Gloria Ferrer
Encyclopedia
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards is a winery in Sonoma County, California
that specializes in sparkling wines, as well as Pinot Noir
and Chardonnay
wine. Located in the Carneros wine appellation
, it was the first sparkling wine producer in Sonoma Carneros.
, one of the primarily Cava producers in Spain, they fulfilled the families lifelong dream of producing wine in the United States
. Purchasing 156-acres of cattle ranch land, an additional 100-acres was acquired and production began. The winery was named after José Ferrer's wife, Gloria. The couple continue to run the winery together to this day.
They began producing in 1986 and while primarily founded as a sparkling wine making venue, in the early 1990s they began producing still wine
. Upon this decision, red wine producing facilities were built and the wine cave
s were expanded for storage of both types of production.
Gloria Ferrer's wine making mission is: To capture the full expression of the distinctive Carneros terroir
in wines made to pair perfectly with food.
is Bob Iantosca and the vineyard manager is Mike Crumly. Iantosca, who joined Gloria Ferrer in 1984 has created more award-winning California wines than any other winemaker.
Gloria Ferrer owns 335 acres of estate owned vineyards and also works with other grape growers throughout the region to make their wines. They own two vineyards: Home Ranch Estate Vineyards, which is 207-acres of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, and Circle Bar Ranch, 128-acres of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Their grapes are hand picked, in the early morning hours, during harvest season.
Well known for their grape clone studies, Iantosca and Crumly started experimenting in 1988. Working with UC Davis they started three clonal tests on the two varietals and have since studied over 40 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay clones to date. Each clone is tested for vegetation, vine balance, acidity, harvest time, and proper environment.
Sustainability is a strong part of the wine making process as well. Legume cover crops are planted in the vineyard to convert nitrogen for the vine use, as well as serving as homes for beneficial insects
. Other examples include: the winery pomace
is composted with local farm animal manure
that is spread into the vineyards in the spring, wastewater
from wine production is recycled back into the vineyards and native plants are the primary plantings throughout the vineyards and winery.
Gloria Ferrer's Royal Cuvee is made from 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay it incorporates strawberry, raspberry, apple and lemon. Its name is a tribute to the King of Spain.
During the harvest
the grapes are de-stemmed completely. Selected wines are filtered, as well. After processing, the wine is placed in 25% to 50% French oak barrels and aged for 9 months. Between 15,000 to 20,000 cases are produced.
They make two vineyard-designated Pinot Noirs from their clone research: The Rust Rock Terrace Pinot Noir and Grave Knob Vineyard Pinot Noir. The Rust Rock Terrace Pinot is from certain blocks of wines on the uppermost hillside of the Circle Bar Ranch vineyard, which has a volcanic ridgeline that provides strong growing conditions. The Grave Knob is produced on the estates rockier and windier southwest corner which provides a more aromatic wine. Less than 400 cases of each wine are created each year.
trees in 1998 and have since planted almost 500 trees. The trees consist of Spanish Arbequina olives and Italian olives. Their extra virgin olive oil is sold exclusively at the tasting room.
Festival of Food, Wine and Music in the summer and the traditional Three Kings Day events during the holidays. The architecture is a tribute to Spanish
and California mission design, designed to celebrate the Catalonian tradition of the Ferrer family. The red tile rooftop and stucco
walls are a throwback to the Ferrer family 11th century farmhouse in Sant Sadurní d'Anoia
.
Sonoma County, California
Sonoma County, located on the northern coast of the U.S. state of California, is the largest and northernmost of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. Its population at the 2010 census was 483,878. Its largest city and county seat is Santa Rosa....
that specializes in sparkling wines, as well as Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...
and Chardonnay
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...
wine. Located in the Carneros wine appellation
Los Carneros AVA
Los Carneros AVA is an American Viticultural Area which includes parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties in California, U.S.A.. It is located north of San Pablo Bay. The proximity to the cool fog and breezes from the bay makes the climate in Los Carneros cooler and more moderate than the wine...
, it was the first sparkling wine producer in Sonoma Carneros.
History
Gloria Ferrer was founded in 1982 by the Ferrer family as their primary venture into California winemaking. Owners of Freixenet S.A.Freixenet
Freixenet is a Cava producer in Spain, located west of Barcelona in Catalonia. Cava is a sparkling wine produced in Spain.Freixenet was started after the union of two Spanish families with a lengthy history in winemaking: the Ferrers, owners of La Freixeneda, a 12th-century farming estate in Sant...
, one of the primarily Cava producers in Spain, they fulfilled the families lifelong dream of producing wine in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Purchasing 156-acres of cattle ranch land, an additional 100-acres was acquired and production began. The winery was named after José Ferrer's wife, Gloria. The couple continue to run the winery together to this day.
They began producing in 1986 and while primarily founded as a sparkling wine making venue, in the early 1990s they began producing still wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
. Upon this decision, red wine producing facilities were built and the wine cave
Wine cave
Wine caves are subterranean structures for the storage and aging of wine. They are an integral component of the wine industry world wide. The design and construction of wine caves represents a unique application of underground construction techniques....
s were expanded for storage of both types of production.
Gloria Ferrer's wine making mission is: To capture the full expression of the distinctive Carneros terroir
Terroir
Terroir comes from the word terre "land". It was originally a French term in wine, coffee and tea used to denote the special characteristics that the geography, geology and climate of a certain place bestowed upon particular varieties...
in wines made to pair perfectly with food.
Wine production
Gloria Ferrer's head winemakerWinemaker
A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes:*Cooperating with viticulturists...
is Bob Iantosca and the vineyard manager is Mike Crumly. Iantosca, who joined Gloria Ferrer in 1984 has created more award-winning California wines than any other winemaker.
Gloria Ferrer owns 335 acres of estate owned vineyards and also works with other grape growers throughout the region to make their wines. They own two vineyards: Home Ranch Estate Vineyards, which is 207-acres of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, and Circle Bar Ranch, 128-acres of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Their grapes are hand picked, in the early morning hours, during harvest season.
Well known for their grape clone studies, Iantosca and Crumly started experimenting in 1988. Working with UC Davis they started three clonal tests on the two varietals and have since studied over 40 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay clones to date. Each clone is tested for vegetation, vine balance, acidity, harvest time, and proper environment.
Sustainability is a strong part of the wine making process as well. Legume cover crops are planted in the vineyard to convert nitrogen for the vine use, as well as serving as homes for beneficial insects
Beneficial insects
Beneficial insects are any of a number of species of insects that perform valued services like pollination and pest control. The concept of beneficial is subjective and only arises in light of desired outcomes from a human perspective...
. Other examples include: the winery pomace
Pomace
Pomace , or marc , is the solid remains of grapes, olives, or other fruit after pressing for juice or oil. It contains the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems of the fruit....
is composted with local farm animal manure
Manure
Manure is organic matter used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Manures contribute to the fertility of the soil by adding organic matter and nutrients, such as nitrogen, that are trapped by bacteria in the soil...
that is spread into the vineyards in the spring, wastewater
Wastewater
Wastewater is any water that has been adversely affected in quality by anthropogenic influence. It comprises liquid waste discharged by domestic residences, commercial properties, industry, and/or agriculture and can encompass a wide range of potential contaminants and concentrations...
from wine production is recycled back into the vineyards and native plants are the primary plantings throughout the vineyards and winery.
Sparkling wine
The wineries sparkling wines are made from a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, which are created by the traditional méthode champenoise.Gloria Ferrer's Royal Cuvee is made from 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay it incorporates strawberry, raspberry, apple and lemon. Its name is a tribute to the King of Spain.
Pinot Noir
The winery's Pinot Noir is grown in two types of soil: loamy clay soil on flatter ground, which produces between five to six tons per acre, and rock & volcanic soil which produces between two to three tons per acre. Pinot Noir clones are experimented with by Iantosca and Crumly, who seek to find the right grapes for their Carneros land. In 1988 thirteen clones were tested for their viticultural differences and a handful were selected to continue producing. The most successful clones include Colmar 538, Wente, Wädenswil, Pommard 4, Dijon 115 and Martini.During the harvest
Harvest (wine)
The harvesting of wine grapes is one of the most crucial steps in the process of winemaking. The time of harvest is determined primarily by the ripeness of the grape as measured by sugar, acid and tannin levels with winemakers basing their decision to pick based on the style of wine they wish to...
the grapes are de-stemmed completely. Selected wines are filtered, as well. After processing, the wine is placed in 25% to 50% French oak barrels and aged for 9 months. Between 15,000 to 20,000 cases are produced.
They make two vineyard-designated Pinot Noirs from their clone research: The Rust Rock Terrace Pinot Noir and Grave Knob Vineyard Pinot Noir. The Rust Rock Terrace Pinot is from certain blocks of wines on the uppermost hillside of the Circle Bar Ranch vineyard, which has a volcanic ridgeline that provides strong growing conditions. The Grave Knob is produced on the estates rockier and windier southwest corner which provides a more aromatic wine. Less than 400 cases of each wine are created each year.
Olive oil production
The winery started growing oliveOlive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
trees in 1998 and have since planted almost 500 trees. The trees consist of Spanish Arbequina olives and Italian olives. Their extra virgin olive oil is sold exclusively at the tasting room.
Tasting room
The tasting room is attached to the winery and is open to the public for touring and tasting, they also offer special events and a membership program. The winery is known for its CatalanCatalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
Festival of Food, Wine and Music in the summer and the traditional Three Kings Day events during the holidays. The architecture is a tribute to Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and California mission design, designed to celebrate the Catalonian tradition of the Ferrer family. The red tile rooftop and stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
walls are a throwback to the Ferrer family 11th century farmhouse in Sant Sadurní d'Anoia
Sant Sadurní d'Anoia
Sant Sadurní d'Anoia is a municipality in the comarca of the Alt Penedès in Spain, and the centre of production of a sparkling wine known as cava. It is situated in the north-east of the Penedès Depression at the confluence of the Avernó river and the Anoia river...
.