DAMAS VINEYARD

The DAMAS Vineyard was planted in 1998 at approximately 2000 foot elevation, in Amador County, in the Sierra Nevada foothills of California. The vineyard has 1,250 Zinfandel vines and occupies an area of about two acres. The vineyard slope is shaped like an amphitheater, facing southwest, in the relatively tiny Fiddletown appellation.

Our grapes are head-pruned (the historic Amador way). We have practiced integrated pest management in the past, with minimal use of pesticides. However, as of 2012 we are following organic farming principles in all of our gardens, orchards and vineyards. We have a big composting operation and mulch our pruned canes each year to replenish the soil in the vineyard. We recently added solar panels to meet our electrical needs.

A famous winemaker once told us that, in his experience, the best wine grapes come from the vineyards that have the most footprints of the owners in them. Our vineyard is full of our footprints, as well as those of our city friends who love to break away from their professional jobs to get their hands dirty and get intimate with these beautiful vines. We prune, sucker, tie, cane-thin, canopy thin, cluster thin and harvest all by hand--striving for high quality, happy and healthy wine grapes. No wonder our wine has won a medals in competitions ranging from the Amador County Fair to the San Francisco International Wine Competition, an annual blind tasting of thousands of wines from all over the world. Our Zinfandel has also been selected for several prestigious wine clubs, including the NapaStyle and KQED Wine Clubs.

Learn more about DAMAS and where you can find our limited-production wines on the other pages of this website.