August 31, 2023
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. We enjoy giving our Wine Club Members exclusive access to wines crafted with our Napa Valley estate-grown Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Read more about our tips on throwing the spookiest Halloween Party!
This year, General Manager Nat Komes, the creative spirit behind this annual endeavor, worked with comic book illustrator, graphic novelist and digital comics pioneer, Steve Ellis. Steve has created All Hallows’ Eve labels for us before, and he and Nat continue to outdo themselves. With a full harvest moon in the background, a black crow scolds a pumpkin-headed figure who seems to have fallen asleep beneath a grapevine. Is it the winemaker, worn out from the long days and nights of harvest? Or is it a disheveled stranger who wandered into the vineyard to take a nap? A fallen scarecrow? We’ll leave it to you to decide!
This limited-production Cabernet Franc is powerful and full bodied, with ripe currant, wild blackberry and black cherry fruit that will have you shivering with delight. Ancillary notes of fresh herbs, black tea and brown sugar lend complexity to the wine, and there’s a lovely integration of seductive vanilla oak. Lush and giving on the palate, this is a finely balanced Cabernet Franc with polished tannins and a hauntingly long finish.
Napa Valley is home to a number of “ghost wineries” – wineries built between 1860 and 1900 but abandoned in the early 20th century due to the vine disease phylloxera, the Great Depression, and of course Prohibition. One of these ghost wineries happens to be the home of John Komes. Originally constructed in 1885, the Charles Brockhoff Winery was an active winemaking operation for over twenty years until Prohibition forced the family out of business. It remained abandoned until the 1930s when Louis M. Martini arrived in Napa Valley, using the building mostly for storage. When his parents, Jerry and Flora Komes, purchased the property in 1977, John completely renovated the old stone winery. He lives there with his wife, Carrie, to this day. Every year we bottle a small amount of Malbec in honor of the property’s illustrious history.
Our 2021 Ghost Winery Malbec shows gorgeous purity and focus, with a dense core of ripe black cherry, cassis and violet-tinged floral notes that mingle with hints of cedar and dark chocolate. Notes of worn leather, espresso and toasty oak round out the supple, harmonious palate. The wine finishes with firm tannins and persistent notes of spice and wild berry.
Join our Wine Club to ensure an annual allocation of these limited, popular releases. Learn more about the many benefits of membership.
August 1, 2023
August 4 is National White Wine Day, and what better way to celebrate than with our new release 2022 Vermentino — a truly unique wine. Flora Springs has always been committed to creating and sharing exciting white wine. After all, it was our gold-medal winning Chardonnay that put Flora Springs on the map back in 1978. Vermentino, a wine we made specifically for wine club members, is a rare find. Sourced from a tiny, 2-acre block of organically farmed Vermentino located in Rutherford, we believe this is the only Vermentino planted in Napa Valley.
While a new varietal for Flora Springs, it is actually an ancient white wine grape, found primarily in the northeastern region of Italy, from Liguria down the coast to Tuscany — and, as we recently discovered, in that tiny gem of a vineyard in Rutherford, Napa Valley. As soon as it was harvested, we knew it was going to be compelling. Gentle handling of the grapes and lightly “oaking” the wine in seasoned French barrels yielded a bottling as irresistible as that early award-winning Chardonnay.
Vermentino is often compared to Sauvignon Blanc in body and taste. Our 2022 Vermentino is a dry, minerally white with flavors of grapefruit, citrus, honey, grated ginger and a hint of wet stone. Finely knit with zesty acidity, the wine is vibrant on the palate and carries a long, mouthwatering finish.
Pop this open for wine-curious friends on August 4 to celebrate National White Wine Day, and if they’ve been to Italy and experienced the Vermentino varietal there, so much the better! Only 200 cases were made, we anticipate a high demand and expect it to be snapped up swiftly — shop now.
White Wines to Enjoy for National White Wine Day
Our 2022 Flora Springs Soliloquy is the continuation of a remarkable journey that began in 1989. Noting the unique character of a small block of Sauvignon Blanc from our Crossroads Vineyard in the Oakville AVA, we fermented and bottled it separately as our first Soliloquy white wine. Whole cluster fermentation and seven months of aging in seasoned French oak barrels yielded a multi-faceted blend of white varietals with well-rounded flavors of grapefruit, white peach, Meyer lemon, and brown spice. At 80% of the blend, Sauvignon Blanc anchors the wine with lush flavors and zesty acidity. Ten percent Chardonnay brings a creamy mouthfeel and notes of Bosc pear and apple. Malvasia gives the wine its beguiling notes of citrus flower and jasmine.
Our 2022 Sauvignon Blanc offers bright fruit flavors of grapefruit, lime, passion fruit and mandarin orange with subtle floral notes of honeysuckle and orange blossom. The wine has a broad, creamy mid-palate with perfumed notes of lychee nut and Asian pear, and there’s a slightly nutty quality that adds to the complexity. The finish is spicy and mineral-laced, bringing the wine to a mouthwatering close.
Our Flora’s Legacy Chardonnay is a limited-production, one-of-kind wine made in honor of Flora Komes, our mother, grandmother, and the woman who inspired the founding of Flora Springs Winery. Every year we involve the whole family in the creation of this wine, a barrel selection of the finest Chardonnay of the vintage.
May 2, 2023
Flora Springs has always been committed to creating and sharing exciting white wine. After all, it was our gold-medal winning Chardonnay that put Flora Springs on the map back in 1978. We are delighted to introduce our debut release of Vermentino, a wine we made specifically for wine club members. This wine is a rare find – it’s sourced from a tiny, 2-acre block of organically farmed Vermentino located in Rutherford.
We believe this is the only Vermentino planted in Napa Valley, making this one of just two Vermentino wines produced here. As soon as it was harvested we knew it was going to be compelling. Gentle handling of the grapes and lightly oaking the wine in seasoned French barrels yielded a bottling as irresistible as that early award-winning Chardonnay.
Vermentino is often compared to Sauvignon Blanc in body and taste. Our 2022 Vermentino is a dry, minerally white with flavors of grapefruit, citrus, honey, grated ginger and a hint of wet stone. Finely knit with zesty acidity, the wine is vibrant on the palate and carries a long, mouthwatering finish.
Pop this open for wine-curious friends eager to try something new from Napa Valley, and if they’ve been to Italy and experienced the Vermentino varietal there, so much the better!
Be the first to taste this new wine. Only 200 cases were made, we anticipate a high demand and expect it to be snapped up swiftly — shop now.
About Vermentino
Vermentino is a new varietal for Flora Springs, but it is actually an ancient white wine grape, found primarily in the northeastern region of Italy, from Liguria down the coast to Tuscany — and, as we recently discovered, in that tiny gem of a vineyard in Rutherford, Napa Valley.
Vermentino wines are typically dry, crisp, and refreshing, with notes of citrus, green apple, and tropical fruit. They are often enjoyed as a young wine, but some can also benefit from aging. Vermentino is a versatile grape that can be used to produce a variety of wine styles, including still, sparkling, and dessert wines. It is also often used in blends with other white grape varieties to add freshness and acidity to the wine.
Vermentino is a hidden gem of the wine world, with its unique combination of freshness, complexity, and elegance that make it a standout among white wines.
March 31, 2023
Richard Tiedemann is a fifth-generation Napa Valley native whose family has been growing grapes here since the late 1880s.
Richard spent the better part of the 1990s as a crab and salmon fisherman in Alaska, returning to Napa Valley in 2000 to work in the Flora Springs tasting room. His love and knowledge of wine, his ability to relate to people and his passion for sharing the story of the Komes-Garvey family soon earned him promotions and a series of sales roles, with responsibility at various times for California, the northeast, the Midwest and western regions. Now, as Director of Winery Relations, Richard travels extensively throughout the U.S. as an ambassador for Flora Springs, hosting lively, interactive wine dinners and building lasting relationships with customers and fans.
“Last April I had the opportunity to do something I’d dreamed about for a long time: host a Flora Springs cruise for Wine Club Members in the Mediterranean. I was actually a stand-in for John and Carrie Komes, who at the last minute weren’t able to make the trip. Knowing that a big reason members sign up for a Flora Springs cruise is to spend time with the Komes, I brought my “A” game, determined to make the voyage just as entertaining and enlightening.
On one of our first days, I staged a blind tasting of Bordeaux varietals – Malbec,Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc. – to see if folks were able to identify the wines. Only three people got every wine right, but we all had a blast.
Our days were spent exploring awe-inspiring sites in Spain, the Canary Islands and Morocco. In the evenings we met at the Voyager Lounge where Flora Springs Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot flowed freely. And each night I hosted a small group of Wine Club Members for dinner at one of the ship’s amazing four-star (in my opinion) restaurants.
I loved spending time with these members, many of whom have long relationships with the Komes family and Flora Springs. But the best part might have been sharing photos and tales of my journey with John and Carrie when I got back. I’d sent them a post card from each port of call, which I know they appreciated. But not half as much as I appreciate them for giving me the opportunity to take the cruise of a lifetime.”
We look forward to welcoming you in Napa Valley for wine tasting while enjoying views of flourishing vineyards and the western hillsides. Named “Best Hidden Gem Winery” in Napa Valley Life Magazine’s 2020 Best of Napa Valley Awards Readers Choice & 2022 Best of Napa Valley Awards Readers Choice, we are open seven days a week by appointment. Visit Flora Springs Tasting Room.
As they say, like father like son, and Nat Komes loves to explore the world just as much as his dad, John. This October, sail away with Nat and Anne Komes and cruise the Mediterranean from Athens to Jerusalem aboard the Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ elegantly refreshed Seven Seas Voyager. Learn more.
February 28, 2023
Note: The article excerpted below was originally published in Robb Report and can be found here.
“The 9 Best Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons From the Storied Howell Mountain Appellation”
by Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen
Long before the 1976 Judgment of Paris put Napa Valley’s vinous treasure on the wine world map, bottles from Howell Mountain were taking home medals at international contests. In 1889, a wine made by Jean Adolph Brun and Jean V. Chaix, pioneers in what is now the high-altitude AVA in the northeast of the valley took home a bronze medal from the Paris World Competition. Ten years later, two other early hillside settlers, W.S. Keyes and Frederick Hess, were awarded gold and bronze medals, respectively, for their Howell Mountain wines. It took almost another hundred years for official government recognition; in 1983 Howell Mountain was named the first AVA within the greater confines of the Napa Valley AVA.
What sets this small American Viticultural Area near Saint Helena apart from many other wine regions is that its perimeter is delineated not just by geographic borders but by altitude: All vineyards must be a minimum of 1,400 feet above sea level. And while many wines from Napa and neighboring Sonoma benefit from cooling Pacific fog that rolls in each morning, Howell Mountain’s vines sit above the fog line, offering full sunlight throughout the day. Mountain conditions create berries with thick skin, offering a higher peel to juice ratio and stronger tannins. At the same time, cooler temperatures at higher altitudes aid in retaining acidity; this balanced tannin and acidity create wines that are made to last. That said, picking at perfect ripeness and a judicious use of oak means that while these will age beautifully for years, no one would fault you for opening a bottle now. Back in the day, Howell Mountain wine was likely to be Zinfandel, but today its vineyards are mainly planted with Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties for blending. Among the region’s 66 member vineyards and wineries you will find familiar faces with national distribution and small volume cult wines that take a little work to acquire. Here’s a selection of Cabs to get you started…
The name Dust & Glory is to honor founder Flora Komes who often used this phrase borrowed from Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. This delightful wine is purple ink colored when poured from the bottle with very concentrated aromas of blueberry, cassis and dark chocolate. It has flavors of black plum, blackberry and a touch of bramble. The tannins are plush yet firm and the lingering finish has notes of cedar, smoke and mocha. Enjoy now until 2029.
This is the second vintage of our Dust & Glory Cabernet Sauvignon from the Howell Mountain AVA, the first new Single Vineyard Cabernet to be added to our portfolio in over two decades. We always admired the wines of Howell Mountain, an appellation that sits to the east of St. Helena in the Vaca Mountain range. But we also learned that growing fruit on Howell Mountain comes with its challenges; the grapes are typically late-ripening and the tannins can be overwhelming. But as John and Nat Komes explored and experimented, they identified a wine from one of the highest elevation sites in the AVA that met their criteria, a beautifully expressive mountain Cabernet, distinct from our other Single Vineyards but no less prized.
Why Dust & Glory? Read more.
February 20, 2023
Back in the days when John Komes was selling our first Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons, he came up with idea of holding winemaker dinners pairing each Cabernet with a different cut of premium beef. He knew what many wine enthusiasts knew intuitively: there’s simply something sublime about enjoying a juicy bite of steak with a sip of rich, ripe, tannic Cabernet Sauvignon. But he understood the science behind that magical pairing.
“The tannins in red wine are essentially attracted to fat and protein. When you bite into a steak, the tannins in the wine ‘bind’ with the fat and protein in the beef, so that the wine feels softer and less astringent,” says John.
Over time, John experimented with different Cabernet Sauvignon and beef combinations until he came up with the ideal pairing for each Flora Springs offering. For the wine in the Preferred Palates Wine Club February 2023 shipment, our 2020 Wild Boar Cabernet Sauvignon, John recommends a tri-tip steak. Tri-tip, cut from the bottom sirloin, has been popular in California for decades, but has also become available in other parts of the country where it is sometimes called triangle steak, Santa Maria steak or California’s Cut.
“Tri-tip has great marbling which gives it a really good beefy flavor and a supple texture, as long as you don’t overcook it,” he says. “Plus, it has the added bonus of being more economical than many other cuts of beef.”
Tri-tip Marinade for Grilling
Tri-tip is made for grilling, and John likes to marinate this boneless steak for a few hours in the refrigerator before cooking. His preferred marinade (for a two to three-pound steak):
½ cup of red wine
¼ cup of olive oil
3 large garlic gloves, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
Turn several times while marinating. Before grilling, remove steak from marinade. Cook to desired doneness (@122°F for medium rare), let sit for at least five minutes and slice. John likes to serve tri-tip when Nat and his family visit, as the cut easily feeds a small group. He recommends accompanying the meal with small, roasted red potatoes, grilled veggies, a nice arugula salad, and a bottle of his Wild Boar Cabernet Sauvignon.
Wild boars are a fixture in Napa Valley, and as vineyard owners we’ve had our share of run-ins with the creature, which is how our Wild Boar Single Vineyard Cabernet got its name. Boars love to munch on ripe wine grapes, and when we get close to harvest we try to keep them to the natural habitats that surround our vineyards. But if one or two have a meal on us, we’re okay with it. As farmers who depend on Mother Nature, sometimes we need to live and let live. Sourced from our estate vineyard in the Rutherford AVA, our 2020 Wild Boar offers opulent aromatics of red and black raspberry and boysenberry that melt into rich flavors of cassis, black plum and black currant jam on the palate. The fruit is joined by notes of sweet vanilla bean, coconut and toasty oak which mingle with notes of lavender, espresso and a touch of licorice. With well-integrated oak and youthful tannins, the 2020 Wild Boar is a balanced, well-structured Cabernet that will reward further cellaring. Learn more about this wine.
December 31, 2022
Note: The article excerpted below was originally published in Forbes and can be found here.
“2022: It’s A Wrap For Wine Writing”
by Lana Bortolot
BEST PACKAGING
From pretty packaging, savvy swag and an inspiring revival, here’s a roundup of some of the bottles and stories that caught my eye this year….
The winery packaged holiday blend of its 2019 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon in a specially etched bottle for its wine club members. This year’s edition is a quail bearing a cranberry-studded wreath.
Beloved in California where they have the honor of being the state bird, quails are known to travel in groups, with adults, both male and female, caring for their young. With his characteristic head plume and cranberry-studded wreath, our festive quail is anticipating the holidays. This illustration is inspired by Flora Springs’ matriarch and muse, Flora Komes, whose love for all living things, both great and small, was legendary.
Our Holiday Bottles
Created especially for our wine club members, our Holiday Bottles are a way of thanking members for their loyalty and providing them with uniquely elegant bottles ideal for festive holiday celebrations and thoughtful gifts. The brainchild of General Manager Nat Komes, whose grandmother, Flora, imbued him with a love for the holidays, each wine is meticulously etched and painted by hand, with capsules and back labels applied one by one. As the only Napa Valley winery to offer new holiday designs each year, we pour ourselves into this annual project, ensuring that each bottle is absolute perfection inside and out.
The Wine
Our 2019 Holiday Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced from two outstanding, sustainably-farmed vineyards: the Komes Vineyard in Rutherford and our Windfall Vineyard in Oakville. Flavors of black cherry, red plum and kirsch are at the core of this plush and generous Cabernet, accompanied by notes of licorice, sweet basil, and a hint of menthol. A lovely oak component introduces notes of toasted marshmallow and vanilla to the palate, along with attractive hints of cedar and brown spice. This is a full-bodied wine with a soft mouthfeel and smooth tannins that lengthen the warm and satisfying finish. A perfect way to celebrate family during the holiday season. Learn more about this wine.
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.
May 2, 2022
Note: The article excerpted below was originally published in the Napa Valley Life Magazine and can be found here.
“Napa Valley is synonymous with Cabernet Sauvignon, so why do producers craft wines from varietals that seem “out of place” for the region? Although Napa Valley has hung its hat—for good reason—on Cabernet, the region’s diverse terroir is what allows for the wide range of varietals that successfully grow in the right microclimates. Add that to passion and talent, and a great viticulturist can team up with an experienced winemaker to turn a non-Cabernet varietal into a truly fantastic Napa Valley wine.
Enter Sangiovese. This thin-skinned grape variety can be tricky to grow, but select Napa Valley producers have mastered the art of crafting this finicky grape into spectacular wine…”
At Flora Springs Winery, General Manager Nat Komes admits that they have “found the southern part of the valley to be a good area for Sangiovese.” Komes stands by the cool breezes in southern Napa Valley blowing up from the San Pablo Bay as one of the main factors for helping their Sangiovese retain the quintessential acidity for which the grape is known. Much like Laura and Brian from 601 Cellars, Komes’ family has a “fell in love” with Sangiovese memory from a trip to Tuscany. “Our Napa Valley Sangiovese stands out primarily because it is becoming so rare,” Komes stated. The estate’s 2019 Sangiovese is a member’s only wine packed with cherry, pomegranate, and red plum—it’s well worth signing up to get your hands on this bottle…” Read more.
Sangiovese is the grape most commonly found in the famed Chianti region of Italy, and this version, from a south Napa Valley vineyard cooled by the San Pablo Bay, benefits during the growing season from a consistent weather pattern of cool, foggy mornings that melt into warm, sunny afternoons. Bursting with fresh fruit flavors of Bing cherry, pomegranate and red plum, this fleshy, mouthfilling red shows accents of mocha, warm spice and licorice. Despite a dense profile, fresh acidity keeps this one bright and focused through to a lingering finish. A crowd-pleasing wine, take this one to your next family dinner. Learn more about the 2019 Sangiovese.
December 29, 2021
Hello Great Tastes and Preferred Palates Wine Club Members!
We know that when it comes to wine clubs, you have are a lot of choices—and we are honored that you have chosen to be part of our Wine Club. At Flora Springs, we are committed to providing our members with access to the finest wines in our portfolio, wines hand-selected by our family as those we’d most like to share. Many of these are club-only and limited production wines that simply cannot be found elsewhere. Access to these wines, along with our dedication to friendly, professional customer service and inspired, fun-filled events, make the Flora Springs difference.
We have a lot of exciting things planned for you in 2022. We are so happy you will be joining us for another great year!
Great Tastes
| Shipment |
Wine |
Billing Date |
| January |
2019 Sangiovese & 2019 Poggio Del Papa |
1/3/2021 |
| March |
2020 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc & 2019 Trilogy |
3/7/2021 |
| May |
2019 Petit Verdot & 2019 Napa Valley Merlot |
5/2/2021 |
| July |
2021 Soliloquy & 2018 Three Keys Cabernet Sauvignon |
7/5/2021 |
| September |
2020 Ghost Winery Malbec & 2020 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc |
9/6/2021 |
| November |
2 Bottles 2018 Etched Holiday Cabernet Sauvignon |
11/7/2021 |
Great Tastes Red Wines Only
| Shipment |
Wine |
Billing Date |
| January |
2019 Sangiovese & 2019 Poggio Del Papa |
1/3/2021 |
| March |
2 Bottles of 2019 Trilogy |
3/7/2021 |
| May |
2019 Petit Verdot & 2019 Napa Valley Merlot |
5/2/2021 |
| July |
2 Bottles of 2018 Three Keys Cabernet Sauvignon |
7/5/2021 |
| September |
2020 Ghost Winery Malbec & 2020 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc |
9/6/2021 |
| November |
2 Bottles 2018 Etched Holiday Cabernet Sauvignon |
11/7/2021 |
Great Tastes White Wines Only
| Shipment |
Wine |
Billing Date |
| January |
2 Bottles of 2019 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc |
1/3/2021 |
| March |
2 Bottles of 2020 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc |
3/7/2021 |
| May |
2 Bottles of 2021 Rosé |
5/2/2021 |
| July |
2 Bottles of 2021 Soliloquy |
7/5/2021 |
| September |
2020 Family Select Chardonnay & 2020 Flora’s Legacy Chardonnay |
9/6/2021 |
| November |
2 Bottles of 2021 Flora Springs Lavender Hill Sparkling Wine |
11/7/2021 |
Preferred Palates
| Shipment |
Wine |
Billing Date |
| February |
2019 Trilogy & 2019 Flora’s Legacy Cabernet Sauvignon |
2/7/2021 |
| April |
2019 Wild Boar Cabernet Sauvignon |
4/4/2021 |
| June |
2019 Rutherford Hillside Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon |
6/6/2021 |
| August |
2019 Out of Sight Cabernet Sauvignon |
8/1/2021 |
| October |
2019 Holy Smoke Cabernet Sauvignon |
10/3/2021 |
| December |
2018 Howell Mountain Dust & Glory Cabernet Sauvignon |
12/5/2021 |
Please note: Prices reflect the cost of wine only, not shipping & handling. Schedule and pricing is tentative.
Please contact us at (800) 913-1118 or wineclub@florasprings.com with any questions or if we can be of assistance.
Interested in our Wine Clubs?
Learn more about the many benefits of membership.