Wente Vineyards - California, USA
the venerable name of Wente set up shop as a premium wine producer in America in 1883 - only a cool century after the country was born!
Hailing from Hamburg in Germany, founder C.H. Wente understood that it was all about location location location, settling on Livermore Valley with its excellent soil and climate.
The family’s next breakthrough came under the guidance of second generation Ernest’s dedication to import celebrated Chardonnay vines from France. He then selected the finest vines for health and flavour, and grafted them together. The result was the ‘Wente Clone’ which today is used for 75% of all Chardonnay planted in California.
While Chardonnay is their calling card, the family, who still run the show five generations on, sustainably produce a range of classically excellent wines, including Zinfandel, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah (their top cuvée, Nth Degree, Syrah is just out of this world good).