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The Sterling Vineyards winemaking team believes that our wines should express true varietal character. We craft each wine with this in mind, choosing gentle techniques tailored to bring out the aromas and flavors that each grape variety develops in the terroir it likes best. The resulting wines have exceptional quality that shines anywhere, with intriguing complexity that brings out the best in a wide variety of cuisines. Grapes for our Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, and Shiraz wines are harvested at full ripeness and brought to the winery in small boxes. After careful hand-sorting, grapes move through the crusher-destemmer machine and on into oak tanks—or in some cases stainless steel tanks—and are inoculated with native yeasts for primary fermentation. After primary fermentation, the wines are transferred to oak barrels. Here the wines undergo malolactic fermentation in which harsher malic acid is converted to softer lactic acid. Following malolactic fermentation, wines are gently racked from barrel to barrel, leaving their sediment and lees behind. Depending on the varietal, vineyard, and vintage, winemakers give the wines 12 to 24 months of aging in carefully selected oak barrels. Barrels range in type of oak, in age, and in levels of toast—and each variable imparts different characters that interact with and complement a wine’s aromas and flavors.

	Features: Gardens Visitor Center Family Friendly Art Gallery Meeting Space Wine Education Romantic	Varietals as 2010: Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Zinfandel Pinot Noir Sangiovese Syrah Chardonnay Sauvignon Blanc Pinot Grigio Viognier Pinot Gris Viognier Malvasia Bianca Syrah Muscat/Moscato	Appellations: Los Carneros Diamond Mt. Oakville Rutherford St. Helena Yountville Oak Knoll Calistoga Napa Valley