The name Gregory Graham has found its proper place on the bottles of Gregory Graham Wines.
Greg’s history with grapes began as a child in Ohio, where his family owned a 10-acre Concord grape vineyard. He moved west in 1980, got his degree in oenology at UC Davis, and then worked for more than 25 years as a winemaker in the Napa Valley. As his career progressed, he started to envision producing his own wines—starting with growing his own vineyard. That way he could control the entire process and craft wine in his own unique style. In 2000, Greg and his wife Marianne purchased a 13-acre Zinfandel vineyard in the Red Hills appellation of Lake County. The gently sloping vineyard contains several different soil types—all volcanic in origin, rich in minerals, and ideal for growing premium wine grapes. Four years later, they bought adjacent property and expanded the operation to include 27 acres.
Greg is a strong advocate for Lake County and its unique terroir. He carefully tends his vineyard to enhance fruit quality in each block. He harvests the grapes at the peak of flavor development and then uses small-lot fermentations and barrel aging to maximize character and complexity. Greg applies sustainable farming practices in the field and is proud to report that he and more than 70 percent of Lake County’s wine-grape growers have attended workshops to assess the sustainability of their farm operations.
Greg’s fresh, fruit-forward wines have earned the attention of Wine Spectator and win medals at many major competitions each year. Gregory Graham Wines captured four medals at the 2010 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition alone. Greg has moved away from using cork closures on his white varietals and now uses the Stelvin screw cap closure to avoid potential problems with cork and to preserve the wine’s vibrant fruit. Those who have tasted them will agree: the flavors of Gregory Graham Wines are most definitely worth preserving and exploring.