Madonna Estate
5400 Old Sonoma Rd, Napa, CA 94559
Website: https://madonnaestate.com/
In Carneros, tucked into a corner off highway 121 and Old Sonoma Road is the historic Madonna Estate winery. This winery is overshadowed by the touristy Domaine Carneros, Artesa, and Cuvaison properties up the road, but it’s well worth a visit. We pulled into a small parking area right off Old Sonoma Road and followed a gravel path leading to the front of the winery and tasting rooms. In the center of the walkway is a small marble fountain and a few metal café style tables and chairs. I was intrigued by this winery for its history, variety of wine, and commitment to natural farming. Madonna Estate has been run by the Bartolucci family since 1922. They are proud to share that they are the second oldest winemaking family in Napa. In their early years they made wine for the Church, hence the origin of the name. Founding father, Andrea Bartolucci, built the first winery in Oakville. Unfortunately it was devastated by fire. Andrea rebuilt in 1933 and continued running it with his son Louis. The Oakville property was sold in 1970, but third generation and grandson Andrea “Buck” Bartolucci wanted to carry on the family tradition. So, he bought 160 acres in Carneros and built the current estate winery in 1977. Today the fourth generation is involved in operations, with plans to continue onto the 5th generation.
The Bartoclucci family is committed to growing wine naturally and meshing traditional and modern techniques. All of the wine is estate grown and dry farmed on 120 acres. They make an impressive range of varietals to suit many palates from bold red to sweet whites. Their Estate wine list includes Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Dolcetto, Barbera, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, and Muscat Canelli.
Tall cypress trees flank the doorways to the two tasting rooms – the Main room and the Reserve room. The Main tasting room is open to the public daily. When we arrived there was a tour group wrapping up, thus we were only in the room long enough to check it out. The room is a little narrow but has a long marbel tasting bar along the wall on one side to serve a large group of people at a time.
Madonna Reserve Room
I’d highly suggest splurging a little and making a reservation ahead of time to do a tasting in the Reserve room. The Reserve tasting fee is very reasonably priced compared to other more popular wineries in Napa, and it includes a tasting of 5 wines. Walking into the Reserve room was like being invited into an Italian family’s cozy living room with big leather chairs and a sofa in one corner. The floors are tiled with a couple of throw rugs and two dining room style tables that seat four. There were also a couple of high top tables for couples. I am not ashamed to admit that I was excited about trying the sweeter wines, while my husband opted for the red wines. Our host was great, providing educational information about the winery and tailoring to our tastes. I loved the off-dry style Gewürztraminer and the Rosetto. On the red side I personally enjoyed the Estate Merlot and Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon the most, but their Italian varietals Dolcetto and Barbera are worth a try too. Our experience was very pleasant and I would definitely return.