982
(L-R) Christian Moueix, Robin Daniel Lail and Marcia Daniel Smith.
WINEMAKER
PHILIPPE MELKA
One of the most respected and successful
of the French-born, Bordeaux-educated
oenologists working in California.
“My recent naming as one of the top 9 wine consultants in the world by Robert Parker has been truly humbling, and a terrific honor. But my pursuit of excellence in this field I’m so passionate about has only just begun.” - Philippe Melka
It is always a fine line to craft wines with that special elegance and
softness ready to be consumed now, while at the same time
ensuring the wine has the acidity, fruit and structure to be aged. This is a line that Philippe walks well – the hallmark of Lail’s
wines are clearly their elegance and balance upon release.
GUSTAV NIEBAUM
Having already amassed a fortune, Gustav
Niebaum was looking for a new business
adventure when he and his wife were
drawn to Napa Valley and its potential as
a great wine-producing region.
After purchasing the Inglenook
property in 1879, Niebaum built an
imposing stone winery and
produced the first estate-bottled,
Bordeaux-style wine in California.
Using demanding methods of temperature control and
stringent sanitation techniques, he was one of the first
winegrowers to establish the reputation of the Napa Valley
as producing fine wines equal to the great wine regions of
France.
His motto of "Quality, not quantity" inspired new
standards of excellence in California winemaking, for his
generation and generations to come. Niebaum was one of
the inaugural inductees into the Vintners Hall of Fame. JOHN DANIEL, JR.
“He taught not by words alone,
but by example – the mark of
a truly knowledgeable man.”
-Robert Mondavi
Great-nephew to Inglenook's founder
Gustav Niebaum, John Daniel, Jr. was part
of a dynamic group of vintners who helped
raise the standards of fine winemaking in
Napa Valley after Prohibition. An inductee into the Vintners Hall of
Fame, Daniel played a key role in
rebuilding the wine business in Napa
Valley and California after the
Repeal of Prohibition in 1933. He
was extensively involved in the
leadership of the Wine Institute of
California and the Wine Advisory
Board and was one of the founders of
the Napa Valley Vintners. (L-R) Robert Mondavi, Charles Forni, Madame Depins, John Daniel, Jr. and Al Hunsinger He was the first to put Napa Valley as an appellation on his wine, and
pioneered vintage-dating and varietal labeling. His vineyards were his pride
and joy and were kept in pristine condition.
While restoring Inglenook's fame,
Daniel made what many considered to
be some of not only California's, but
the world's best Cabernet Sauvignons
from the mid 1930s to the 1960s,
creating a legacy of excellence for
Cabernet Sauvignons for future
generations of California winemakers.
2014 BLUEPRINT SAUVIGNON BLANC
100% SAUVIGNON BLANC
CROCKER VINEYARD, ST. HELENA
FARELLA VINEYARD
COOMBSVILLE
REWA VINEYARD,
COOMBSVILLE
FERMENTED IN FRENCH OAK; 65% NEW
AGED IN STAINLESS
STEEL 2013 GEORGIA SAUVIGNON BLANC
100% SAUVIGNON BLANC
TOTEM VINEYARD, YOUNTVILLE ESTATE
18 MONTHS IN 100% NEW FRENCH OAK “...possibly the most singular and distinctive Sauvignon
Blanc made in Northern California...”
–ROBERT PARKER, JR.
“The name Blueprint is a salute to Robin’s
husband, Jon Lail, a noted wine country
architectural designer who has designed
many of Napa Valley’s iconic winery
buildings and caves. Our Blueprint wines
focus on early enjoyment in a delicious,
crowd-pleasing style, yet have the
sophistication and timelessness of Jon
Lail’s many architectural achievements.”
.”
ROBIN DANIEL LAIL
2013 BLUEPRINT CABERNET SAUVIGNON
95% CABERNET SAUVIGNON
5% PETIT VERDOT
MOLE HILL ESTATE VINEYARD
HOWELL MOUNTAIN
VINE HILL RANCH VINEYARD
OAKVILLE
HEIMARK VINEYARD
CALISTOGA
EVANS VINEYARD
COOMBSVILLE
LAMBERT VINEYARD
COOMBSVILLE
SAN SAVINO VINEYARD
YOUNTVILLE
17 MONTHS IN FRENCH OAK; 64% NEW 2012 J. DANIEL CUVEE CABERNET SAUVIGNON
97% CABERNET SAUVIGNON
3% PETIT VERDOT
HEIMARK VINEYARD
CALISTOGA
MOLE HILL ESTATE VINEYARD
HOWELL MOUNTAIN
VINE HILL RANCH VINEYARD
OAKVILLE
18 MONTHS IN FRENCH OAK
BARRELS, 75% NEW
“The 2012 J. Daniel Cuvee Cabernet Sauvignon is…
Absolutely Perfect.” 100 Points
–ROBERT PARKER, JR.
WINE ADVOCATE, OCTOBER 2014
MOLE HILL CABERNET SAUVIGNON
100% CABERNET SAUVIGNON
MOLE HILL ESTATE VINEYARD
HOWELL MOUNTAIN
18 MONTHS IN FRENCH OAK
BARRELS, 83% NEW
Mole Hill was named in homage to a wine created by Robin’s father, John Daniel, Jr.
The story goes that when Daniel’s great friend, Louis Martini Sr., made a wine in the
1950s, the irony of him labeling it Mountain Red was not lost on Daniel since Martini’s wine was from a rolling hillside vineyard versus the precipitous mountain vineyards of Europe. A brilliant man with a celebrated sense of humor and a particular love of puns, Daniel responded with Inglenook Mole Hill Red, whose whimsical label featured a very cute mole with a magnifying glass checking a small pile of dirt. The overtly flowery back label concluded with “…and this is a wine you will truly GO FER!” We now make a Mole Hill out of a mountain!
“Each new vintage is both a challenge and an inspiration.
Every year we strive to learn how to take better care of the
land and our vineyards and produce wines that are just a
little bit better than the year before.”
ROBIN DANIEL LAIL
YOUNTVILLE
TOTEM VINEYARD
Totem was part of the first vineyard planted in Napa Valley by
George Yount in 1839. Our family has worked this vineyard
for generations. We are custodians of more than land at Totem, we are caretakers of a piece of history, a soul, a style of winemaking.
Robin held ownership of this vineyard upon founding Lail Vineyards, and began t-budding the existing Merlot vines to Sauvignon Blanc. Today these 3 acres in Yountville
produce the fruit for our highly
lauded Georgia Sauvignon Blanc.
Only 300 cases are produced each
year.
HOWELL MOUNTAIN
MOLE HILL VINEYARD
In 1996, the Lail family acquired a special vineyard site
high atop Howell Mountain, and named it Mole Hill. The vineyard’s west-facing gentle slope has shallow soils
with rocks that rise to the surface like cream in coffee,
creating a spartan home for the vines and generating a
concentration of flavors in the grapes. These thin, rocky and dry soil conditions
create Cabernet Sauvignon with firm
structure, incredible varietal intensity,
and excellent aging properties.
Each year, we harvest Mole Hill multiple
times to capture the unique flavors
expressed in each part of the vineyard.
June 20, 2015
The 20th Anniversary Celebration at Mole Hill
For the enthusiast a wine can be a work
of art. Unlike a painting, a fine wine
only exists for that brief instant in time
after the cork gets pulled. It’s a transient
moment, but it can leave an indelible
impression. Lail Vineyards is honored to
share that moment with you today.
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