Category Archives: Wines
Tuesday Winemaker Tastings
Sit down with Winemaker Cameron Parry to sample a few of his favorite wines, hand-selected for this special tasting, and perhaps even a barrel sample or two. While these tastings are offered seasonally (Cameron is pre-occupied with harvest activities during the autumn months), this time of year tends to be ideal for visiting as it’s a bit quieter in the tasting room and you’ll have plenty of time to ask those burning questions about the winemaking process. These unique opportunities to sit down and taste wine with our Winemaker are available on on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month. Click here for more information or to book your tasting.
Keep in mind that Napa Valley tends to be less crowded during the winter months of January, February and March, so you’ll have no trouble getting that restaurant reservation. We hope that’s all the motivation you need to come and see us soon.
Thanks for stopping by…
Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table at ZAP yesterday! ZAP was a great success and a whole lot of fun. Most of all, thanks to all of the sponsors, organizers and volunteers for putting on yet another stellar event.
If you got a chance to taste our Zinfandel yesterday, tell us what you think. We would love to hear from you. We poured the 2006 Estate Zinfandel, the 2007 Estate Zinfandel and unveiled the soon to be released 2008 Estate Zinfandel.
To all you Zin fanatics out there, we’ll see you there again next year!
Come See Us at ZAP
We’ll be pouring some of our favorite wines at the ZAP Zinfandel tasting event this weekend. Come see us if you’ll be in San Francisco or if you can make it into the city for a very fun event. Be sure to stop by our table and say ‘hello’ to our very own ZAP team: Connor, George and Matt.
Visit the ZAP website to purchase tickets. We hope to see you at Fort Mason!
The Wine You Didn’t Know We Had…
Many people may not realize we make a few very special wines, in very special years, that are not regularly included in our lineup of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Riesling. The year 2007 was one of those special years. We harvested some amazing Petite Sirah grapes and recently released the 2007 Petite Sirah for your enjoyment. It just maybe the perfect gift for that hard-to-please wine lover or for the Montelena fan who has everything. It’s delicious now, but this wine will reward you after years of patience.
Harvest 2010 Update
We’ve heard a lot of speculation about this year’s harvest in the past few weeks and now that things are finally slowing down in our cellar, we’d like to share Chateau Montelena’s perspective on Harvest 2010.
Part I
Stay tuned for more installments of our Harvest 2010 series.
Winter in the Wineries 2010-2011
*Updated 1/14/11: Passports are no longer available for purchase.
Last winter, if you were in Calistoga you may have enjoyed the bounty of our small town during Winter in the Wineries Passport weekends. This year, the event is back with special offerings from local wineries (including tastings at Chateau Montelena), some of Calistoga’s finest restaurants, hotels, bed & breakfasts and inns. You may purchase your passport by visiting the Calistoga Chamber of Commerce website. Passports are available for $50 and may be used anytime, during normal business hours, at any of the participating locations from December 4, 2010 through February 6, 2010.
Global #Zinfandel Appreciation Day
November 19, 2010 – from 12:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Get online, using your favorite social media site (Facebook, Twitter, GoWalla, Foursquare, etc), and share your love of this great grape on November 19, 2010. Using the hashtag #Zinfandel, you can interact with Zinfandel lovers from all around the world. Share a bottle with friends and post about your tasting online, tell the world some little known facts about your favorite Zinfandel or go tasting at the wineries participating in #Zinfandel Day. For more information, visit the #Zinfandel web page.
If you’re in Calistoga on 11/19/10, come see us at the winery and taste our 2007 Montelena Estate Zinfandel and share your experience online. We hope to see you online, or at the winery, promoting one of our favorite grapes.
1973 Chardonnay – Sold!
(c) Susana Blavarg
We are pleased to announce that the bottle of 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay has been auctioned off for charity. The winning bid? $11,325 will be donated to Friends of the Orphans – Haiti Initiative. We’d like to thank all of the auction participants for contributing to a great cause. We will also be donating a horizontal of our 2006 Montelena Estate Cabernet that Friends of the Orphans charity may use for in their future fundraising endeavors.
Win A Bottle of 1973 Chardonnay
Have you ever dreamed of owning your very own bottle of the 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay?
Well, we have some very exciting news to share. We will be offering you an extremely rare opportunity to own a bottle of the wine that won the 1976 Paris Tasting. All you need to do is be the winning bidder in our charity auction.
Auction Details
How: Online Live Auction
Auction Opens: Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time
Auction Closes: Sunday, July 18, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time
Where to Bid: Visit Spectrum Wine Auctions to register and place your bid on
Lot #1973
Beneficiary: 100% of proceeds go to Friends of the Orphans – Haiti Initiative
Chateau Montelena Winery Presents…
Glass Sippers
Chateau Montelena Glass Sippers allow you to bring our tasting room to wherever you may be. Each set includes six 50ml bottles, and each bottle contains one taste-sized portion of our acclaimed Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon – ideal for party favors, stocking stuffers tasting parties or just sharing the Montelena experience with friends. This wine has been bottled at the Montelena Estate by TastingRoom, Inc.
Coming soon…
