It was May 6, 1889 as evening fell across Paris. To the surprise of the gathered masses, Thomas Edison’s incandescent lamps switched on, making the Paris International Exposition the first to remain open after nightfall. The Exposition was a celebration of France’s great industrial achievements highlighted by Gustave Eiffel’s magnificent new tower. But Thomas Edison’s lights were not the only American surprise at the fair. Charles Wetmore’s Livermore Valley Dry White Wine won the Grand Prix and, foreshadowing the achievements of Napa Valley nearly 100 years later, a red wine from Henry Hagen’s Cedar Knoll Vineyard garnered Silver.
Hagen’s weathered stone gate still guards the southwest entrance of Silverado’s Mt George vineyard, the site of the first vinifera plantings in the Coombsville AVA of Napa Valley. Here, the classic Claret varieties thrive on the deep, gravelly down-slopes of the ancient volcano whose name the vineyard bears. High sunlight at moderate temperatures and well-drained soils allow for small berries with optimal ripeness from which the wine develops its deep color, intense blue fruit flavors and rich palate density.
Situated in a quiet corner of the Napa Valley a few miles east of the city of Napa, Mt George is a site of undeniable power. With its rugged, rocky slopes and three babbling creeks, this rolling vineyard seems to rest lightly on the landscape. Perhaps it’s this land’s capacity to inspire that draws remarkable people to it––it’s what keeps it always brimming with an exciting future.
The classic red varieties thrive on the deep, gravelly down-slopes of the ancient volcano whose name the vineyard bears. High sunlight at moderate temperatures and well-drained soils allow for small berries with optimal ripeness from which the wine develops its deep color, intense fruit flavors and rich palate density––great characteristics of cooler climate wine growing.
The oldest vineyard in Napa Valley’s newest AVA, Mt George Vineyard has a rich history that dates back almost two hundred years. It has long drew a diverse, ambitious set of proprietors to its red gravelly loam. Greek for ‘Earth’ and short for ‘George,’ our GEO is the liquid expression of this storied site.
The 8,866-acre Mexican land grant called Rancho Tulocay was given in 1841 by Governor pro tem Manuel Jimeno to Cayetano Juarez in honor of his service in the Mexican army. Juarez built and resided in an adobe home which stands to this day.
A bear flag revolutionary, Coombs founded and laid out the city of Napa and received a land patent on acreage at the north eastern corner of the Tulocay Rancho. He later purchased an adjacent and much larger property, a portion of which eventually became the Napa Valley Country Club.
A successful nightclub owner from San Francisco, Woodward planted the first vinifera in what would later become Coombsville AVA. An industrious soul, Woodward also built a winery, sherry oven, underground barrel cellar, a cooper’s shop and a distillery on the site which earned it its whimsical name, ‘Whiskey Ranch’. His wines and brandies were featured at the 1870 California State Fair and laid the foundation for Coombsville’s winemaking tradition.
German natives who arrived in San Francisco in 1852, Peter and Henry Hagen worked for famed wine producers Kohler & Frohling before purchasing Whiskey Ranch and renaming it Cedar Knoll. In addition to producing award winning wines, the Hagens established a family resort on the property.
Harvey, who owned Cedar Knoll for a short time, was nearly swindled out of it in 1929 by an alleged Oakland gangster and bootlegger.
A former military man, Davis expanded Cedar Knoll while serving as President of the Napa Valley Cooperative Winery and Chair of the Napa Valley Planning Commission. Upon his death in 1954, the property passed to his daughter, Ellen Davis Buehler.
Ellen Davis Buehler was active in the Napa chapter of the League of Women Voters. Through her leadership, the League played a crucial role in educating citizens about the critical need to preserve farmland. She worked with the County Board of Supervisors and other concerned valley residents to create Napa’s Agricultural Preserve, the first of its kind in the United States. With her untimely death in 1982, Cedar Knoll was divided, and the northern 170 acres placed in trust for her daughter, Norris Kay Buehler. These northern 170 acres would become Silverado’s Mount George Vineyard.
Ron and Diane Miller founded Silverado Vineyards in 1976 with the purchase of the Silverado Vineyard in Stags Leap District.
The search for a new source of Cabernet Sauvignon led them to purchase the northern acreage of the Cedar Knoll estate in 1988, which they referred to as ‘Mt George Vineyard’. The extraordinary fruit from this vineyard is the foundation of our GEO Cabernet Sauvignon.
