Lasseter Family Winery
Coordinates: 38°22′59″N 122°31′30″W / 38.383186°N 122.524988°W
Lasseter Family Winery is a winery located in Glen Ellen, Sonoma County, California. The winery was founded in 2000 by Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios CCO John Lasseter and his wife, Nancy Lasseter. The winery, once inhabited by the Grand Cru Winery, produces approximately 1,200 cases of French red wine blends annually, with the capacity to produce up to 6,000.[1] The winery grows Bordeaux and Rhône varietals on 27 acres.[2] One of the Lasseters' winemaking mentors was the late Jess Jackson, of Kendall-Jackson.
History
In 2000, after several years of amateur wine-making, the Lasseters bought 50 bare acres in Glen Ellen and planted syrah, grenache and mourvedre Rhône varieties. They bought an adjoining 35-acre property in 2002 with merlot and cabernet sauvignon grapes, then added mablec and cabernet franc to create the French red wine blends they prefer.
In 2005, the Lasseters brought aboard winemaker Julia Iantosca. Iantosca had spent time as the winemaker at Stevenot Vineyards in Murphys, William Wheeler Winery and Lambert Bridge Winery, both in Healdsburg, and worked closely with consulting winemaker Merry Edwards, who helped inspire Iantosca's love of blended wines.[3]
In 2011, they introduced their winery’s new package. The packaging highlights original proprietary names for their Enjoué Rosé, Chemin de Fer, Amoureux and Paysage with labels designed by internationally acclaimed, long-time Sonoma Valley artist Dennis Ziemienski.
Later that same year, they unveiled their eco-friendly, state-of-the-art winery and began accepting visitors by appointment only.[4]
Railroad
A vintage locomotive, consist, and depot are located on a private, 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge railroad in the Lasseter Family Winery's Syrah vineyard.[5]
The locomotive is the 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge Marie E. steam locomotive, an H.K. Porter engine built in 1901, and pulls a small gondola and caboose. The Marie E. and its consist were once owned by Ollie Johnston, one of Walt Disney's Nine Old Men, and originally run on Johnston's private Deer Lake Park & Julian Railroad before being sold to John Lasseter around 2002.[6] In May 2007 and again in June 2010, the locomotive (run by John Lasseter himself) visited the Pacific Coast Railroad in Santa Margarita, California alongside the original Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroad Retlaw 1 coaches.[7]
The depot building was once owned by Ward Kimball, another one of Walt Disney's Nine Old Men, and previously located on Kimball's private Grizzly Flats Railroad before being sold to John Lasseter in 2007. It had originally been built as a set piece for the 1949 Disney film So Dear to My Heart.
An image of the railroad is featured on the label for the Chemin de Fer.
See also
References
- ↑ Lavin, Kate (2011-10-17), Lasseter Family Premieres First Wines: Noted film family rolls out red blends and rosé wines from Sonoma wine estate, Wines & Vines
- ↑ "Lasseter Family Winery" (homepage).
Our wines are crafted in an Old World-style, using Bordeaux and Rhône varietals to create unique blends. Estate-grown and bottled, our blends incorporate Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, and grapes grown on our 27 acre vineyard property in Sonoma Valley, CA.
- ↑ Boone, Virginie (September 26, 2011). "Lasseter winery coming into its own". Press Democrat.
- ↑ "Come Visit Us: Winery Now Open by Appointment". Lasseter Family Winery. November 11, 2011.
- ↑ The Hollywood Reporter - John Lasseter Opens Up About Secret Winery for First Time. Retrieved March 25, 2014
- ↑ Frank & Ollie - The Marie E.. Retrieved March 25, 2014
- ↑ Pcrailroad at Gmail.Com (May 14, 2007). "Pacific Coast Railroad Co.: The 2007 Round-Up". Pcrailroad.blogspot.com. Retrieved December 31, 2010.