From Cattle to Cabernet - Kirkland Ranch Winery

your ordinary winery does not have its own cattle brand or a herd of Black Angus roaming the hills above the vineyard, but then Kirkland Ranch Winery is not your ordinary winery. Iris a 2,000-acre working cattle ranch, as well as a winery, located in one of the most unlikely and scenic areas of the Napa Valley, in Jamieson Canyon, just across the highway from the Chardonnay Golf Club.

When the Kirklands purchased the Lynch and Sheehy ranches, in 1978, both of them part of General Mariano Vallejo's original Rancho Soscol, they became the first new owners of the land since the days of the original land grants. The old stagecoach road, connecting Napa and Suisun, still exists on the portion of the Sheehy Ranch beyond the ridges north of the winery, and Lynch House is now the main home site of the Kirkland Ranch family.

The Rocking LK Ranch (for brothers Larry and Lonnie Kirkland) extends from Jamieson Canyon on the south to Skyline Park on the north; east to Highway 80, and west to Highway 29. The primary "crop" on the ranch is Black Angus cattle, which graze behind the ridges, north of the winery on the rolling hills of the spread.

Grapes came onto the land in 1985 when Larry decided to plant a small vineyard. The first three acres, planted to four varieties of grapes, was known as Chris's Little Vineyard. Then 56 acres were added, in 1990. A year later, Larry's younger daughter, Debi, came home to work in the vineyards when an additional 18 acres were planted.

"I had been in law enforcement with the Contra Costa Sheriff's Department," Debi Kirkland explains. "When the Loma Prieta earthquake hit, I was across San Francisco Bay from my family and I decided I didn't want to be in that situation again, so I quit my job and came back to the ranch.

"My dad told us that, to be successful farmers, you had to know your land from the ground up, so for two years I was learning the land," explains Debi. "I hope 1999 turns out to be the last year I had to drive a tractor!"

In the early days, the Kirklands sold their grapes to nearby producers, reserving enough for each of the five generations of Kirklands to make their own wine. Then Larry found there was a better market for juice, and almost simultaneously discovered that the "hobby" was getting out of hand. In 1998, they solved the problem by building and bonding a winery and constructing an imposing, rustic visitors' center surrounded by flower beds, lawns and waterfalls.

There are now 138 acres of vines on which the Kirklands raise Cabernet Sauvignon (the main crop), Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot noir, Pinot grigio, Sauvignon blanc, Gewurztraminer, Syrab, Sangiovese and Nebbiolo. There are nine Kirkland Ranch wines, and three wines produced under the Jamieson Canyon label. Production stands at 15,000 cases, but the winery permit allows growth to 80,000 cases. Chris is vineyard manager, and Debi is the visitors' center manager. The Rhone and Italian varietals, introduced in 1999, are available only in the tasting room.

"We're just a farming family," says Chris, "and we're learning new things all the time. We have planted 12 different varieties of grapes. Many of the blocks are purely experimental, to see what the different grapes will do in this soil and climate." The vineyard is planted in rows east to west on 4'x10', 5'x10' and 6'x10' spacing, with vertical shoot positioning, and drip irrigation. A native grass ground cover is planted between rows and mowed to encourage strong root growth. Chris rotates the use of soft pesticides in her vineyard program, and to increase light exposure, crews do leaf-pulling after bloom. Because of the enormous bird population in the region, the vines are netted to protect the ripening grapes.

At harvest, the grapes are hand-picked and collected in halfton bins, to protect the fruit from crushing under its own weight. Again, to protect the fruit from bruising, the Kirklands use a conveyer belt system to deliver the fruit to the presses and destemmers. Use of the conveyor belt also allows for a closer inspection and sorting of the grapes.

White grapes go directly to barrels for fermentation, after being chilled and settled overnight. Red grapes are fermented in tanks designed to have no greater height to width ratio than 11/2 to one, to permit greater contact between the wine and the cap, ensuring a smoother, less obstructed fermentation period. Because they are experimenting with a number of small lots, and also do a certain amount of custom crushing, the Kirklands have a range of tank sizes, from 750 gallons to 7,500 gallons.

"The beautiful results of one of our experiments will be available in the tasting room this summer," comments winemaker Rick Tracy, who joined the winery early this year. "Many of our visitors ask if we have a sweet wine, so we created a Rosato de Sangiovese. The unique thing about this wine is that we have held about a third of the juice, unfermented, in a refrigerated tank and will blend it back in, giving the wine an incredibly high fruit flavor."

The Kirkland barrel program is stilt in the formative stage, Rick explains. "We are using barrels from a number of sources, to learn which match best with our fruit. Right now, the ratio is about 60% French oak to 40% American.

Lynnie Heltne, lab director, designed the winery's laboratory and installed a sophisticated computer program. "The computer is linked to everything," she says, "and I can even access it from home if there is a problem."

Chris, who is the winery's safety officer, is proud of the safety measures practiced at Kirkland Family Winery. "All augers are in the floor, except for the one on the dump hopper, which is shielded. We have installed catwalks everywhere and use no ladders. Stainless steel lines for transferring juice and must to tanks, barrels or the bottling line are utilized to keep floor space clear for workers. The bottling line is fully enclosed to protect against accidents.

"Also, for environmental reasons, the winery is set 8-ft. into the ground to conserve energy. We use only electric fork lifts, and recycle virtually everything. The pomace goes into the vineyards for roadbed and wastewater is used in the drip system. We even recycle people," she adds with a laugh, explaining that those who worked on construction of the winery, are now hosts in the tasting room.

Visitors to Kirkland Ranch might well have a momentary thought that they had taken a wrong turn and had arrived at a magnificent rustic lodge. The effect was created deliberately through an architectural rendering of a rustic ranch lodgehouse. The visitors' complex, which opened October 2, 1999, is an imposing and stately structure, supported by and studded with enormous red cedar tree trunks raising three stories high. The entry leads directly into a delightful retail room.

Gift items, selected by Debi and her mother, Billie Kirkland, include a large and excellent choice of clothing and toys for kids, hobby horses, bibs, shirts, even a fringed sheriff's jacket. Kirkland Ranch attracts a lot of family groups, so the Kirklands want everyone to feel comfortable-- as if they were visiting friends in a private home. Because there are frequently small children accompanying their parents, Debi provides books, crayons and coloring books on an old school desk to keep the kids busy reading and coloring while the grown-ups sample the wines.

One corner of the retail room is devoted to exhibitions of local artwork by undiscovered young artists. The gallery is elevated one-step up from the sales floor. Art displays are changed every two or three months. Currently paintings and sketches by Marjo Wilson of Red Bluff form the major portion of the display, along with selected pieces of sculpture by Cynthia Thomas.

In the opposite corner is a diorama by James Freed Design, Sausalito. Art in the mural, which forms the background, is by Ali Pearson, Mill Valley, and Marc Nicely, Petaluma, who study at California Institute of Art. It is their first commercial work. The scene is of the ranch as it would have appeared in the 1800s, sighted from the mountains to the north. All the artifacts, including the chuck wagon and cooking utensils, are probably articles actually used by the family and crews in those early days. Adding to the historical references all over the building are family photographs and memorabilia. Several dramatic shots show the devastation caused by the Jamieson Canyon fire in 1964.

Debi, who in her western garb completes the ranch lodge picture, may be found in her quieter moments sitting in a soft leather chair or on a cowhide couch in front of a blazing fire in the towering stone fireplace in the retail room. The fireplace is duplicated on the floor above, which serves friends assisting in the round-up.

Four generations are involved in the Ranch: Debi's grandmothers, Lois Kirkland and Jane Mather; Debi's mom, Billie, and dad, Larry; her uncle Lonnie and aunt Dixie; her children, Mike and Stephanie; her sister Chris, and Chris' husband, Kevin, along with their three children, Candace, Jeanette and Kevin and one grandson, Aaron. It will be five generations as soon as Aaron is old enough to help.

There is an appointment book at the tasting bar, and those who would like a tour are invited to sign in. Those who don't feel they have time for a tour can watch the complete operation from fermentation through bottling through observation windows adjacent to the tasting room. "The tours are more fun," Debi mentions, "because my dad and mom are the tour guides and they are so enthusiastic. My mom is also the one who does all the decorating and floral arrangements. She's the one who selected the wallpaper in the downstairs room. It's another example of recycling, because it is made from paper bags, and it's common to see people walk up and touch it, trying to figure out what gives the wall that texture and color."

Although Debi is largely responsible for the merchandise in the retail store, she maintains that she hates to shop. "I'll help buy cattle," she remarks, "but when I went out looking for gift items I found I could only do okay if I shopped to a theme, so the theme became grapes and cattle. Leslie Fay of Sonoma made the foods for us, and they all contain ingredients from the ranch. Many are wine based and a lot are made with the herbs we have growing as cover crops. The honey is from hives set out for the bees that pollinate these crops."

The third level, which accommodates the administrative offices, is not open to the public, except for the Hoard Room and special events Cedar Room, which are available to groups and organizations on a rental basis. The Board Room is ideal for small, private tastings, dinners or lunches, for 14 or fewer The Cedar Room can comfortably seat 170 for a banquet, or an audience of 200 may be seated theatre style.

The paneling in the Cedar Room was elegantly hand-crafted by James "Bo" Fannin, a local woodworker The carpeting was woven to a design by the Kirklands, and Larry created the sconces, which give the appearance of wood bark. There is a full commercial kitchen for catered events, and a private entry to the banquet room from the tasting room, complete with an alcove which may be used as a check room.

An outdoor entertainment area called the Cedar Portico is set amid lush vineyards, with spectacular views of the Carneros wine region, San Pablo Bay, and San Francisco beyond. It is an idyllic setting for celebrations, as weather permits, from April through October "Dixie Kirkland is our special events coordinator," Debi mentions, "and she is wonderful at details. Anyone interested in renting either room or the portico can call her at (707) 254-9100, extension 112."

The assumption might be, with 2,000 acres, a splendid, expanding winery with a commodious and attractive tasting room and a retail shop, that the next generation of Kirklands would just walk into a high-level job with ease, but the values of this family are old-fashioned and refreshing. "We have a rule that just because they are family they don't automatically have the right to work here," Debi states firmly. "All the kids have to go to college and work somewhere else until they are 26 years old, before they can apply for a job at the ranch," she explains, "and the same criteria will be used to judge their applications as are used for any other applicant.

"On the other side of the coin, if working on the ranch or in the winery is not what they want to do, they don't have to feel obligated. My son Mike, for instance, wants to be a high school history teaches and we encourage that ambition.

Also, while they are growing up, the younger generation is expected to work for what they want. There are no 'make work' jobs. They can do any job we would have to pay to have done, and we pay the minimum wage for the work they do. Both Mike and Stephanie are active in Future Farmers of America (FFA) and both have raised grand champions and ranked excellent in showmanship. The award money they receive, they may spend as they like. Money from the sale of the cattle must be saved for college."

Through the Kirkland Ranch Winery's "Special Offering Club" the family invites visitors to sign up to have a "taste of the ranch" delivered at regular intervals, right to their homes or offices. Each shipment contains two bottles of wine with Rick Tracy's winemaker notes, some family recipes for dishes that complement the wine, and a copy of the "Happenings at the Ranch" newsletter.

"There are still things we are working on," Chris says. "We're going to be adding some historical documents to our displays, and we're going to set up one of the original cattle scales that we found on the property. We think groups of visitors will enjoy standing on it, to see how much they weigh in the aggregate."

While there may be more changes in and around Kirkland Ranch Winery, one thing will always remain the same--the active participation of the entire family. "We have been involved in a number of businesses," Chris mentions. "Construction, oil, cattle. In those areas, everyone did everything. We all drove tractors, branded cattle, but the vineyards and winery allow us more individual, personal expression, and yet we can go on working together. Because we all spend most of our time here, we have tried to make it as comfortable and home-like as possible. We think the visitors respond to this, and the friendly feeling brings them back for "family visits.

To help friends keep up with the Kirkland family, a Web site is now being developed.

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COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group