John Hawley and son with Dan & Julie Garland of Madinger Wines Location: Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma County Established: 1996 For a winemaker there is no higher level of expression than to produce your own wines from your own grapes. It took me four years of college and another twenty years of making wine for others to reach this goal. Now that I am the one in charge, and I am free to craft my wines exactly as I envision, producing wines with the utmost quality and attention to detail.   I always strive to make my wines be the best. While I was the winemaker for Clos du Bois Winery, they became the "most awarded winery of the year" for many years running. Soon after I took over as chief wine maker at Kendall-Jackson Winery, they became the "most awarded winery of the year." My first year as Hawley Winery, Wine and Spirits Magazine proclaimed my first Viognier release “Best California Viognier of the year” and has received similar praise and gold medals every year since.   At Hawley Winery, I am taking winemaking to a higher level of craftsmanship. With the small number of wines that I make, I can attend to details that are overlooked at larger wineries. I utilize traditional winemaking, which has proven to produce the best wines over centuries of testing, techniques that bring out the best of each grape variety. And I use grapes that I planted and continue to farm on the steep slopes of Bradford Mountain, overlooking Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley.   I know from experience that New French Oak overpowers the delicate perfume that is the hallmark of the Viognier. I also know from experience that while cold fermentation in stainless steel can enhance Viognier's fruit flavors, it is detrimental to the complexity, the body, and the longevity of the wine. So I follow the French tradition, fermenting my Viognier in 5 to 8 year old French oak barrels by choice to produce a wine with a silky texture, complex flavors and delicate balance that help make my wine more versatile with food, more age worthy, and more harmonious as a whole.   Many California wineries boast about how modern they are as they employ new high tech equipment and experimental techniques designed to cut costs. Hawley Merlot is produced utilizing French Bordeaux winemaking techniques including long maceration on the skins, to aid flavor and color extraction, and extensive aging in French chateau barrels, as well as barrel to barrel racking every three months to clarify and develop the wine's character. It costs more, and takes a lot more time, but the result is a deeper, richer wine with greater complexity that tastes good now and will improve with cellaring for many years to come.   In this age of fast food and high technology it is interesting to note that the best wines are still being produced in small batches, using traditional French winemaking techniques. Hawley Winery will remain small so that I can personally give each of my wines the care and attention they deserve.     HAWLEY WINERY of Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma County   Hawley vineyards and winery are located on Bradford Mountain, overlooking the Dry Creek Valley in northern Sonoma County. Winemaker John Hawley carefully hand-crafts small quantities of ultra premium Merlot, Viognier, and Cabernet Sauvignon from his steep, terraced vineyards using classic French techniques. With over twenty years of experience, including 10 years as founding winemaker as Clos du Bois and six years as Chief winemaker for Kendall-Jackson, John demonstrates a level of expertise that is hard to match in the wine industry. His wines are consistently of the highest quality. They deliver depth and richness without being overblown, making them an exciting accompaniment to food.   Hawley Viognier is considered by many to be the quintessential example of what this whine Rhone grape variety is about. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in 5 to 8 year old barrels adds softness, body, and a buttery complexity to complement the fruit flavors from the grapes. This wine shows exotic aromas of orange blossoms, peaches, pears, citrus, and spice. In the mouth it is rich and silky, with lively acidity and a long refreshing finish. This wine goes will with most foods, and is particularly good with seafood and spicy foods including Asian cuisine.   Hawley Chardonnay is produced from grapes in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley. This exceptional Chardonnay has luscious flavors of green apples, lemons, and pineapples, along with notes of toasty oak and butter from malolactic and barrel fermentation. Enjoy with seafood, poultry or as an aperitif.   Hawley Pinot Noir is a rare jewel. Since our own vineyard is a bit too warm to bring out the best in this variety, we buy mountain grown Pinot Noir from a cool, coastal, vineyard. We work closely with the grower to control the crop load and maximize the fruit quality. Picked fully ripe, the grapes are cold soaked in small one-ton fermenters prior to fermentation, using the wild yeasts that are naturally present on the fruit. Careful aging in special Burgundy barrels helps add complexity and render a seamless, supple wine with flavors of cherries, plums, oak spice, and floral overtones.   Hawley Merlot is made in a classic Bordeaux style. This is serious, mountain grown Merlot. It is deep in color, with complex aromas reminiscent of black cherries, blackberries, and plums with toasty, vanillin oak overtones from 20 months of aging in 50% new (and 50% used) french oak Chateau barrels. Again, no effort or expense is spared to craft this special wine. The wine is racked from barrel to barrel every three months to soften the tannins and eliminate the need for filtration. Though rich and velvety at release, additional cellaring will add increased complexity and depth.   Hawley Cabernet Sauvignon is produced in minute quantities, but it is a big, bold wine, with ripe fruit, and supple mouth feel. As with all of the Hawley wines, only the finest mountain grown grapes are used. Like the Merlot, the use of gentle, traditional, Bordeaux winemaking techniques, ensures that the wine will have richness and depth, with a smooth, supple mouth feel. Extended maceration on the skins after fermentation helps to build additional structure and depth. This is a rich, wine with complex flavors of blackberries, raspberries, black cherries, plums, and spicy oak notes.