Two wines from Napa Valley winery join the fun
Napa, California, December 2014 – Once again this year, two wines from Napa Valley’s Hagafen Cellars were served at the annual White House Hanukkah party on December 17.
Don Ernesto 2012 Collage Marsanne-Rousanne and the Don Ernesto 2013 Clarinet Tempranillo were chosen by the White House wine buyer to accompany lots of latkes and other traditional fare alongside the lighting of Hanukkah menorahs in two celebrations hosted by President Barrack Obama.
“We are delighted and honored to be included in the Presidential festivities again this year,” says winery founder/proprietor Ernie Weir. “Since 1980 our wines have been proudly poured more than 26 times at the White House for frequent Israeli diplomatic functions as well as other cultural events during the terms of the last five Presidents. While the White House celebrates, so will all of us at the winery,” he added.
Hanukkah begins on December 16 and concludes on December 24. The dates for Hanukkah are determined by the Jewish lunar calendar, and change every year.
The Don Ernesto 2013 Clarinet Tempranillo sells for $27: more at http://www.hagafen.com/product/2013-Don-Ernesto-Clarinet.
The Don Ernesto 2012 Collage Roussanne sells for $21: more at http://www.hagafen.com/product/2012-Don-Ernesto-Collage.
Founded in 1979, Hagafen Cellars is owned and operated by Irit and Ernie Weir. It is located in the heart of the Napa Valley across the Trail from the Oak Knoll appellation and less than a mile south of the Stag’s Leap appellation. The winery and tasting room are based at 4160 Silverado Trail (Napa CA 94558), the winery welcomes visitors by appointment between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., by phoning 707/252-0781 or contacting visit hagafen.com. The name is pronounced “hah-gah-feh-n,” the Hebrew word for “grapevine, an expression of the Weir family’s connection to both growing grapes and their cultural heritage.
Ernie Weir’s daily involvement in the two sides of wine production, grape growing and winemaking, ensures superb quality. “Fine wine starts in the vineyard with careful vineyard management,” says Weir. “I strive to take maximum advantage of the Napa Valley’s natural geology and climate to produce the best wine varietals. I interfere as little as possible with the soil, creating a balance that minimizes the chemical and erosion impact by using modern farming techniques while maintaining the age-old wisdom of balance and the traditional values of conservation and land stewardship. Once harvest is completed, I undertake the second part of my job, winemaking. This presents an interesting challenge every time since each year the growing season and harvest are unique and different. I never seek to change what Nature has provided. My goal is to showcase the best that our land has produced.”
The winery’s other current releases include, from Hagafen: 2014 Sauvignon Blanc ($21); 2013 Chardonnay ($24); 2012 Syrah ($32); 2011 Cabernet Franc ($39); 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon ($48); 2012 Merlot ($32); 2013 Pinot Noir ($32); 2013 White Riesling Medium Sweet ($24); 2014 Dry White Riesling ($21); 2009 Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc ($36); 2012 Brut Cuvée Sparkling ($39).
From Don Ernesto: 2012 Crescendo ($27).
From Prix: 2007 Late Disgorged Brut Cuvée Sparkling ($42); 2009 Merlot ($55); 2009 Syrah Wieruszowski Vineyard ($65); 2009 Cabernet Franc ($60); 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, MJT Block ($70), 2009 Melange ($75); 2007 White Riesling Wieruszowski Vineyard ($36); 2006 Late Harvest Chardonnay ($48); 2009 Cabernet Franc Wieruszowski Vineyard ($60).
Weir farms 12 acres of estate vineyard surrounding the winery in the Napa Valley appellation, planted to Cabernet Sauvignon. Another Napa estate vineyard, in the eastern foothills of Mt. George, lies within the Coombsville appellation and is comprised of 2 acres each of Cabernet franc, Syrah and White Riesling. Soils are principally gravelly loam, rocky and well-drained. In May 2013 the winery was officially recognized as a Napa Green Certified Winery, in a proclamation issued by the Napa County Board of Supervisors. This status was achieved through extensive compliance of variables including organic viticulture, reducing the winery’s carbon footprint, recycling and more.
Born in Los Angeles, Ernie Weir spent his college years searching to get back to the land. Upon visiting Napa in the early 1970s, he knew his destiny lay in that Valley; it was to be his place to create a family, create a business, and create a tradition of fine wines emphasizing the importance of growing great grapes rather than manipulating the final product during the process of production. Ernie began work at Domaine Chandon while attending UC Davis’s viticulture and enology program, eventually earning his B.S. in viticulture. His first Hagafen vintage was in 1979. Over the next twenty years, Ernie went on to become Chandon’s vineyard and nursery manager while expanding Hagafen’s production from three hundred bottles in its first year to three hundred cases in its second year to three thousand cases by the end of the 1980s. In 1997, he left Chandon to build the Hagafen Cellars winery and tasting room on Silverado Trail. Hagafen Cellars now has a yearly production of 8,000 cases, with an additional one thousand cases of sparkling wine produced every four years. Printed on the corks is the Hebrew word “L’Chayim” (“to life!”), a traditional Jewish toast.
