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TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT WINEMAKING January 2018 WINES&VINES 95 That brand was the first separate entity by Larry Hyde and his immediate family, and it helped pave the way for their buyout of Hyde Vineyards and now the new winery. Years earlier, Hall, who was working as the winemaker at Honig Vineyards in Napa Valley, had launched his own brand in 1988 with part- ner Donald Patz. Hall recounted that his first vintage working with Hyde Vineyards grapes was in 1990, when a wet spring resulted in the vineyard being his only source of Chardonnay. While he could have made that wine a vineyard designate, Hall instead labeled it a Napa Valley Chardonnay, but it still did quite well. "Robert Parker loved it and gave us a bril- liant review on the back cover of the Wine Advocate," he told Wines & Vines. "Our New York distributor, Lauber Imports, purchased all of the remaining stock within two weeks of the review. In fact, this purchase kept the winery solvent." In addition to it providing the commercial success that kept his young wine company afloat, Hall still considers the 1990 Chardonnay from Hyde Vineyards one of the finest wines he has ever made. He calls it "a great year, and the vineyard was just hitting its stride." That wine helped establish Patz & Hall as a brand, and when Hall started regularly pro- ducing a Hyde Vineyards designate, it helped the winery enjoy consistently high reviews and strong sales that eventually led to the com- pany's 2016 acquisition by Ste. Michelle Wine Estates of Woodinville, Wash. As Chris Hyde worked on plans for the new winery and wine business, Hall offered his expertise as an informal consultant. "Honestly, James Hall was a big influence on me. I spent a lot of time talking to him about the opportu- nities and what it takes to run a winery. I think he started Patz & Hall when he was around my age," he said. The Patz & Hall influence runs deep at the new Hyde Estate winery. Hall first met Hyde winemaker Alberto Rodriguez in 1991, when Rodriguez was a teenager working in the vineyards. Hall remembers him as a young kid who came by the winery after picking was done and started asking what they were still doing work- ing in the winery. Hall told him they'd be press- ing grapes until midnight, and Rodriguez offered to help. Because the teen had no cellar experience, Hall declined the offer, but four days later Rodriguez was back, and when he saw the winemaking team was going to be working late again, he offered his help once more. Hall conceded he needed the help, and so he hired Rodriguez. "He literally talked his way into a winemaking job," Hall said. That evening launched a winemaking career that eventually led to Rodriguez being named winemaker at Keller Estate. In 2012, Rodriguez left Keller and took a step down to become as- sistant winemaker at Patz & Hall, so he could rejoin his mentor. While at Patz & Hall, Rodri- guez helped manage all custom-crush clients, and that included Larry Hyde's brand. When Rodriguez learned the Hydes were looking for a winemaker, "This opportunity came up, and I just jumped for it." Already familiar with the grapes and the owners, Ro- driguez joined the Hyde winery in May 2017. Wine production Rodriguez has a variety of tanks in the cellar ranging from three closed-top La Grande tanks to open-top tanks from Santa Rosa Stainless Steel and Westec. Pinot Noir ferments in the open-tops, while everything else ferments in the closed-top tanks. In general, Rodriguez said the winemak- ing style at Hyde Estate is simple. Rodriguez makes the picking decisions and said he works closely with vineyard manager Jose Padilla, who has worked for Hyde Vineyards since 1979. KEY POINTS Surrounded by vineyards, Hyde Estate is built for simple, clean winemaking. The winery is used for the Larry Hyde brand of wines but will have space for custom crush. Crush equipment and tanks support wine- making for several grape varieties. Larry Hyde founded Hyde Vineyards in 1979, and his family manages nearly 200 acres. Winemaker Alberto Rodriguez dumps a bin of Pinot Noir into a dosing hopper that empties onto a sorting table.