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Robin Daniel Lail
Founder
1995
FOURTH GENERATION VINTNER
ROBIN DANIEL LAIL
Due to internal circumstances, the winery and front vineyards were sold
in 1964. The legacy seemed to be coming to an end. Fortunately, John
Daniel, Jr. was a traditionalist and placed responsibility for carrying the
tradition forward into Robin’s hands shortly before his death in 1970.
Robin and her sister were able to preserve the iconic Napanook vineyard
in Yountville from ensuing sales.
Robin Daniel Lail came to Napa Valley
in a receiving blanket in 1940 and grew
up at the fabled Inglenook Vineyards.
Inglenook was established by her great-
granduncle Gustave Niebaum in 1879,
and his magnificent property was home
to four generations of her family and
their legendary wines.
During the late 70’s, Robert
Mondavi (who was John Daniel,
Jr.’s protégée) hired Robin and
became her mentor. Including the
education in the wine business she
received, “every day Mondavi
encouraged me to honor my
father’s legend and our generations
in Napa Valley and carry forward
the legacy.”
So began the odyssey.
The question was, how to carry on?
Inglenook was gone, with its stunning stone winery and superb vineyards.
Not only was the physical evidence of the family history in
the valley sold, there was little money available to try to create new magic.
(L-R) Robert Mondavi & John Daniel, Jr., 1968
DominusCo-partner with
Christian Moueix and Marcia
Daniel Smith - 1982
MerryvaleCo-partner with
Bill Harlan - 1983
Lail Vineyards Founder with partners
Erin and Shannon Lail -1995
(L-R) Shannon and Erin Lail (L-R) Christian Moueix, Robin Daniel Lail and Marcia Daniel
Smith.
C A P T A I N G U S T A V E N I E B A U M
After purchasing the Inglenook property in
1879, Niebaum planted 200 acres of
vineyards from cuttings from Europe and
built an imposing stone winery. This man,
obsessed with excellence, produced the first
estate-bottled, Bordeaux-style wine in
California.
Having built a fortune by the age of 34,
this Swedish man from Helsinki, Finland was l
ooking for a new business venture. Being a wi
ne connoisseur and a
visionary, he was drawn to Napa Valley and its
potential to make the finest wines
in the world.
Gustave Niebaum was a leader in the California wine
business and pioneered planting blocks of vineyard with tight
spacing, double sorting grapes at harvest, packaging in glass
bottles and establishing a brand and a nationwide marketing
organization. A follower of Louis Pasteur, Inglenook wine
was pristine.
His motto of "Quality, not quantity." inspired new standards
of excellence in California winemaking, for his generation
and generations to come. At the 1889 Paris World Fair, his
wine received a unique award for ‘purity and excellence’.
J O H N D A N I E L , J R .
“He taught not by words alone, but by example – the mark of a truly knowledgeable man.”
-Robert Mondavi
Great-nephew to Inglenook's founder
Gustave Niebaum, John Daniel, Jr.
played a key role in a small, dynamic
group of vintners who rebuilt the fine
winemaking practices of Napa Valley
and California following the repeal of
Prohibition in 1933.
Daniel apprenticed at Inglenook for
three years and became owner and
Managing Director in 1936. Robert
Mondavi was his protégée and shared
the vision that Napa Valley could
produce wines second to none. He had
an intense passion for Inglenook’s
history and potential and for the wines of
Napa Valley and California.
He was extensively involved in the
foundation and leadership of the Wine
Institute of California and the Napa
Valley Vintners as well as the State Wine
Advisory Board.
Daniel was the first to put Napa Valley as an appellation on wine, and pioneered
vintage-dating and varietal labeling. He produced the first Rose in California
following Prohibition. The back labels for his wines were written to be informative,
friendly and fun. He created small bottlings of ‘cask’ Cabernets.
(L-R) Robert Mondavi, Charles Forni, Madame Depins,
John Daniel, Jr. and Al Hunsinger
While restoring Inglenook's fame,
Daniel made what many considered to
be some of the world's best Cabernet
Sauvignons from the mid 1930s to the
1960s, creating a legacy of excellence
for Cabernet Sauvignons for future
generations of California winemakers.
1993 Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon
The first vintage produced after the repeal of Prohibition
P H I L I P P E M E L K A
WINEMAKER
One of the most highly respected and
successful of the French-born, Bordeaux-
educated oenologists working in California,
Melka has worked with Lail Vineyards since
its first vintage.
“My recent naming as one of the top
9 wine consultants in the world by
Robert Parker has been truly humbling,
and a terrific honor. But my pursuit
of excellence in this field I’m so passionate
about has only just begun.” - Philippe Melka
Philippe has been making wines for Lail Vineyards since 1995. He is
considered by the Lails as both a winemaking genius and a member
of the family…
At Lail, the philosophy is that brilliant wines originate in the
vineyard, but the brilliance is polished importantly by the winemaker
at two specific times – the decision of when to pick the grapes and
the making of the blend.
With the work of our outstanding farming team at Silverado
Vineyard Management and Mother Nature, the magic of the
winemaker enables the wines of Lail to sing opera.
“Each new vintage is both a challenge and an inspiration. Every
year we focus on the care of our land and our vineyards and to
produce wines that are just a little bit better than the year before.
Each year we have a new opportunity to bring a touch of magic into
the world.”
R O B I N D A N I E L L A I L
T O T E M V I N E Y A R D
YOUNTV I L L E
Totem Vineyard in Yountville is on the site of the first vineyard
planted in 1839 by George Yount. Our family has worked this
vineyard for generations since 1946. We are custodians of more
than land at Totem, we are caretakers of a piece of history.
The current vineyard was planted in 1988 and grafted to
Merlot. In 2006 the vines were t-budded to Sauvignon Blanc.
This clay soil vineyard is dry-farmed.
Today, these 3 acres in Yountville
produce the fruit for our highly
lauded Georgia Sauvignon Blanc.
Only 300 cases are produced each
year.
M O L E H I L L V I N E Y A R D
HOWE L L MOUNTA I N
In 1996, the Lail family acquired a special vineyard site high atop Howell Mountain.
Mole Hill was named in homage to a wine created by Robin’s father, John Daniel, Jr.
The story goes that when Daniel’s great friend, Louis Martini Sr., made a wine in the
1950s, the irony of him labeling it Mountain Red was not lost on
Daniel since Martini’s wine was from a rolling hillside vineyard versus
the precipitous mountain vineyards of Europe.
A brilliant man with a celebrated sense of humor and
a particular love of puns, Daniel responded with Inglenook
Mole Hill Red, whose whimsical label featured a very cute mole with a
magnifying glass checking a small pile of dirt.
Each year, we harvest Mole Hill multiple
times to capture the unique flavors
expressed in each part of the vineyard.
The 3 acre vineyard’s west-facing gentle
slope has shallow soils with rocks that
rise to the surface like cream in coffee,
creating a spartan home for the vines
and generating a stunning concentration
of flavors in the grapes.
Our Portfolio
B L U E P R I N T W I N E S
Blueprint wines are Lail Vineyards modern interpretation of Sauvignon Blanc
and Cabernet Sauvignon, capturing the abundant sunshine of Napa Valley and
transforming it into intensely flavorful wines meant for early release and
enjoyment in a delicious crowd-pleasing style. Whimsically named ‘Blueprint’ as
a nod to Jon Lail’s highly regarded architectural design achievements, these are
wines from impeccable vineyards made by our great winemaker.
B L U E P R I N T S A U V I G N O N B L A N C
F E R M E N T E D I N
F R E N C H O A K ; A G E D I N
S T A I N L E S S S T E E L
1 0 0 0 C A S E S P R O D U C E D
C R O C K E R V I N E Y A R D
( S T . H E L E N A )
F A R E L L A V I N E Y A R D
( C O O M B S V I L L E )
R E W A V I N E Y A R D
( C O O M B S V I L L E )
1 0 0 % S A U V I G N O N B L A N C
9 0 % C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
1 0 % P E T I T V E R D O T
M O L E H I L L E S T A T E V I N E Y A R D
( H O W E L L M O U N T A I N )
V I N E H I L L R A N C H V I N E Y A R D
( O A K V I L L E )
H E I M A R K V I N E Y A R D
( C A L I S T O G A )
E V A N S V I N E Y A R D
( C O O M B S V I L L E )
L A M B E R T V I N E Y A R D
( C O O M B S V I L L E )
S A N S A V I N O V I N E Y A R D( Y O U N T V I L L E )
~ 1 8 M O N T H S I N F R E N C H
O A K ; ~ 6 0 % N E W
1 7 0 0 C A S E S P R O D U C E D
B L U E P R I N T C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
Georgia Sauvignon Blanc
represents the first family
member of our sixth
generation and uniquely
expresses a Graves-like style.
F L A G S H I P W I N E S
J. Daniel Cuveé Cabernet
Sauvignon is named after
Robin’s father, our ancestor to
the Lail legacy.
Mole Hill Cabernet Sauvignon
comes from our Howell
Mountain estate vineyard and is
made only from exceptional
vintages.
1 0 0 % S A U V I G N O N B L A N C
T O T E M E S T A T E V I N E Y A R D( Y O U N T V I L L E )
~ 1 8 M O N T H S I N 1 0 0 %
N E W F R E N C H O A K
3 0 0 C A S E S P R O D U C E D
G E O R G I A S A U V I G N O N B L A N C
–R O B E R T P A R K E R , J R .
“For my palate, Lail’s Georgia is California’s most complex
and multi-dimensional Sauvignon Blanc.”
1 0 0 % C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
H E I M A R K V I N E Y A R D( C A L I S T O G A )
M O L E H I L L E S T A T E V I N E Y A R D( H O W E L L M O U N T A I N )
V I N E H I L L R A N C H V I N E Y A R D( O A K V I L L E )
~ 1 8 M O N T H S I N F R E N C H O A K
B A R R E L S , ~ 9 0 % N E W
8 0 0 C A S E D P R O D U C E D
J . D A N I E L C U V E E C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
–R O B E R T P A R K E R , J R . W I N E A D V O C A T E , O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4
“The 2012 J. Daniel Cuvee Cabernet Sauvignon
is…Absolutely Perfect.” 100 Points
1 0 0 % C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
M O L E H I L L E S T A T E V I N E Y A R D( H O W E L L M O U N T A I N )
~ 1 8 M O N T H S I N F R E N C H O A K
B A R R E L S , 1 0 0 % N E W
1 2 5 C A S E S P R O D U C E D
M O L E H I L L C A B E R N E T S A U V I G N O N
The Mole Hill Cabernet Sauvignon is a rare wine, made only in exciting vintage years.
The mole trail on the label is a unique design each release.
“This is Howell Mountain at it’s finest!” - Philippe Melka, Winemaker
With all the beautiful grapes at Mole Hill, somebody has to guard them!
The 21st Century incarnation of the
unending quest for perfection since 1879.
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