Mauritson Wines
The Mauritsons pushed Rockpile into becoming its own AVA in 2002 and have farmed Dry Creek Valley since 1868. Julie Albin's pick off the range is the Jack's Cabin Zinfandel.1
Why go
Clay Mauritson is the sixth generation on this ground.2 He started at Kenwood Vineyards with harvests at Taft Street and Dry Creek Vineyard, and founded the label in 1998, in his words as a response to consolidation and to the vineyards the family was already farming.2 The wines come off Dry Creek Valley, Alexander Valley and Rockpile, with Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon carrying the range.1
Project Zin, which he and Carrie Mauritson run with the chef Charlie Palmer, has raised more than $4 million over sixteen years for the Down Syndrome Connection of the Bay Area.3 In 2020 he put the running total at over $1 million, for the Down Syndrome Association North Bay.2
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Jack's Cabin Vineyard Zinfandel. Albin calls it the most exceptional of the range.1
- Order: the Rockpile Cabernet Sauvignon, which she says finishes on tobacco leaf and smoky minerality after the tannins.1
- Avoid: turning up on the strength of a nine-year-old walk-in policy. That is the newest thing on record about visiting, and the winery publishes nothing current.
What locals & experts say
- Julie Albin, San Francisco Chronicle (13 September 2016):
If you've ever heard of a little ole piece of winegrowing land called Rockpile, then you can thank the historic Mauritson family for being the pioneers of what became an official AVA in 2002.
1 - Albin on the wines:
The most exceptional of the bunch goes to their Jack's Cabin Vineyard Zin, which offers ripe yet sophisticated characteristics of strawberry, sage and cola wrapped up in a burly hug of tannins and fresh acidity.
1 - Clay Mauritson, on the product:
We have a truly unique, consumable product that is not only an encapsulation of place and time but has just one ingredient: grapes!
2
Good to know
- Call ahead. The winery publishes no fee, no hours and no booking platform that I could find.
- In 2016 the tasting bar took walk-ins, with outdoor seating and a bookable cellar tasting. That is a 2016 fact.1
- Ask about Jack. Albin says you will hear the legend of the pioneer and moonshiner said to haunt what is left of his cabin up on Rockpile.1
- The 2020 award was Clay Mauritson's, in the Sonoma County winery owner category of the North Bay Business Journal's industry awards.2
Verdict
should-visit — Project Zin, which Clay and Carrie Mauritson run with the chef Charlie Palmer, has raised more than $4 million over sixteen years. The Jack's Cabin is strawberry, sage and cola inside what Albin calls a burly hug of tannins and fresh acidity, and the Rockpile Cabernet finishes on tobacco leaf and smoky minerality after the tannins let go. Clay started the label in 1998 after Kenwood, and the North Bay Business Journal named him Sonoma County winery owner of the year in 2020. Phone before you go: the winery publishes no fee, no hours and no policy that I could find anywhere.