New Family-Owned Cabernet House Features Winemaking by Nigel Kinsman and Michel Rolland
(St. Helena, CA– May 7, 2024) – Luke Evnin and Deann Wright, proprietors of Annulus, today announced the forthcoming launch of their first wines in Fall 2024. Founded in 2020, Annulus will debut with three wines: 2021 Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($250), 2021 Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($250), and 2021 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($175). Winemaker Nigel Kinsman crafts Annulus wines and Consulting Enologist Michel Rolland joined the team in 2023.
Annulus, from the Latin term for “ring,” refers to the winegrowing cycle that extends from dormancy to bud break to veraison and to harvest. It is inspired by the circle of family and friends with whom Evnin and Wright gather to share and appreciate wine, and honors exceptional, historic, family-owned Napa Valley vineyards.
The Proprietors
Luke Evnin and Deann Wright are longtime residents of Rutherford who raised their daughters, Alexandra and Elena to appreciate the exceptional bounty of the region. For decades, the family has cherished a time-honored Napa Valley way of living, in which good friends gather spontaneously to share heartfelt conversation, fresh local ingredients, and world-class, handcrafted wine.
Dr. Evnin and Wright were each trained as research scientists and they have dedicated their careers to advancing life science research in both industry and academia. Dr. Evnin and Ms. Wright offered that, “our hope is to bridge our passion for wine and our life’s work in accelerating research in cancer and autoimmune disease.”
The couple has long dreamt of launching a family wine effort and over the many years has observed and learned from the outstanding innovators and artists of the valley—including their late neighbor, Barbara Eisele. Finally, they found the ideal team and vineyard sources to bring their winemaking dream to reality with the pieces falling together in 2019. Key to the launch, they were auspiciously introduced to Nigel Kinsman by close friends and colleagues and they were offered the opportunity to make wine at Wheeler Farms. With a shared passion for historic, family-owned vineyard sites, they began collaborating to express a unique perspective for wines made from two of their favorite but very different sites – Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard and Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard.
Annulus is, by intention, a family-run label with extremely limited production wines. Evnin and Wright are building the business alongside their daughters. Alexandra Evnin has immersed herself in various aspects of the wine business, working harvest at Seavey Vineyard in Napa and Hirsch Vineyards on the Sonoma Coast. She has also spent time on the sales side of the business at Flatiron Wine and Spirits in Manhattan. Her sister, Elena Evnin has guided the visual aspects of the brand and wine label. The Annulus logo derives inspiration from a striking public sculpture by Andrea Roggi in Florence, where Elena recently studied.
The Vineyards
Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard was first planted to wine grapes in 1884. Since 1978, the vineyard has been meticulously farmed by successive generations of the Phillips family. Vine Hill Ranch sits in a beautiful southwestern corner of Oakville and rolls up the gentle foothills of the Mayacamas Mountains. Annulus selects fruit from the eastern-facing Block 2, one of the lower blocks of the 70-acre vineyard, which benefits from well-draining, loamy, and alluvial soils. Planted in 1999 and farmed by Mike Wolf, this block is planted to clone four on 101-14 rootstock and yields fruit with fine tannins and lush aromatics.
Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard traces its history back to the original Mexican land grants. Located at the foot of Spring Mountain, it was first planted in the 1840s, making it the first vineyard in the St. Helena appellation. In 1983, California’s grape-growing trailblazer Andy Beckstoffer purchased the property and planted it to Cabernet Sauvignon. Impressed with the quality of the gravelly, fast-draining soil, farmworkers named the vineyard Las Piedras, which means “the stones.” Annulus sources fruit from Block D1, which was planted to clone 47 on 110R rootstock in 2014. The signature profile of this famed site includes powerful, dark fruit notes that rest on a backbone of minerality.
Wines and Winemaking
Critically acclaimed winemaker Nigel Kinsman’s classical approach to winemaking focuses on highlighting the exceptional purity of fruit and vineyard expression in the Annulus wines. He crafts beautifully balanced wines with layers of complexity for longevity in the cellar.
“I want the vintage to shine through and to create honest and transparent wines that are evocative of where the grapes were grown and the vintage,” says Kinsman. In 2023, Consulting Enologist Michel Rolland joined the Annulus team, bringing an international perspective and decades of world-class winemaking experience with him. Rolland collaborates with Kinsman to masterfully synthesize final blends and limited-edition bottlings for Annulus.
Kinsman’s classical winemaking approach aims to express the vineyard, block, and growing conditions rather than imprinting Annulus wines with any overriding house style. Careful viticulture, in collaboration with their grower partners, coupled with meticulous cluster selection, contributes to the structure and character of the wines. Kinsman’s artful touch in the cellar is complemented by Consulting Oenologist Michel Rolland’s masterful blending prowess.
About Annulus
Founded in 2020, Annulus Cellars is a boutique, family-owned wine venture from proprietors Luke Evnin and Deann Wright. Together with their daughters, they have cultivated a vision of establishing a classic, multigenerational business focused on two of Napa Valley’s most prized vineyards: Beckstoffer Las Piedras and Vine Hill Ranch. In fall 2024, Annulus will release its first three wines from the acclaimed 2021 vintage. For more information, please visit annuluscellars.com.
