About
Father John
Father John wines are rare and exclusive. We can be found in some of the World's finest establishments throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific. Our approach to winemaking is inherently different from the market at large. Our wines are made in an ancient tradition, with the utmost goal making age-worthy, delicate and fresh Pinot Noir that continues to gain finesse and complexity as time goes on.
The winery was created in 2010 in honor of John Weaver an Episcopalian Reverand. His amazing life and influence on others was remarkable. He created a large and loving family that continues on today and now is able to give him honor by naming the winery after him.
We are based in Sonoma County, California in the heart of the Russian River Valley yet we also work extensively with vineyard sites in Mendocino to the North. All of the vineyards that we works with are meticulously farmed and managed by the best in the industry. The vast majority are organically farmed and only the best sites for Pinot Noir are selected.
The wines are made by Nicholas Maloney who was born and raised in Sonoma County and educated in France and Switzerland. He studied at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune, France and worked in the viticultural regions of Pernand Vergelesses, Savigny les Beaune, Nuits Saint George, Chablis and Margaux in Bordeaux. The resulting wines are of grand stature; elegant and stunningly delicious.
Vineyards
Comptche (Mendocino County)
We have worked with Comptche (pronounced Comp – Chee) grapes since 2016, sourcing from a beautiful vineyard planted in 2000 to pinot noir in what is locally called the Surprise Valley Ranch. The Oppenlander family has been farming on the site since the late 1800s and not much has changed.
The soils are unique to Mendocino and are called Perry Gulch. The vineyard is also one of the few own rooted sites in the area and the power and purity of the fruit is evident. The vineyard is not far from the Pacific coast which helps keep a constant breeze throughout the canopy which makes nearly every vintage mildew and disease free.
We believe that this to be one of the finest sites for pinot in all of Mendocino county and the complexity and aging potential of the wine is significant. We pick a field blend of different clones of pinot noir to add depth to the wine and we always pick this vineyard in the night as to help retain natural acidity in the grapes.
Estate Vineyard (Russian River Valley)
Originally planted in 2003, our Estate vineyard sits in the heart of the Russian River Valley in the town of Sebastopol. We have continued planting since 2003 to a number of different clones and rootstocks.
There is also a dark orange clay in the soils that is not found elsewhere in the region. The site is balmy and foggy in the summer and mostly South facing in slope. We prune the vineyard in a head trained style and often take off foliage prior to the harvest.
Gophers, bees, insects and birds thrive here and often eat much of the crop including one vintage when they ate the entire crop. We have farmed this vineyard organically and used house made compost since the vineyard was planted.
Vine Hill Road (Russian River Valley)
We source from the Oehlman family near the top of the historic Vine Hill Road region of the Russian River Valley. Originally planted in the late 1800s, nearly all the vineyards were replaced during the prohibition era. Many farmers then planted prunes or Gravenstein apples of which only a few apples remain today.
Vine Hill is a near perfect climate for pinot as it is windy and foggy and has a Goldridge sandy loam soil that allows us to dry farm the vineyard.
We take primarily the Pommard clone with Western exposition from this site which is well established and holds up very well by itself.
Gallery
Winemaking Approach
