Winemaking

We carefully hand-harvest individual blocks of organically grown grapes at peak ripeness, then hand-sort them before and after de-stemming. Berries are cold-soaked before fermentations using natural or Bordeaux yeasts in small vessels, with caps punched down by hand.

Each newly fermented lot is gently pressed to separate wine from skins without extracting harsh components and obtain a tannin structure that develops silky textures. We age wines in tight-grained French oak barrels for twenty to thirty months, and rack them several times to provide air for maturation. The wines are unfined, with light filtration at bottling.

Alejandro Zimman, Winemaker

Alejandro grew up in Spain where food and wine define each region and are an essential part of the culture. After completing his B.S. in Chemisty in Madrid, Alejandro moved to the United States to pursue his Ph.D. in Wine Chemisty at the University of California at Davis. His thesis focused on understanding the chemical interactions between tannins (responsible for astringency in wine) and anthocyanins (the red pigmented molecules coming from the grape skins) that is key to red wine aging.

His appetite for science inspired Alejandro to work in academia at UCLA and the Cleveland Clinice where he focused on systems biology in heart disease caused by oxidized lipids. While visiting Big Sur on the California coast and drinking a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon he realized something was missing in his life. He thought crafting a product that reflects vintage, place, winemaking style and can be enjoyed for decades while celebrating family, friends, and food is an exceptional opportunity to pursue. Alejandro packed up his things and began his career in winemaking with an internship at Pride Mountain Vineyards, and never looked back. His passion took him to Marlborough, New Zealand, for a harvest and then to Napa Valley to work at Pahlmeyer and Michael Mondavi Family.

In 2017 he met Jeff Baker and Phil Coturri and had a conversation about wine and chemistry while walking through Stone Edge Farm’s Silver Cloud vineyard located atop Sonoma’s Moon Mountain District. In 2018 he met proprietor Mac McQuown and the two of them talked about their shared passion for wine. He joined the team at Stone Edge Farm Estate Vineyards & Winery as winemaker in April 2018.

When Alejandro is not busy crafting delicious Sonoma Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, he enjoys spending time with his wife Mia and daughter Luna in Petaluma, California.

Chris Bowman, Cellarmaster

Grew up in Marin County, studied mechanical engineering and product design. He farmed wine grapes with Phil Coturri for many years before joining our winemaking team at Stone Edge Farm in 2007.

Jeff Baker, Founding Winemaker

Raised on his family’s citrus ranch in Ventura County, Jeff graduated from Stanford and earned his masters degree in enology from U.C. Davis. In the 1970s, he was winemaker at the iconic Mayacamas Vineyards located in the mountains between Sonoma and Napa.

Jeff joined partners, including Mac McQuown, who created Carmenet Vineyards (now Repris Wines) on the southwest side of the Mayacamas in 1980. Nearly two decades later, both Mac and Jeff planted small Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards, and in 2004 they co-founded the winery with Phil Coturri.