The revival of Mount Peak Winery

The story of Mount Peak Winery begins more than a century ago at the celebrated Monte Rosso Vineyard and culminates with the recent revival of the brand by Gallo. A vestige of one of California’s great “ghost” wineries, the wines are a tribute to the extraordinary facility that once stood there. Originally built in 1886, Mount Peak was a marvel of innovation with its three-story, gravity-flow system built from rock directly sourced from the dry-farmed Monte Rosso vineyard. While it ultimately emerged as one of California’s top producers, it was closed during Prohibition and left abandoned to the elements, laying silent for decades. Over 130 years later, Gallo has revived the site and the vineyard, perched at nearly 1,300 feet along the spine of the Mayacamas Mountains, straddling the Napa and Sonoma Valleys.

Gravity
V. 2014 95 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

The Gravity Red Blend is named for a remote, hard-to-reach Petite Sirah block on a lower slope of the Monte Rosso Vineyard. Its location on the edge of a canyon and its steepness produces grapes with exceptional intensity. Six varieties-Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Syrah, Grenache and Barbera-create a vivid expression of the power of a great mountain vineyard. This dark, dense wine is layered with stunning flavors raging from boysenberry and blueberry jam to blackberry and fig. The dark berry and fig flavors create a full-bodied mouthfeel framed by assertive tannins and a long, concentrated finish.
We fed the solids into a basket press, then gravity racked into oak barrels keeping the pressed wine separate from the free-run wine for aging. The final blend was assembled in July of 2015 and returned to barrel to allow the flavors to integrate. Total barrel aging was 14 months in a mix of French and American oak. 30% new.

Rattlesnake
V. 2014 92 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

We hand harvested the grapes and performed a three-day cold soak to extract more flavors and structure. After its primary fermentation, the wine underwent malolactic fermentation and the lots were aged separately in barrels for several more months, allowing the flavors to integrate. Total barrel aging was 14 months in a mix of French and American oak. 22% new.
Rattlesnake Zinfandel is tribute to the crest called Rattlesnake Hill, the highest point of the Monte Rosso Vineyard and a site famous for rattlesnakes living among the vines. During the day, the snakes seek the abundant sunshine, and in the evening, they coil inside and around the vines. This Zinfandel has an alluring mouthwatering quality and is filled with robust flavors that include ripe blueberries, cherry jam, and fit all tied together by a brambly undertone. Accents of white pepper, licorice, and smoke weave through the wine, deepening throughout the luscious finish.

Sentinel
V. 2014 92 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

We hand harvested the grapes and went through a four-day cold soak to enhance flavors extraction and structure before primary fermentation. After fermentation, the wine underwent malolactic fermentation. The blocks were aged into the following summer, when the cellar blend was assembled in late July. The wine was sent back to barrel for several more months, allowing the flavors to integrate. Total barrel aging was 18 months in a mix of French and American oak of which 55% was new.
Our Sentinel Cabernet Sauvignon is named for the shield-shaped block that casts a watchful eye on the entrance to Monte Rosso Vineyard. It’s a muscular and intense wine with rich, deep tannins and mouthfilling concentrated fruit. Aromas of the dark currants mingle with hints of brown sugar and sweet mint. Flavors of blackberry and cherry are woven through anise and toasted cedar, echoing a long finish that is framed with notes of sweet cream. This wine has tremendous aging potential.