At the end of May, Jordan Vineyard & Winery announced the purchase of Meola Vineyard in Alexander Valley just north of Geyserville. The purchase price was not disclosed, according to a press release from a Jordan spokesperson.
The acquisition marks the first time Jordan has purchased land since 1974 when it acquired the 1,200-acre Jordan Estate.
The Meola property is 45 acres, with 29 acres of planted cabernet sauvignon.
“We have been looking to purchase more vineyard land for a very long time,” John Jordan, chief executive officer of Jordan Vineyard & Winery, said in a statement. “We have kicked the proverbial tires on a few properties and didn’t make any offers because we weren’t confident that those vineyards would produce grapes worthy of the Jordan master blend. This one is guaranteed and aligns with our focus on making the best cabernet sauvignon in our house style from a combination of estate and grower vineyards.”
The Meola Vineyard was owned by Mario Meola — who purchased the land in 1994 — and farmed with mostly organic methods to produce fruit-forward, subtly oaked wines.
Meola’s focus on growing grapes for European style wines and the property’s gravelly soils drew Jordan to the property.
Additionally, according to the press release, “Although Jordan had never purchased grapes from Meola and his wife Bonnie, Maggie Kruse (the winemaker at Jordan) tasted barrel samples of Meola fruit from recent vintages and thought the fruit profile and balanced tannins would work well for the Jordan house style.”
Jordan’s Director of Agricultural Operations Brent Young will oversee farming of the newly purchased vineyard for the 2021 vintage, which was planted from 1989 to 1994 to clone eight cabernet sauvignon.
According to Young, the vineyard will be replanted, but they first want to evaluate vine health quality and yield for at least one growing season before they replant.
Jordan Vineyard & Winery was founded in 1972 and John Jordan acquired the winery from his father in 2007.
