Ballentine is a bit different than many of the other wineries I’ve featured from the St. Helena AVA for a couple of different reasons. To start, they make slightly more wine. Total production for the winery seems to hover at around seven thousand cases, which is hardly a big production operation but there are some nice side effects of having a winery with that level of production.
To start, Ballentine is still able to hand craft specific wines from small portions of their vineyard. They make, for Napa Valley, a reasonably priced small production Cabernet Sauvignon like many of their neighbors but they also make a variety of other varietals such as Chenin Blanc, Zinfandel and Petite Syrah.
For me, when visiting wineries in St. Helena I often get tired of drinking Cabernet Sauvignon at each and every stop, which means I enjoy a visit with Ballentine for two main wines. The first is the only white wine which the estate makes, a Chenin Blanc which is priced at only $15 and has been consistently rated at 90 points by major wine critics. It’s an incredible value and the only Napa Valley white wine rated as one of the top one hundred values of the year by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. After the Chenin Blanc, it is always nice to be able to try the only wine grape native to California, Zinfandel.
The same issue of Wine Enthusiast Magazine rated Ballentine’s Old Vine Zinfandel at ninety two points which is an incredible score for the varietal, especially for one grown outside of the historic Sierra Foothills growing region which has made Zinfandel famous.
The current owners have passed the winery and vineyard down from generations and hailing from Lucca Italy originally (one of the most beautiful small towns anywhere in the world, I might add) they have had wine in their blood for generations both before and after immigrating to the United States.
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