(July 13, 2020; Sonoma, Calif.) — Ram’s Gate Winery, a small-lot, fine-wine producer located in Sonoma’s Carneros AVA, today unveiled a new website, logo and packaging as part of an extensive rebranding initiative to refresh the brand’s identity. This is the first label and logo change since the winery’s founding in 2011.
The rebrand comes at a time of deep revitalization for the winery. Director of Winemaking Joe Nielsen came to Ram’s Gate in 2018 after five years as head winemaker at Donelan Family Wines in Santa Rosa. With a voracious appetite for exploring both vineyard sites and cellar techniques, Nielsen is parlaying the estate vineyard into a model of thoughtful precision farming and sustainability, while also elevating each wine in the portfolio to its highest vineyard expression. While already California Certified Sustainable and Fish Friendly Farming-certified, Nielsen is escalating the sustainable farming approach and pushing the winery to become completely organic in the next five years. He has also introduced a variety of practices in the cellar, including whole cluster fermentation with the Pinot Noir and Syrah, native fermentation in the Estate series, and has developed new partnerships with small-production, family-owned coopers in France.
“When it comes to the wines I love to create, it’s about the nuances and verve—effortless elegance,” says Nielsen. “I believe our new branding encompasses this and is precise and absolute. Like the wine, there is power in the subtlety and sophistication.”
With the rebrand, Ram’s Gate is also introducing a fourth tier to its wine portfolio. The new tier—which will join the Sonoma Coast series, Estate series and Single Vineyard series—will be called Cellar Note. It will offer individual bottlings of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and a Rhône red blend that will explore the best representation of the vintage for each variety. Nielsen intends for these wines to offer a lens into the cellar while allowing him to experiment with new techniques and vineyard sources.
The new packaging clearly differentiates between the four tiers within the winery’s portfolio while still featuring the prominent rams head in reference not just to the winery’s name, but to the Carneros AVA, as Carneros translate to “rams.” Located just off Highway 121, Ram’s Gate is the first winery on the way to Sonoma from San Francisco and is the gateway to Carneros.
Please visit www.ramsgatewinery.com to explore the new website and to learn more about the Ram’s Gate wines.
About Ram’s Gate Winery
Perched upon the rolling hills that define the landscape of the Carneros AVA, where the San Francisco Bay meets the edges of Napa and Sonoma counties, lies Ram’s Gate Winery. As it nears the end of its first decade, Ram’s Gate is entering a heightened era of winemaking excellence. Founded in 2011, the winery has long been recognized for its architectural beauty, refined hospitality programs and sublime culinary experiences. Today, Director of Winemaking Joe Nielsen is parlaying the estate vineyard into a model of thoughtful precision farming and sustainability, while also elevating each wine in the portfolio to its highest vineyard expression. The wine program is backed by the leadership of ambitious managing director Taylr Behnam Cuneo who has orchestrated a world-class wine tasting experience from the winery’s breathtaking tasting room to locally sourced culinary pairings. The tasting room is surrounded by the Ram’s Gate Estate Vineyard, 28 acres of sustainably-farmed vines planted to Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Blanc, Grenache and Syrah. The Ram’s Gate tasting room is currently open for outdoor tasting experiences of 5 wines with a tableside picnic including local cheeses, a selection of sliced cured meats, candied almonds, olives, fresh artisanal bread, pickles, and other accoutrements for $16 per person. Hours of operation are Thursday-Monday, 11:00am-4pm, reservations are required.
