by Fred McMillin for April 18, 1997 Winery of the Week Roy's Boys Prologue: 1933—The Napa Valley springs to life as Prohibition ends. Roy Raymond goes to work for one of the area's few wineries, Beringers. 1936—Roy marries Martha Jane Beringer, granddaughter of founder Jacob Beringer. Soon they are joined by Roy Jr. And then Walter. 1970—Martha and Roy Sr. sell the Beringer Winery to the Nestle corporation. The Rest of the Story: By the time of the sale, Roy Jr. And Walter were fully up to speed...college educated and plenty of experience in the Beringer cellar and vineyards. So, Roy Sr. And "Roy's boys" created their own winery. Walter made the first vintage in 1974 and still oversees the winemaking 23 vintages later. Roy Jr. became Marketing Director. The Three Vineyards The original Raymond vineyard was a 90-acre parcel in the central Napa Valley... prime Cabernet Sauvignon country. Little wonder that their Cabs soon were rated among California's best. Subsequently they bought another 78 acres, this time in the cooler Jameson Canyon in southern Napa County. This gives Walter a premier Pinot Noir location and he's putting it to very good use; my tasters just tried his high-octane '93 RESERVE Pinot Noir and loved it...vibrant fruit in harmony with French oak vanilla and spice. $17. The latest acquisition is 300 Chardonnay-friendly, cool acres in Monterey County's Salinas Valley...providing Walter with crisp, green-apple flavors for his Chardonnay. If you have gotten the impression that the Raymond winery is a dynamic operation making bigger and better wines, you're right. Just the Facts Name Raymond Vineyard and Cellar Location St. Helena, Napa Valley, CA Founded 1971 Capacity  300,000 case range Phone (707)963-3141 Postscript: We mentioned that the Raymond brothers split the duties, Walter in operations, Roy Jr. in finance. A century earlier, their great-grandfather and his brother divided the duties at their new Napa Valley winery the same way. That is, Jacob Beringer raised the grapes and Frederick Beringer raised the cash. About the Writer Fred McMillin, a veteran wine writer, has taught wine history for 30 years on three continents. He currently teaches wine courses at San Francisco State and San Francisco City College and is Northern California Editor for American Wine on the Web. In 1995, the Academy of Wine Communications honored Fred with one of only 22 Certificates of Commendation awarded to American wine writers.

Welcome to WineDay, the electronic Gourmet Guide's daily update. Monday through Thursday, WineDay presents a wine profile. Then on Fridays we present the Winery of the Week to take you through the weekend Current WineDay January WineDays February WineDays March WineDays 04/17/97 A Chardonnay That Came to Play 04/16/97 The Longest Name in the Valley 04/15/97 Raising Syrah to New Heights 04/14/97 Learn to say Vee-oh-nyay, For come what may It's here to stay 04/11/97 Winery of the Week Mirassou Vineyards and Winery 04/10/97 When Cape Mentelle Rang the Bell 04/09/97 Where to Grow Merlot 04/08/97 What's Hot, What's Not 04/07/97 An All-Pro Pinot 04/04/97 Winery of the Week How the Pope Coped 04/03/97 The Larsen Legend 04/02/97 The Blush Gold Rush 04/01/97 It's the Grapes, Stupid

Global Gourmet | FoodDay Copyright © 1997—the electronic Gourmet Guide, Inc. All rights reserved.