Jordan Vineyard & Winery

Jordan Vineyard & Winery
LocationHealdsburg, California, USA
AppellationAlexander Valley AVA
Founded1972 (1972)
First vintage1976
Key peopleJohn Jordan, CEO
Maggie Kruse, winemaker
VarietalsCabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Riviere Russe (dessert wine: 1982, 1983, 1985)
Other productsExtra Virgin Olive Oil
DistributionNational; exported to 40 countries
TastingBy appointment
Websitejordanwinery.com, The Journey of Jordan video blog

Jordan Vineyard & Winery is an independently owned California winery located in Alexander Valley AVA in Sonoma County. Jordan produces Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Russian River Valley Chardonnay.[1]

History

Jordan Vineyard & Winery was founded in 1972 by Tom and Sally Jordan, who first purchased land in 1972 with the dream of planting a vineyard. The Jordan chateau, which overlooks nearly 1,200 acres of hills and vineyards with three quarters of the land dedicated to natural habitat, was designed by the architecture firm Backen, Arrigoni & Ross and was completed in 1976 just before the first vintage of Jordan was harvested.[2]

Jordan's current winemaker is Maggie Kruse. Its winemaker emeritus, Rob Davis, is considered the longest-tenured winemaker in Sonoma County, working at Jordan from 1976 until his retirement in 2019. Davis was hired and mentored by winemaker André Tchelistcheff, who served as consulting enologist for Jordan.[3] Jordan is one of the few wineries that makes only two wines—a Russian River Valley Chardonnay and an Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The house style is considered more French than Californian with balance and elegance with lower alcohol and silky tannins.[4]

Today, the winery is owned and operated by Tom and Sally Jordan's son, John.[5][6][7] John Jordan's older sister Judy Jordan owned J Vineyards until 2015.

Jordan is known for its emphasis on sustainability and social responsibility.[citation needed] Most of the Jordan Estate is preserved habitat for wildlife and native trees. The winery is certified sustainable and runs on solar power, and all estate and grower vineyards are Sonoma Sustainable. Funds from the winery are used by The John Jordan Foundation, created in 2012 to fight the effective effects of poverty. [citation needed]

In September 2013, the 1,200-acre Jordan Estate became open to the public to explore for the first time in its history through an Estate Tour & Tasting experience.[8]

Legendary Los Angeles society hostess Betsy Bloomingdale's touted Jordan red and white as her wine of choice for dinner parties in her 1994 book Entertaining with Betsy Bloomingdale.[9]

References

  1. ^ "Archived copy". Wine & Spirits Magazine. 1 April 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-03-24. Retrieved 2010-11-21.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ "Wine Country, bonjour". San Francisco Chronicle. 1 October 2009. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
  3. ^ "Archived copy". jordanwinery.com. 1 February 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-12-30. Retrieved 2010-11-21.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ "Wine column: The magic of Jordan Vineyards". news-press.com. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  5. ^ "A Family Winery With a Winning Strategy". Sante Magazine, isantemagazine.com. 10 June 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
  6. ^ "Jordan's Rejuvenation". WineReviewOnline. 20 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
  7. ^ "Venerable Jordan Winery gets an update". Press Democrat. 10 November 2010. Archived from the original on September 19, 2012. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
  8. ^ "Jordan Winery Estate Now Open to the Public Through Unprecedented Farm-to-table Visitor Experience". PRWeb. 14 June 2013. Archived from the original on October 11, 2014. Retrieved 2013-09-05.
  9. ^ Bloomingdale, Betsy (1994). Entertaining with Betsy Bloomingdale: A Collection of Culinary Tips and Treasures from the World's Best Hosts and Hostesses. Beautiful Amer Pub Co. p. 29. ISBN 9780898026337.

38°39′43″N 122°51′02″W / 38.662056°N 122.850473°W / 38.662056; -122.850473