Silverado Vineyards
UC Davis gave this vineyard's Cabernet clone Heritage status as FPS #30 in 1999, and SOLO comes off nothing else. Three estate wines for $50, walk-ins welcome.
Why go
Ron and Diane Miller and her mother, Lillian Disney, built the winery in 1981, after years of selling the fruit off these blocks to neighbors who were getting famous on it.2 Jack Stuart made the first crush, 135 tons, on a knoll above the vineyard.2 In 1999 UC Davis granted the Silverado Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Heritage status as FPS #30, one of three Cabernets to hold it and the only one out of the Stags Leap District, and since 2002 the winery has made SOLO from that clone alone.2 Foley Family Wines bought the place in July 2022, and Alison Rodriguez arrived that August as only the third winemaker in the winery's history.2
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Discovery Tasting first, three estate wines for $50 over 45 minutes to an hour, and it takes walk-ins.1
- Order: the Legacy Cabernet Experience at $145 if you came for the clone. Library Stags Leap and Coombsville Cabernets from the Heritage block, with a tour and a cheese board, daily at 10am and 1:30pm.1
- Avoid: packing a picnic. No outside food, and the cheese and charcuterie boards are booked with the tasting at $75 for four or $55 for two.1
What locals & experts say
- Silverado Vineyards, on its own founding:
In 1981, Ron and Diane Miller and her mother, Lillian Disney, established Silverado Vineyards to make wines from the historic sites of their estate. For years, they had sold their fruit to neighboring wineries who were building global reputations for excellence.
2 - Bill Foley, whose group bought it in 2022, on what he bought:
It's a gem of a winery. Great vineyards, great national and international reputation, and, of course, a spectacular location on the Silverado Trail in the Stags Leap District.
1
Those are the founders and the owner. The other voices on the winery's page came off Yelp and Tripadvisor, and I will not hand you those, so I have no outside call on the wine.
Good to know
- Hours: daily 10am to 5pm, last reservation 3:30pm. Reservations encouraged, walk-ins taken when there is room.1
- 21 and over, everyone, and there is a $30 per person no-show fee for club members. Cancel 24 hours ahead for a full refund.1
- Hygiene: not established. No inspection instrument for this county is on file here.
Verdict
could-visit — There is one concrete reason to come here rather than to the next gate on Silverado Trail: UC Davis gave this vineyard's Cabernet Sauvignon Heritage clone status as FPS #30 in 1999, and SOLO is made from nothing else. Ron and Diane Miller and her mother Lillian Disney built the winery in 1981 after years of selling the fruit to neighbors who were getting famous on it, and Foley Family Wines bought it in July 2022. The way in is cheap by valley standards, $50 for three estate wines with walk-ins welcome, and it climbs to $145 for library Cabernet with a tour. What holds the rung down is that every word about the wine here is the winery's own, and the only outside voices on its page came off Yelp, which is not a source I will hand you.