Blackbird Vineyards
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| Blackbird Vineyards | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | Napa, California, United States |
| Appellation | Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley AVA |
| Founded | 2003 |
| First vines planted | 1997 |
| First vintage | 2003 |
| Key people | John and Julia Hinshaw Michael Polenske Paul Leary Aaron Pott |
| Cases/yr | 7,500 |
| Varietals | Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Distribution | International |
| Tasting | Public |
| Website | http://www.blackbirdvineyards.com/ |
Blackbird Vineyards is a Napa Valley based winery. It is part of the Bespoke Collection. Founder Michael Polenske wanted to create a winery that focused on producing wines from Merlot grapes, which fits with the name "Blackbird", as merlot means "young blackbird", in French patois.[1][2] Blackbird Vineyards creates wines inspired by the Pomerol area of France.[3] The winery calls their wines "California Bordeaux".[2]
Design
Blackbird Vineyards was founded by Michael Polenske who purchased the estate vineyard in 2003.[1] It was previously owned by Trefethen Vineyards.[4] He left his career in finance and focused on creating a wine label and a lifestyle brand that would become the Bespoke Collection; Blackbird is part of that collection.[2][5] In 2006, Paul Leary became president Blackbird Vineyards.[6] Blackbird Vineyards partnered with country singer Martina McBride to release a wine in 2009.[7][8]
The company opened a winery in Napa in 2018 to serve its own production facility and a custom crush.[9] In 2019, John and Julia Hinshaw, investors in Blackbird, purchased a controlling stake of the business and buying out Polenske.[9][10]
The wine labels have flocks of blackbirds on them in different positions and layouts.[1] The label was designed by California designer David Hughes and Michael Polenske. Hughes had designed logos for other companies such as French Laundry and the Sundance Film Festival.[11] Blackbird's proprietary red wine blend, Arise, features blackbirds sitting on a telephone wire in the same layout as the starting notes in the Beatles' song "Blackbird".[1]
Wine production
Blackbird Vineyards has a ten-acre estate vineyard in the Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley AVA.[1] The vineyard was originally a walnut orchard until it was planted with 5,717 Merlot vines in 1997.[1][3] Mia Klein used Blackbird Vineyard to create her 1999 Selene Merlot.[1] The first bottling under the Blackbird Vineyard label was a 2003 Merlot, made by Sarah Gott.[5] They produced 90 cases that vintage and it was only sold to private buyers.[2][5] While the estate vineyard produces only Merlot, Blackbird Vineyards also sources Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon for blending.[2] They also make a Rosé and four proprietary red wines from those varietals.[1][12] Five different wines make up the collection.[1] Materials discarded from harvesting and winemaking, such as stems and vegetation, are made into compost and used in the vineyards.[3] The vineyard is designated Fish Friendly Farming land.[13] Grapes are often sorted two or three times to select the best fruit. The winery uses native yeast during the fermentation process. They use 100-percent French oak barrels in the winemaking and aging processes.[3] The vineyard is managed by Renteria Vineyard Management.[14] Aaron Pott continues as winemaker.[1][15]
Varietals
The Merlot used in Blackbirds' wines comes primarily from their estate vineyard in the Oak Knoll District. Blackbird wines are made in the style of the Merlot-based wines of Pomerol, France, especially because of the similarity of the Pomerol and Oak Knoll district.[3] They also make Merlot wine using grapes from Hudson Vineyards in the Carneros AVA and Stagecoach Vineyard in the Napa Valley AVA.[13] Their Cabernet Franc grapes come from Stagecoach Vineyard, Hudson Vineyard, and Crocker & Starr vineyard, the latter which is located in St. Helena, California.[13][16] Blackbirds' Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are sourced from Hudson Vineyard.[16]
