I am in the Crusher District of Napa Valley. It is in Napa proper, on the fringe of south Napa. This area enjoys a quiet solitude off the much-traveled route of Highway 29. It’s a peaceful destination with a handful of wineries and a different flavor of Napa. In today’s fast-paced crowd centered tasting rooms, I would consider this area a perfect respite. It’s home to several unique tasting rooms, including Crosby Roamann. The thing about smaller scale wineries is, they hold within them treasure. These are the wines that rarely make it to the supermarket. The reason? Because quality is a hallmark and that can get lost in mass production. The wines also will sell out. Smaller lots, less inventory. A favorite of collectors and investors, small lot wines are perfect for anyone wanting to discover something delicious and unique.
You can’t make great Cabernet Sauvignon without it getting wet at least once.
Today, I am visiting the owners of Crosby Roamann, Sean W. McBride, founder, and the man responsible for getting this winery off the ground and his wife, a key ingredient to the winery’s success, Juliana. The winery is bright and open, small in terms of the established atypical wineries. This is a start up. It began as a passion project as so many do, but on the East Coast. In 2010, the McBride’s embarked on a journey taking them to the epicenter of Northern California wine, Napa. Their first vintage consisted of 56 cases.
Listen in to Sean’s philosophy on making handmade wines {VIDEO}: