In an effort to visit all 600 Napa wineries (400 and counting), my wife Linda and I recently had the pleasure of visiting AXR winery in St. Helena.
We met one of the Fab 4 owners Don Van Laeken at a “Wine for Wheels” fund raiser held at David Behring’s house (President of The Wheel Chair Foundation) in Blackhawk a few months ago. He and his 3 friends ala the “Fab 4” had a dream and now produce world class wine in St. Helena. The Fab 4 are Kelly Trevethan, Mark Schratz, Don Van Laeken and consulting wine maker Jean Hoefliger.
Named after the rootstock AxR (Aramond x Rupestris) was prominent in building the modern California wine industry. It eventually succumbed to phylloxera and most of California was left with a blank canvas.
From the web site, “the estate has a rich 134year history to become a brewery, restaurant, Inn, saloon and winery. Today the winery pays homage to this history and blazes the trail of excitement and innovation in Napa Valley as the pioneers before us.”
Our hosts were Ritchie Cooksey and Fab 4 owner Don Van Laeken. We began with a tour of this beautiful property enjoying AXR Ganzin and V Madrone Chardonnay. Both wines were crisp and refreshing as we strolled around this mystical setting of redwood trees and rich vines gracing this historic estate dating back to the 1800’s.
In the elegant and recently renovated tasting room, we sampled the 2014 AXR Cabernet Sauvignon and 2015 V Madrone that were both full bodied wine sensations. We especially enjoyed the 2015 Cabernet and took a few bottles back to Danville with us. As Winemaker Jean Hoefliger says, “we enjoyed the moments that truly matter, with those that matter most” and will soon return to visit this great winery.
For lunch, we enjoyed the newly opened RH restaurant in charming Yountville. This elegant decorated restaurant features great burgers, service, art and furniture gallery and sophisticated wine tastings with massive fireplaces and chandeliers.
RH is located near Thomas Keller’s famous French Laundry Restaurant. We also visited Thomas Keller’s famous Bouchon bakery for dessert and checked out his new Spanish/Mexican restaurant Calenda next door that just recently opened for dinner and a “must do” on a future visit.
For more information and to make an appointment at AXR Winery go to:
https://www.axrnapavalley.com/
