This is our first release of three sparkling wines under the Saint Gregory brand. My wife Trudi and I are great lovers of sparkling wine, especially French Champagne. As I began to formulate the recipe for our sparkling wines, I looked to not only the tradition of Champagne but also to the tradition of sparkling wine from all over the world. To make our sparkling wine rich and unique, we decided to barrel ferment the ‘base wine’ similar to some of the greatest French Champagnes like Krug and Bollinger, and to use Pinot Blanc like the great sparkling wines in Northern Italy, such as Ca del Bosco and Bella Vista.

The grapes for our Saint Gregory Brut come exclusively from the beautiful, high-elevation, Potter Valley at the head waters of the Russian River in Mendocino County. 40% of this wine is Chardonnay from the John McMenomey Vineyard located next to the Russian River, near the entrance of the valley. Another 40% is Pinot Noir from the Naughty Boy Vineyard, which is also grown next to the Russian River, but at the upper, northern end of Potter Valley. The remaining 20% is Pinot Blanc from our Nube Bianco Vineyard, located near the southern end of Potter Valley, on a slight bench above the Russian River, which is grown by our vineyard manager, Tom Barrett.