From the winery:
Our entire portfolio of Benziger wine is certified sustainable, organic or Biodynamic©. Not because we want to be known as "the green winery," but because our experience has shown that great wine has green values. In our pursuit of fine wine, we follow agricultural, winemaking and business practices that are good for the earth and the vine, good for the farm worker and the farmer, and good for our colleagues and our customers.
Our family has been growing grapes on Sonoma Mountain for close to thirty years. My brother Mike and his wife Mary discovered this vineyard in the late seventies and purchased the property with the help of my parents Bruno and Helen. It soon became a real family affair when our brothers Joe, Bob and Jerry joined the business, followed by my sister Patsy and her husband Tim. As the youngest siblings, my sister Kathy and I came along with our parents and spent our high school years as New York transplants in a Sonoma vineyard.
Our family has been growing grapes on Sonoma Mountain for close to thirty years. My brother Mike and his wife Mary discovered this vineyard in the late seventies and purchased the property with the help of my parents Bruno and Helen. It soon became a real family affair when our brothers Joe, Bob and Jerry joined the business, followed by my sister Patsy and her husband Tim. As the youngest siblings, my sister Kathy and I came along with our parents and spent our high school years as New York transplants in a Sonoma vineyard.
The 2009 vintage reds are showing excellent quality and ripeness at slightly lower alcohol levels. Our 2009 Starmont Cabernet Sauvignon is approachable now and should be consumed within 8 years of the vintage. - See more at: http://www.merryvale.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=winedetails.displaywinetype&WineTypeID=3#sthash.lGKEBOvR.dpuf