The original owner was a pioneer and vintner named Henry Hagen who founded the original Cedar Knoll in 1881. After falling into disrepair post-Prohibition, the 600-acre estate was purchased and restored by the Palmaz Family.

The Palmaz winery is one of the top 10 travel destinations when going to Napa. You will drive up a long driveway, which leads you into the building. They will take you to the top and show you the tank rooms and all the equipment that goes into the makings of their meticulous wines. NASA would be the equivalent of just how state-of-the-art all the machinery is.

The winery is impeccably taken care of, and you will not see one speck of dust in the entire showroom. The winery is built into an 18-story cavern in the flank of Mount George, providing it with not only all the benefits of gravity-flow winemaking but also the natural temperature control of a cave. By eliminating mechanical pumps from the winemaking process, gravity-flow design minimizes the turbulence that damages wines’ molecular structure.

At the heart of the winery sits the fermentation dome, lined with 24 fermentation tanks that can accommodate grapes from individual vineyards across the estate. The sophisticated monitoring systems for each tank allow winery team members to project a broad range of data (including thermal imaging) onto the ceiling of the dome.

Palmaz Vineyards’ gravity-flow and gravity-finish subterranean winery, the Cave, is a remarkable feat of engineering, harmoniously fusing tradition and technology to produce world-class vintages. 

We were so fortunate to have a portion of the Palmaz family join us for a special wine dinner on the Axis Covered Patio, shortly after the rebuild. The wines range from Riesling, Chardonnay and Cabernets.

We are excited to team up with the Palmaz family, and on the next Wine List we will be offering the Cedar Knoll Cabernet by the glass. These wines come from the original Cedar Knoll vineyards that are out in front of the winery. You will enjoy comforting flavors of vanilla, caramel and baked boysenberry that dance across the palate. The voluptuous fruit flavors are effortlessly balanced with elegant tannins that cover the tongue like a feather — spreading to every hidden taste bud in the deepest corners of the palate. This certainly is a wine to try, enjoy and stock your cellars.

See you at the Club…