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Ray
Signorello Jr. began his journey as winemaker and
vineyard owner in the Napa Valley during the mid 1980's.
Ray, born in San Francisco, California, moved to Vancouver,
Canada where the Signorello family continues to maintain
a home. Ray divides his time between Napa, San Francisco,
Vancouver and business related travel. Ray's father,
Ray Sr., initiated the vineyard project during the
mid 1970's by purchasing the 100-acre estate located
on the Silverado Trail in the beautiful Napa Valley.
Ray Sr. worked side by side with Ray Jr., establishing
the winery's reputation for excellence until his passing
in the fall of 1998.
Signorellos'
original plan was to grow quality grapes to sell to
existing wineries, but the harvest of 1985 changed
this plan into a new level of evolvement. The bountiful
crop allowed Signorellos to custom crush the excess
grapes. This opportunity demonstrated what fabulous
wine their vineyards were capable of producing. The
project continues to grow, as do the spectacular 42
acres planted in several different varietals. Ray's
continuing effort represents the invested energies
that created this reality from a dream.
In
1986 the Signorellos began the second phase of the
venture, this was the building of the main winery
structure. This beautiful building is used for barrel
storage, wine tasting and retail sales. Along with
the building of the winery, wine production was expanded
to include Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. By the
end of the 1980's the Signorello family was thoroughly
committed to making wine as well as growing grapes.
The
decade of the nineties proved to be pivotal for Signorello
Vineyards. In 1990 the first planting of red varietals
began on the property- Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet
Franc, Merlot and Syrah.
What
brought the Signorellos to the Napa Valley was the
romantic side of winemaking; growing grapes, working
the land, and enjoying the wine country lifestyle
of camaraderie, good wine and great meals. While the
Valley lifestyle is a very real part of the business,
there is a serious responsibility to making a dream
become a reality, both father and son realized this
fact early in the endeavor.
This
venture was a dream; now it is reality. We have enjoyed
every moment of it, and we look forward to continuing
on to make quality wines from the Napa Valley!
Signorello vineyards makes limited quantities of premium
varietals that blend classic French wine making characteristics
with California fruit. Our style of winemaking is
directly tied to our vineyards. We strive for lush,
concentrated fruit flavors, and good acid balance
in all of our wines. The goal is to have wines with
early accessibility, as well as the potential to develop
additional complexity as they mature.
Signorello
Vineyards began to develop a style of winemaking based
on the idea of "winegrowing" described by
a French word "Vigneron". It means that
everything done in the vineyards is intimately connected
to the winemaking. His technique or style is used
in the Burgundy region of France. Ray Signorello's
preferences and tastes are decidedly Burgundian; striving
for lush fruit to produce rich Chardonnays, like those
of Domaine Coche-Dury and Domaine Leflaive. The winery
focuses on elegance, balance and depth thus producing
the magnificent Pinot Noirs like those from Domaine
de la Romanee-Conti and Domaine Leroy.
The
gentle treatment the fruit receives when it first
comes to the winery is also evident in the winemaking
process. The white varietals go directly to temperature
controlled, stainless steel tanks to settle off heavy
sediment. From there they are pumped into French oak
barrels (40-50% new barrels with medium to heavy toast)
from coopers Francois Freres, Damy, an Sirugue. All
of these coopers use wood type Allier, Troncais, and
Vosges.
Barrel
Fermentation begins with the grapes own native yeast,
this produces a wine with more complexity and a broader,
creamier texture. Ultimately the wine will develop
greater individuality and personality from allowing
the native yeast to produce fermentation. After two
to four weeks - when alcoholic fermentation is complete
- 100% of the Chardonnay is inoculated and undergoes
malolactic fermentation in barrels. Approximately
20% of the Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon are inoculated
for malolactic fermentation.
The
red varietals are treated in a different manner. After
destemming and crushing the reds are fermented in
four and eight ton open top tanks, again native yeast
are allowed to do the fermentation. The cap, (skins
and pulp that rise to the surface during fermentation)
is hand punched down three times each day. The red
wines go through extended maceration periods, usually
25 to 35 days, to allow for a more natural balance
of fruit and tannins. The juice of the red grapes
is then pressed off the skins and settled in stainless
steel tanks for two days. The wine is then inoculated
for malolactic fermentation and racked into French
oak barrels. The barrels are (medium-plus toast) from
Seguin Moreau and Radoux. The Pinot Noir cooperage
is very much like that used for the white wines.
Pinot
Noir and the white varietals remain on the lees for
the duration of the oak aging. The Cabernet Sauvignon
is racked selectively, approximately four times before
bottling. The white wines are also selectively fined
and racked just before bottling. This careful handling
allows the wines subtleties and finer nuances to stay
in tact. (To this day, Signorello winery is proud
to say that their red wines have been bottled without
filtration.)
The
time the wine spends in the oak barrels varies according
to varietal. The white remains in barrels for approximately
11 months. The Pinot Noir ages for 17 months, while
the Cabernet Sauvignon remains in the barrels an average
of 22 months and is blended with Merlot and Cabernet
Franc before bottling.
Signorello
Padrone The Reserve program consists of wines that
Ray Signorello tastes throughout the time the wine
is aging in the barrels. The Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
is a classic Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlot & Cabernet Franc. This reserve Cabernet
Sauvignon is dedicated to the memory of Ray Signorello
Sr. and is called Padrone. The Chardonnay Reserve
is limited to a 50 case production, with only two
barrels being blended together to create the highly
celebrated, delicious Hopes' Cuvee, named after Ray
Jr's mother, Hope Signorello.
Devotion,
is the word that best describes the intense attention
the vineyards and wine receive in order to produce
varietals that are softer and more subtle with complex
fruit and balanced structure. Signorello Vineyards
takes pride in producing world class wines that are
very enjoyable upon release yet can benefit from additional
bottle aging.
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