Description

Calder Wine Company is owned and operated by Rory Williams, the son of venerable Napa winemaker John Williams of Frog’s Leap Winery. Frog’s Leap has been a leader of organic and dry farming in Napa since the 1980s and Rory, now head vineyard manager for the winery, maintains these fundamental principles in all his endeavours.

Rory grew up around the Frog’s Leap winery and as a result, was exposed to the classic wines of California at an early age. During college, Rory took time off to work harvests in Barolo, Argentina, Burgundy, and Provence before returning to California with thoughts of making wine. It was a bottle he shared with his father (1964 Inglenook Charbono) that inspired him to start his own winery, working with the long-overlooked, traditional varieties in Napa such as Charbono, Chenin Blanc, and Riesling.

Rory now makes small quantities of wine under his own label, Calder, using cultivars that have a long history in the place where he was born, honouring the sites, his winemaking idols, and what makes Napa, Napa. Rory wants his wines to relay the history and tradition of this extraordinary region. Having seen the success at both estates with organic and dryland farming, Rory sought out parcels of vines that tick these boxes, as well as them each having the advantage of age.