Winery Spotlight: Spell Estate

Spell Estate is a winery that is committed to delivering the highest expression of Pinot Noir without forfeiting the integrity and beauty of the varietal.

Founded in 2006 by Bill and his wife Tiki, they produced their first wine vintage in 2007. The Spell Estate is located just outside of Santa Rosa, California, and produces Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Rosé. They pull the best of the best from grapes sourced in Sonoma County, Mendocino, and the Yorkville Highlands regions of Northern California.

Their first winemaker Shane Finley was an assistant winemaker for Kosta Browne Winery when they started and has since been replaced by Andrew Berge. Learn more about Andrew, a German ex-patriot who learned his winemaking with stints in New Zealand, California and Germany, below.

The wines they have produced have received rave reviews from a number of wine authorities including Wine Spectator, the Pinot File, Wine Spectrum, and Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar. 

The philosophy surrounding Spell centers around Pinot Noir. Per their website:

More than any other grape, Pinot Noir captures the essence of time and place. We source our grapes from the best vineyards in the United States. Spell grapes ripen on steep hillsides in rocky soil, where warm days and cool nights deliver not just a great tasting grape, but the wines fragrance and characteristic are unique to the site.

Balance. Substance. Finesse.

Pinot Noir expresses itself differently every year, and in a different voice from every region – but to every taster, winemaker and wine lover alike, Pinot Noir is the fruit responsible for some of the finest wines in the world.– Bill Spell

OUR WINEMAKER: ANDREW BERGE

Pinot Noir is an ancient variety of grape with beautiful, black, pinecone-shaped clusters of fruit that produces some of the finest wines in the world.  It’s difficult to grow and even more difficult to transform into extraordinary wine.  But in the masterful hands of winemaker Andrew Berge, Pinot Noir becomes art.

Born in Germany, Andrew grew up immersed in the European lifestyle. Food and wine are simply a part of his DNA.  He comes to Spell with a pocketful of degrees in food science, deep experience in winemaking and a farmer’s love of the land.  For Andrew, work is not simply a profession, it’s a lifestyle.  And for Spell it results in an extraordinary Pinot Noir that is dependably enjoyable every season.