Vineyards

Rather than limit our sourcing to specific vineyards, or even a defined American Viticultural Appellation (AVA), we choose for the Mayacamas Mountain Range to define Archipel. For each vintage our winemaking team selects Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc fruit from a collection of Estate-owned vineyards located in several wine growing appellations across the Mayacamas Mountain Range.

Alexander Valley, Sonoma County   The northernmost Sonoma County appellation, Alexander Valley is nestled between Dry Creek Valley and Russian River Valley to the west, and Knights Valley to the southeast. Northeastern Alexander Valley borders the Mayacamas Mountain Range dividing Sonoma, Napa and Lake Counties. Renowned for growing powerful fruit from steep mountain vineyards, Alexander Valley sources Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc for Archipel. This region offers fruit grown at varying elevations and in a myriad of micro-climates and soil. The extreme rocky character of the majority of the soil provides a challenging environment for vines to embed and grow. This environment contributes to the intensity of Archipel's red fruit, fruit that earns the name "mountain fruit." The average age of Archipel's Alexander Valley vines is ten years and crop levels rarely exceed three tons per acre.

Knights Valley, Sonoma County   The easternmost Sonoma County appellation, Knights Valley borders Alexander Valley and Chalk Hill to the west and to the east directly borders the Mayacamas Mountain Range dividing Sonoma and Napa counties. Celebrated for growing intense, concentrated Cabernet Sauvignon, Knights Valley fruit enjoys signature warm afternoons and cool evenings. Archipel's blend includes both Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from the southwest facing vineyards located on the flanks of Mount St. Helena. These mountainside blocks possess gravelly, volcanic soil - a gift left long ago by volcanic eruptions. This gravelly soil is tightly compacted, creating a difficult, yet beneficial, growing environment for intense red fruit. The average age of Archipel's Knights Valley vines is twenty years with crop levels averaging two tons per acre.

Bennett Valley, Sonoma County   Sonoma County's newest appellation, Bennett Valley was formally recognized as an AVA in December of 2003 and sources Merlot for the Archipel blend. Once defined as part of the Sonoma Valley and Sonoma Mountain AVAs, Bennett Valley still overlaps the Sonoma Mountain region, but carves out a distinct 8,500 acres to call its own. This defined area is located in the northwestern most corner of Sonoma Valley, bordering Chalk Hill to the north and Sonoma Coast to the west. The primary point of differentiation between Bennett Valley and the surrounding area is the wide swings between daytime and evening temperatures resulting from a cool maritime breeze. This breeze, called the Petaluma Wind Gap, is captured by the three mountains that envelop Bennett Valley - Bennett Mountain, Sonoma Mountain and Taylor Mountain. Well-draining, sandy loam soils contribute to Bennett Valley's model growing conditions for Merlot. The crop level rarely exceeds two tons per acre.