Sitting majestically just to the north of our vineyard is Mt. St. Helena, a 4300 foot cluster of peaks made up of volcanic material.  It is from the eons of erosion of Mt. St. Helena that the alluvial plain, on which Work Vineyard sits, was formed.

The rhyolites, tuffs and other rocks from the mountain have been eroded and washed down over the centuries to form the soils that nourish and support our grapes. Our vineyard, at only 3 acres, has two soil types, but each bestows its own unique character.   The northwest corner is more gravelly and rocky Bale loam and provides a mineral and washed-stone character, while the predominant soil, being Dublin clay loam, enhances the fruit with floral and spices – the real essence of the grapes. the grapes.

A climate that allows the grapes to be picked fully ripe, with a perfect balance of acid and sugar, this northern end of the Napa Valley, with its unique weather conditions – moderate, dry temperatures and little summer precipitation – provides the outstanding growing environment for Sauvignon Blanc grapes.   A second condition, specific to the summer months, also has a great influence on the intense flavor of the grapes.  In the summer, the Calistoga area is baked by the sun.  Most days, the temperature hovers in the high eighties and low nineties.   Work Vineyard is unique to much of the rest of the Calistoga valley floor vineyards.  Through a gap in the low hills just to the west, cooling breezes from the Pacific Ocean flow in each night.  These breezes lower the temperature to the fifties and sixties, holding in the precious acids to counteract the daytime induced sugars. 

What the French call “terroir” – the soils, the temperatures, and the climate – combine to allow our vineyard the unique microclimate to produce Sauvignon Blanc grapes that are true to the type, exploding with fruit and highlighted with herbal and mineral undertones.