Clos Du Val Winery

Clos Du Val Winery
File:Clos du Val Winery, Napa Valley, Logo.jpg
Location	Napa, California, USA
Coordinates
Appellation	Stags Leap District AVA
Founded	1972
First vintage	1973
Key people	Bernard Portet, Co-Founder and Vice Chairman Ted Henry, Winemaker
Parent company	Goelet Wine Estates
Known for	Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon
Varietals	Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot noir, Merlot
Tasting	Reservations Required
Website	http://www.closduval.com

Clos Du Val Winery is a winery in the Stags Leap District of California's Napa Valley. Wine varieties grown include Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot noir, and Merlot.

History

The winery was founded by two men who were born into the French wine business, John Goelet and Bernard Portet. After scouting the world for two years to locate areas where they might produce Bordeaux-style wine, Portet identified the then-undiscovered Stag’s Leap district of California’s Napa Valley as especially promising. Goelet bought 150 acres (61 ha) of vineyard land and established the winery in 1972. The next year he bought 180 acres (73 ha) in the Los Carneros region to produce the Burgundian varieties Pinot noir and Chardonnay.

Awards

Exterior of Clos du Val Winery.

The winery received international recognition when its first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon (1972) achieved eighth place in the Judgment of Paris.

In the French Culinary Institute Wine Tasting of 1986, Clos Du Val Winery won first place.

In The Judgment of Paris 30th Anniversary, the judges awarded Clos Du Val fifth place.

Further reading

• Taber, George M. Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting that revolutionized wine. NY: Scribner, 2005.

External links

• Clos Du Val Winery
• The Judgment of Paris