October 15, 2022
by Nat Komes, Flora Springs General Manager
When our family founded Flora Springs in the late 1970s, harvest was a family affair, with relatives and friends joining us from around the Bay Area to help us pick grapes over a couple of weekends.
As our vineyard holdings grew, we hired a full-time vineyard crew to help with harvest, though we still reserved a few rows for our family. In the early 1980s, everyone in Napa Valley picked during daylight, starting after sunrise and finishing up in the afternoon.
But our family came up with a better idea: why not pick the grapes at night when it’s nice and cool, and deliver them to the winery first thing in the morning for processing? It would be more comfortable for the harvest crew, and the fruit would better retain its acid and structure.
We jerry-rigged some lighting on a tractor and gave it a try, and quickly concluded it was a better way to go. Today, of course, nearly every winery in Napa Valley harvests at night; it results in superior fruit and happier vineyard crews.
This year we’re celebrating the fact that Flora Springs was among the first to implement night picking with a one-of-a-kind label created for our 2020 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc label. I worked with comic book illustrator, graphic novelist and digital comics pioneer, Steve Ellis, who developed one of my favorite labels to date. Against the backdrop of a full harvest moon, a menacing bat hovers above the Flora Springs vineyard where the crew brings in the Cabernet Franc for this wine. As I mentioned, harvesting at night keeps the grapes and pickers cool, but it may also attract the attention of these fierce creatures of the night!
October 1, 2022
Halloween is always a cause for celebration at Flora Springs, and all year long we look forward to releasing our Halloween Wines.
For 13 years now, we’ve paid tribute to our ghostly history by producing special Halloween wine bottles for our Wine Club and Mailing List Members. Some years a favorite label is sold out upon release to the Wine Club. We enjoy giving exclusive access to wines crafted with our Napa Valley estate-grown Cabernet Franc and Malbec.
General Manager Nat Komes has done it again! This year’s one-of-a-kind Halloween-themed label is sure to delight club members and All Hallows’ Eve lovers everywhere. Nat worked with comic book illustrator, graphic novelist and digital comics pioneer, Steve Ellis, to develop a label that just might be our scariest ever. Steve is no stranger to Flora Spring’s Halloween shenanigans, as he created the label for our 2017 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc. Against the backdrop of a full harvest moon, a menacing bat hovers above the Flora Springs vineyard where the crew brings in the Cabernet Franc for this wine. Harvesting at night, a practice the Komes Garvey family pioneered in the 1980s, keeps the grapes and pickers cool, but it may also attract the attention of these fierce creatures of the night. Harvest crew beware!
This limited-production Cabernet Franc has lovely aromas of sweet hay, black cherry, boysenberry and cassis that might just send shivers down your spine! With a warm entry and flavors of plum, cherry tobacco and worn leather, the wine is swathed in soft tannins and lengthened by notes of caramel, vanilla and mocha. Lavishly flavored and lush on the palate, the wine is finely balanced with a lingering finish of brown sugar, marshmallow and sassafras.
Join our Wine Club to ensure an annual allocation of these limited, popular releases. Learn more about the many benefits of membership.