The Hill Family Estate Winery is ”A family working together” in Napa Valley, and here is the story of how Chuck and I first learned about the family and their wines, had the opportunity to taste them and then introduced them to some of our SW Florida friends in a wine dinner “forkandcorkdivine”-style.
The family
Doug Hill is a third generation farmer who grew up on the family farm in Healdsburg growing prunes and apples along the Russian River before moving on to Napa Valley to manage vineyards in the 1970s. Eventually buying vineyards of his own as well as leasing land, he has now been growing grapes for more than forty years. After getting a degree in Plant Science from Cal State Fresno and the experience of traveling around in Latin America, Doug came home and went to work for Sonoma Cutrer.
In 1981, Doug and his wife Darci moved to an acre of land at the northern edge of Yountville, worked for the Jaeger Family (who founded Freemark Abbey Winery), started Oak Knoll Farming, and learned all about Napa Valley microclimates and soils. He pioneered new varieties and growing regions while their children Ryan and Carly grew up playing in the vineyards. Doug planted the first vineyards in American Canyon and brought the first Albariño grapevines to Napa Valley. They also helped their neighbors grow organic fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables from these gardens are still being served at a few renowned local restaurants including the French Laundry.
After four decades of farming, Doug decided to take his family business to the next level and in 2001 Hill Family Estate was born. Their first wines (totaling about 900 cases), a Merlot and a red blend called “Origin”, were produced in 2001. Now they own 120 acres of vineyards focusing on Atlas Peak, Carneros and Oak Knoll. They are 100% family farmed, owned and operated producing fruit for other Yountville wineries (ie. Cakebread, Duckhorn, Far Niente) as well as their own family business. Hill Family Estate annual wine production ranges between 9,000 to 12,000 cases made from the grapes of 12 different vineyards. Varietals include Albariño, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Zinfandel. They also make Late Harvest/Dessert, Red Blend, Rosé and Sparkling wine.
The Hill children have grown up in the wine business making son Ryan Hill a perfect choice for VP and Director of Sales. With his degree in Wine Business Strategies and lots of experience in the hospitality business, Ryan continues to grow the family business. Ryan’s sons are now the fifth generation of farmers! Ryan’s sister Carly Hill got her degree in Food and Nutritional Science and became a Registered Dietitian. She now lives in San Diego where she works in Pediatric Sales and continues to help the family with wine events in Southern California.
Alison Doran joined the Hill Family as their winemaker making the inaugural 2001 vintage. Alison came with some pretty big credentials including a mentorship by Andre Tchelistcheff, a winemaking degree from UC Davis, spending time working in Alsace, and not to forget she was the winemaker for Lewis Cellars. Alison and Doug now have 43 harvests on their resume.
Where to experience Hill Family’s wines
You can experience Hill Family’s ultra-premium wines first-hand at their tasting room on Washington Street, Yountville and their winery on Solano Avenue in Napa. If visiting the Yountville tasting room, you can see one of Ryan’s ideas firsthand – “the stained project”. Several types of wood were stained by red wines and sent back to the Fender guitar company who used that wood to produce 100 very limited red wine stained guitars. One of them hangs on the wall near the tasting counter! You will also want to take note of the door to this tasting room – it was carved by a wood worker from Montana and also stained in red wine. You can probably guess where this is headed! The Hill’s own a vineyard called Red Door located in Carneros that produces excellent Merlot, and they named one of their wines for it…………you guessed it! ……..RED DOOR. 2017 Red Door is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Syrah and Merlot, and it is excellent. Just 415 cases were produced and I’m overjoyed that we have a bottle of it in our cellar!
In late November of 2019, the Hill Family bought the old McVicar vineyards and winery just about a mile south of their Yountville tasting room west of Highway 29 off of Solano Avenue and Hoffman Lane. The winery building was completely restored in 2014. You can reserve a tasting there, but the wine is still produced at nearby Laird Family Estate.
For the most unique experience and only a 5 minute drive from the Yountville tasting room, make arrangements for “The Secret Garden” tour and wine tasting usually available between June and October. This fabulous little certified organic 1.3 acre garden is filled with over 120 types of fruit trees including 10 varieties of figs, 10 varieties of pears, and 15 varieties of peaches; a wide range of vegetables; herbs and 25 different culinary flowers. Produce is sold to just 4 Michelin starred restaurants including the world-famous Thomas Keller’s French Laundry and Ad Hoc. The French Laundry was known to purchase the tiny flowers on fennel, using tweezers to place them for service and tiny Sungold tomatoes that they peeled by hand. Other unique products include peach leaves (used to make peach leaf ice cream), hyacinth bean vine flowers (don’t eat the pods – they’re poisonous!) and Korean mint flowers. Did you know peach leaves smell like amaretto when they are crushed? You may also get to see some free-range farm-raised certified organic snails!
Albariño and Napa Valley’s “lowest” vineyard
So many of Napa’s highest vineyards get all of the attention, but near the estuary that forms just south of the city of Napa, you will find the Stewart Ranch Vineyard where grapevines are planted between 6 and 12 feet above sea level. There is even a levee around the vineyard to help keep it from floodwaters. Doug Hill manages this vineyard which is much less famous than the wildlife refuge on the other side of the highway. Stewart Ranch is also home to an Albariño vineyard, the first Albariño planted in Napa Valley. Hill Family has been making wine from them since 2010, and it’s distributed primarily to various Morimoto restaurants around the country including the one in Napa. This wine is ONLY available for tasting and purchase at the Hill Family tasting room PLUS we lucky participants of a Hill Family wine dinner at Liberty. I’m sure we weren’t the only lucky ones, but we like to think we were! You can be sure we purchased a few bottles of this delightful Albariño with its notes of green apples, pear, lime and citrus blossoms. After all if Iron Chef Morimoto likes to pair it with his seafood, that’s a good enough recommendation for us! You can buy a bottle of it for $80 at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs.
All about the wines
As mentioned earlier, Chuck and I were lucky enough to taste through the Hill Family wines right here in Fort Myers, Florida in March 2021 when Bob Boye, Chef/Owner of Liberty – “culinary workshop” paired up their wines for a six course culinary adventure. Heather Smith, our local Sales Consultant from Breakthru Beverage greeted us, and Ryan Hill was there to personally tell us the story of Hill Family Estate and present each wine as it was served.
The wines that we tasted that night at Liberty seemed perfect for a future wine dinner to be planned, prepared and presented “Rakos-style”/ www.forkandcorkdivine.com at our home for a few of our winelover friends. And of course we purchased them! Those were the same wines and vintages that we served at our forkandcorkdivine dinner on May 15, 2021 for a party of six. Next up is our menu and pictures of the delicious and perfectly paired food prepared by the Rakos team and several of our foodie friends. The wines and information about each of them is interspersed throughout the menu. (Note: Most of my comments about the wines are taken from the winemaker’s tech sheets.)
“Wine Dinner in the Secret Garden”
Sparkling California Welcome
Roederer Estate Brut, Anderson Valley, Mendocino, CA
Brie and Pear Tartlets Amuse Bouche
Lemon, Fennel Pollen and Parmesan Popcorn
We always begin our wine tastings and dinner events with a sparkling wine to start the evening in a festive mood and set guest expectations for all of the wine and culinary goodness yet to come! Hill Family does make a sparkling wine, but sadly there was none available, so I opted for another California sparkling and one of my personal favorites – a Brut from Roederer Estate in Anderson Valley. Chuck and I had visited their estate on one of our California wine trips and have enjoyed it ever since. The Brie and pear flavors in the pastry tartlets and the lemon, fennel pollen and Parmesan flavors showcased that Roederer bubbly just right! And if that popcorn was good enough for Cakebread Cellars to serve, it was good enough for me. Our Meyer lemon tree isn’t yet bearing fruit this year, but when it does you can be sure I’ll make another batch of that popcorn with Meyer lemon zest.
Next up, my tablescape was supposed to resemble a garden, even if it’s not “secret”. I few fresh veggies, fruits, herbs and gardening tools gave it a “Rakos garden” feel., of course nothing like the Hill Family Secret Garden, I’m sure. We even decorated with real grapevines from our basically ornamental Cabernet Sauvignon grapevine that grows right outside our back door! It does bear fruit which the birds really enjoy.
Grapevine from our backyard.
Lemon, Fennel Pollen and Parmesan Popcorn 
Brie and Pear Tartlets
First: 2020 “Stewart Ranch” Albariño
Just 371 cases of this 97% Albariño (plus 3% Sauvignon Blanc) were produced from the Stewart Ranch Vineyard in Carneros. The harvested fruit was whole cluster pressed and fermented in stainless steel for about 3 weeks, then rested on the lees for 2 months in the tank before racking and bottling. The result is a wine with aromas of orange blossoms, apricots, mandarin oranges, a tiny bit of pineapple, a satiny structure and zippy acidity on the finish. It’s a perfect choice for pairing with fresh seafood and tapas. Since Chef Morimoto serves it in his Japanese restaurants, we knew it would pair well with our seared scallops dressed with a pineapple, apricot and chili sauce. We served them on Chinese spoons – one, because I have a big box of them!, and two, because it gives a tiny bit of Oriental vibe. adding lots of interest to the first course presentation. Another great pairing would be the smoked scallop carpaccio, lime and ginger that Bob served to us at Liberty. And yes we even had that garden effect going on in the napkins!
Seared Scallops with Pineapple, Apricot and Chili Salsa
Second: 2016 “Carly’s Cuvée” Chardonnay
Three thousand four hundred cases of this 2016 100% Chardonnay were made from grapes of several vineyards on the valley floor. It’s made in a partial-malolactic style with just 10 months in French oak barrels, 45% of them new, making it a great choice for those who prefer a fresh and bright style of Chardonnay. It has aromas of tropical fruit, melon and hints of fig followed by ripe citrus, light peach and a bit of nuttiness and touch of mineral. Even though our winelover friend Anita had not yet tasted Carly’s Chardonnay, she knew exactly what flavor profile to go for! Her yogurt marinated chicken and fresh apricots skewer was dressed up with some tabbouleh and pita bread, and it was wonderful. We also enjoyed it at our Liberty dinner paired with a lemon basil flan and notes of soy-caramel.
Yogurt Marinated Fresh Apricots and Chicken Skewers with Tabbouleh and Pita Bread
Our assembly line in action.
Third: 2017 “Stewart Ranch” Pinot Noir
The Stewart Ranch Vineyard is cool and breezy enough to work some magic on those Pinot grapes. Four hundred ninety cases of the 2017 were produced spending 11 months in 55% new oak barrels and no fining or filtration. According to Alison Doran, the winemaker, expect aromas of cherry crème soda and ripe plum with a core of black cherry and flavors of clove and spice on a rich finish. It was a big hit paired with Bob Boye’s pork belly and black garlic cauliflower plate, so our foodie wine friend Jeff took that pork theme and ran with it – in a really big way. He made an outstanding porchetta, chilled it, then sliced it to be topped with his vinegar red peppers. What a winning combination. We are so lucky to have friends who really know their way around the kitchen. And all of our guests gave rave reviews about the Stewart Ranch Pinot Noir.
Chilled Porchetta with Vinegar Peppers
Fourth: 2017 Barrel Blend
Barrel Blend is the Hill Family “surfer” wine! Kyle Knox, who is a great surfer and also a wine professional, suggested naming this blend after the term “being in the barrel” which is both a wine and a surfing term. Look closely and you will see a picture of Kyle carving a perfect cut in “the barrel” on the label. Kyle collaborated with the Hill family to make a really great blend of wine that won’t break the bank. The 2017 is a blend of 44% Merlot, 17% Zinfandel, 16% Syrah, 7% Petit Syrah, 5% Malbec, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Pinot Noir, 2% Petit Verdot and 2% Dolcetto. Wow! Don’t think I left anything out!!!! All of these grapes were harvested before the big fire of 2017 hit. The Malbec and Merlot had great berry fruit and dense color, the Syrah and Petite Syrah had density and texture, lots of fruit from the Zinfandel, a little Cabernet and Petit Verdot for dignity and finally a touch of Pinot for grace. Just as you would expect with all of these grape varieties, the “Barrel Blend” gave off blueberry, red cherry, deep black fruit followed by more blueberries, black pepper, jammy blackberry and black cherry. Just over 4,000 cases were made, and Bob paired our glass with an outstanding duck meatball in a vodka sauce with fennel and oregano. It was just a fantastic taste explosion! I personally am not a lover of all things duck, but that duck meatball was just such an awesome pairing that I made duck meatballs stuffed with some mousse of foie gras, and simmered in caramelized onions and cremini mushrooms. I ground my raw duck breasts and mixed them with ground pork (just like my recipe from Cakebread Cellars told me to do). Look out, you surfers and fellow foodies!!!!! This dish and wine pairing were a major hit at our dinner.
Duck Meatballs with Foie Gras, Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms
Fifth: 2016 Origin Red Blend
All five Bordeaux varieties were included in the 960 cases of Origin – 55% Merlot, 18% Malbec, 17% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc. The Merlot added richness, structure and plush fruit; Malbec is for big color and low tannin; the Petit Verdot and Cab Franc for texture to balance the Malbec and dignity from the Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine was aged for 16 months in 68% new oak barrels and bottled without fining or filtration. As you would expect, there wwere aromas of raspberry and roses, mouthfuls of berries and cherries moving on to blueberries, red currants and plums and finishing out with subtle tannins. Bob hit another winner when he paired our glass of Origin with a hangar steak and pretzel spätzle. I’m not a tried-and-true lover of hangar steak, but I do love flank steak. Since flank steak is a really good protein (in my opinion) for serving to a number of guests, at the Rakos wine dinner we served our Origin with grilled marinated flank steak, miso-glazed fingerling potatoes and a Japanese Swiss Chard salad. As far as I am concerned it was perfect in flavor and wine pairing. I did the prep work for our Japanese inspired plate and Chuck grilled off that flank steak to perfection while finishing those little potatoes in a glaze of white miso paste and mirin. What a great plate full of umami flavor. The Swiss Chard was cooked lightly then chilled and dressed in soy sauce, lime juice, sesame oil, sugar and garlic. Top it off with a few sesame seeds and scallions and you have a restaurant quality entree plate.
Grilled Marinated Flank Steak with Miso Glazed Baby Dutch Yellow Potatoes and
Japanese Swiss Chard Sesame Salad
Sixth: 2017 Red Door Cabernet Sauvignon
What a way to end a wine dinner! “Red Door” is a blend made to showcase Hill Family’s best lots regardless of variety or sub-appellation. Just 415 cases were made to show off the blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Malbec, 10% Syrah and 2% Merlot from 5 different vineyards. It was aged 16 months in 65% new French oak, and you can enjoy it today – like we did! – or put it away for 15-20 years. There were ample blue fruits, leafy herbs, and damp earth-like aromas and flavors in a really well balanced wine with fine polished tannins. And since it went so well with Bob’s chocolate dessert, I decided not to mess with perfection and to be a “copy cat”. Chocolate MUST be served with Red Door. This flourless chocolate cake was complete with a pound of bittersweet chocolate, eight eggs and one cup of butter. But don’t stop there! You absolutely must serve it with a Cabernet Sauvignon dried cherry sauce in order to do that Red Door proud……….and be the perfect ending to our Hill Family wine dinner. I just happened to have a bottle of very high end Cabernet from Alexander Valley sitting open from the night before, and it was just the two cups of red wine that my Napa Valley Vintners recipe called for. As you can see, I really like to use authentic recipes for the region to complement our wines. Sort of like that famous saying “what grows together goes together”.
Flourless Chocolate Cake with
Cabernet Sauvignon Dried Cherry Sauce and Blueberries
Our forkandcorkdivine Hill Family dinner was quite a success. Everyone enjoyed the wines and all of our food pairings, and we always enjoy the camaraderie. While we love wines from France, Italy, Spain, and every other country we can source from including Armenia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovenia, Turkey and Lebanon just to name a few we have featured, we always owe our first allegiance to the wines of United States. Stay tuned to hear about a tour of some United States wines in the very near future from states that don’t currently receive as much recognition as California, Oregon and Washington. And we hear they are great!!!!!!!
Thanks to Ryan Hill, Heather Smith, Bob Boye and his team at Liberty –“culinary workshop” for introducing us to these excellent boutique Napa Valley wines that won’t break the bank. Our wish is that the Hill Family will continue to work together for a very long time. We also hope that our winelover friends enjoyed the forkandcorkdivine “Rakos-style” Hill Family wine dinner equally as well.
5.25.2021
forkandcorkdivine.com
