Firetree Family Vineyards launches in Los Carneros
By Virginie Boone
NAPA, Calif. — The Jimenez family has as its motto Fidem et Futurum, or Faith and Future, believing that faith led it to the hills of Los Carneros to build something everlasting. In its case, Firetree Family Vineyards.
To that end, the family has partnered with sought-after winemaking consultant Julien Fayard, who has made two inaugural 2021 chardonnays for the family: Bunny Hills and FIDEM. FIDEM is made from the oldest blocks of the estate, while Bunny Hills is a block-selection.
A native of France, Fayard is a high-in-demand winemaker based in the Napa Valley known for his close attention to detail in the vineyard and sense of finesse. In addition to making his own wines and working with Firetree, he consults for many other brands, including Brion, Caspar Estate, Covert Estate, Le Pich, Purlieu, Somnium and others.
Residents of Florida originally from Venezuela, Ricardo and Dayva Jimenez bought Firetree Vineyard from Silverado Vineyards in 2021, involving their three children, Sophya, who is interested in viticulture, Ricardo Alfonso and Marianna.
“Faith led us to Firetree Vineyard, and we are incredibly grateful our family has the opportunity to be custodians of this special piece of Napa Valley,” Ricardo and Dayva said. “This is just the beginning of a journey we hope will continue to amplify the legacy of the vineyard and Carneros for generations to come.”
Fayard was introduced to the family through the Truchards, who own a neighboring property, and Suzanne Truchard brokered the real estate deal between Silverado Vineyards and the Jimenez family.
Firetree is planted entirely to chardonnay, just a little over 22 acres of it, with two fallow plots set to be planted to another five or so acres of to-be-determined varieties in spring 2024.
Blessed with 35-year-old vines, Silverado Vineyards made a Firetree Vineyard Chardonnay for many years. One of the first wineries to plant cabernet sauvignon in the 1960s in the Stags Leap District, Silverado was founded by Ron and Diane Miller along with Diane’s mother, Lillian Disney, wife of Walt. A winery was completed in 1981 and Silverado enjoyed decades of success before deciding to sell to Foley Family Wines in 2022.
“I wish I could tell you what makes a particular site a sweet spot for a particular variety,” says Russ Weis, who served as Silverado’s general manager for 18 years. “I’ve had the chance to work with quite a few chardonnay sites and Firetree just has an ‘it’ feel to the fruit, there’s a zippiness to the acidity at the same time there is a plushness to the wine textures. It’s a fun wine to make, fun wine to drink.”
The Millers bought Firetree Vineyard in 1988, one of its steepest sloped sites with light soils derived of sandstone and shale, rather than Carneros’ famously heavy clay, and it became well-known for chardonnay, benefiting from the coolness of San Pablo Bay.
“The neighborhood isn’t bad either, Far Niente, Hudson, Hyde, Toyon Farm, Truchard,” Weis notes of who is nearby. “The steep, well-drained soils are perfect for balancing cropping, and the wines have always had a vibrant energy to the fruit that I’m sure with Julien Fayard’s touch will reveal the layers of complexity that make a truly special wine.”
While at Silverado, Weis oversaw the winery and its six estate vineyards. Today he is the president and COO of Walsh Vineyards Management (WVM), which farms 2,500 acres of grapes in Napa and Sonoma counties and has managed Firetree for more than 20 years.
“There really is no substitute for having a history with a specific site,” he says. “That’s one of the things that makes Firetree so unique, a through line of producing wine grapes for almost 150 years.”
Weis explains that Firetree was first planted in the 1880s to Vitis vinifera (county records show 20 acres of zinfandel and riesling at the time) and restored post-Prohibition in the 1970s by the O’Hara family, who planted chardonnay and gave the site its name. It was more deeply explored from a single-vineyard and single-block perspective by the Miller family and Silverado Vineyards for three decades.
“The Jimenez family admired the wines from Silverado and had an idea that the site, with more intensive care and focus, could become recognized as one of the truly great vineyards for chardonnay in Napa,” Weis says. “They both are continuing a tradition and realizing the potential that the previous owners dreamed of.”
Farming the vineyard day-to-day is Benjamin Leachman from WVM, who has worked with the site for many years and will help the family realize that potential.
Virginie Boone has written about and reviewed the wines of Napa and Sonoma for more than a decade. Follow her Instagram @virginieboone or visit virginieboone.com