Our estate vineyard rests on a fog-enshrouded hilltop above a river gorge four miles from the Pacific Ocean.

This hill of uplifted seabed sits in the chilly inversion layer blowing in from the Ocean. We think it is the ideal location for making wines of distinction.

For a wine to reveal its inner personality, the individual characteristics of the wine must be in harmony. Remember the old stereo components with all the levels? You younger folks know them from DJ-ing as you can also adjust levels on contemporary mixing boards, too. In both cases, the levels allow you to “dial in” tones and bring out the essence of a song. The features of a wine are analogous to the features the levels control: acid, alcohol, oak, tannin, fruit flavor, earth flavors, floral aromas, mouthfeel…You could push all the levels “to 11” and make a wine that is blaring and anything but subtle. But, as for the song, it is likely unidentifiable. With wine, we want to adjust the levels so not one feature sticks out but instead they each play a role in support of the song at the core. Not all levels are at 5, some are at 3, some are at 7. If any are “out of balance” to the whole, however, it becomes distracting and the listener/drinker cannot focus on the essence of the wine, just what is not in balance.

The key decision that affected our ability to make harmonious wines was where we decided to plant our vineyard. Due to our cool climate, we have a slow accumulation of sugars in the skins and do not risk excessive alcohol in our wines. The acidity also respires more slowly due to the cooler temperatures and we retain brightness and lift as the wines age and aromas integrate to capture the singular personality of the cuvée. The marine soils and varied topography also provide the conditions for our wines to express shape, depth and intensity without teetering into monolithic or heavy-handed expression. Vanessa’s winemaking decisions further support this goal with gentle winemaking that does not create flavors as much as reveal them.

The result? Delicious, site-expressive, harmonious wines that could only be Peay wines.

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Want Some Wine?

Our wines are made from grapes grown on our 53-acre hilltop vineyard located above a river in the far northwestern corner of the West Sonoma Coast, 4 miles from the Pacific Ocean. We grow Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne. You can browse our current offerings in our online Wine Shop.

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Want Some Wine?

Our wines are made from grapes grown on our 53-acre hilltop vineyard located above a river in the far northwestern corner of the West Sonoma Coast, 4 miles from the Pacific Ocean. We grow Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne. You can browse our current offerings in our online Wine Shop.

Shop