Frei Brothers Wines

Frei Brothers Reserve is a winemaking story more than a century in the making. In 1890, Swiss immigrant Andrew Frei purchased the core of what is now Frei Ranch in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley. The superb stretch of land was already a vineyard, but Frei brought it to prominence when he built a winery that produced 20,000 cases of wine annually by 1895. In 1903, Frei turned the winery over to his sons, Walter and Louis, who adopted the name Frei Brothers.After the repeal of Prohibition, the vineyards caught the eye of Julio Gallo, winemaker for the rapidly expanding E. & J. Gallo Winery. The Gallo family began buying grapes from Frei Ranch, eventually signing an agreement to purchase the estate's annual wine grape crop.  When Andrew Frei's descendents retired in the late 1970s, the Gallo family purchased Frei Ranch, further developing the vineyard and the winery. Today, Frei Brothers Reserve carries on the rich legacy of both our home vineyard and Sonoma's celebrated appellations.

 

 

2008 Dry Creek Valley Merlot

Our 2008 Dry Creek Merlot captures the rich, ripe flavors of the Dry Creek Valley. It is a medium-bodied wine that exhibits intense flavors of blackberry and cherry from the vineyard with hints of complementary barrel spices. This wine was made to be enjoyed young, but a bit of bottle aging will make it even more rewarding.

Winemaking Notes

Our Frei Brothers Reserve Merlot is produced in a gentle, traditional style enhanced by the use of modern techniques to produce a wine that represents the Dry Creek Valley terroir. The grapes for the Frei Brothers Reserve Merlot are de-stemmed, but not crushed to retain a significant portion of whole berries for fermentation. This technique produces more concentrated dark fruit flavors. After fermentation, 100% of the wine completed malolactic fermentation to soften the acids and add complexity.

 

 

 

 

2008 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

Our 2008 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir is medium-bodied, with flavors of dark cherry and blue and black fruit. This wine has an earthy and robust character which is complemented by subtle hints of oak from French and American oak barrels.

Winemaking Notes

Our Pinot Noir grapes were picked in the cool morning and were then destemmed, but not crushed, to retain a significant portion of whole berries during fermentation. After a few days of cold soak, the grapes were allowed to warm and then begin fermentation. Fermentation temperatures were monitored closely to achieve optimum extraction of color, aroma and flavor, resulting in a rich, smooth wine that maintains the earthy character of true Pinot Noir. Fermentation proceeded with several different yeast strains to give the wine a breadth and depth of aromas and flavors.

 

 

 

 

2009 Russian River Valley Chardonnay

Our Terroir- The Russian River Valley

The signature cooling maritime influences of the Russian River Valley serve to balance its warm days with cool, refreshing evenings and fog-cloaked mornings. This unique microclimate allows for the slow and even maturation of our fruit, developing distinct flavors in our wines which reflect this great Sonoma terroir.

While the early winter of 2008 was cold and rainy, the early spring of 2009 brought comparably warm and dry conditions. The growing season was not marked by either unusual temperatures or rainfall, allowing even growth and maturation. The end of spring and the summer months were typically moderate and warm with few heat spikes, which provided perfect conditions for the ripening of our Chardonnay grapes. Harvest began in early September, and was complete by the end of October with minimal challenges. Yields were slightly lower than previous vintages, but the result was fruit of excellent quality with intensity and depth.

 

 

 

2009 Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel

Our Terroir- The Dry Creek Valley

Located in the heart of Northern Sonoma, the Dry Creek Valley is characterized by warm days, cool nights and a long and balanced growing season. In the evening, cool marine influences enter from the southern portion of the valley where the Dry Creek flows into the Russian River. This terroir produces wines of such exceptional quality that the Dry Creek Valley has been considered by many to be one of the finest sources of Zinfandel in California.

While the early winter of 2008 was cold and rainy, the early spring of 2009 brought comparably warm and dry conditions. The growing season was not marked by either unusual temperatures or rainfall, allowing even growth and maturation. The end of spring and the summer months were typically moderate and warm with few heat spikes, which provided perfect conditions for the ripening of our Zinfandel grapes. Harvest began in early September, and was complete by the end of October with minimal challenges. Yields were slightly lower than previous vintages, but the result was fruit of excellent quality with intensity and depth.

 

 

 

Frei Brothers Reserve wines come from one of the most diverse wine producing regions in California: Sonoma County. Here, mountains, valleys, rivers and extinct volcanoes define the region, whose 13 appellations vary widely in climate and soil. We select the best grapes from the best vineyard blocks in three celebrated Sonoma appellations - Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley and Russian River Valley - to make wines that reflect the pure nature of the land.

In northeast Sonoma, the Alexander Valley appellation is sheltered from Pacific breezes by a range of hills, lending warmer growing conditions to this appellation's alluvial soils. The nightly cooling influence of the nearby Russian River allows the grapes to develop a balanced acidity.

In the Dry Creek Valley appellation, well-draining red clay loam soil dots the hills and benchlands, while coarse gravel and sandy loam soil span the valley floor. Dry Creek days are long and sunny, but nights are characterized by ocean fog, giving the grapes ample time to mature and develop intense flavors.

Mountains along the Pacific coast shelter Sonoma's inland areas from ocean winds, but gaps in the landscape allow cooling influences to meander through the Russian River Valley appellation. Morning and evening fog roll across the Russian River, blanketing the region’s sandstone, alluvial, loam and clay soils with coil air.