Halloween is always a cause for celebration at Flora Springs, and all year long we look forward to releasing our Halloween Wines.
For 13 spooky seasons 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, as with our 2020 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc, a favorite label is sold out upon release.
We invite Wine Club Members, locals, and friends to come and taste this one-of-a-kind new release and kick off the Halloween weekend at Wilfred’s Lounge in Downtown Napa. The 2020 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc is sold out, but we’ve held some in reserve exclusively for this event — very limited availability.
The Greasy Gills, the creatures from Oakland, will be playing instrumental twangy rock ‘n roll from 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm. To guarantee a table during the live music, make reservations for dinner. Seating at the bar is first-come, first-served.
Napa’s first and only tiki bar, the inspiration behind Wilfred’s Lounge lies with longtime Napa Valley family John & Nat Komes that brought you Flora Springs Winery. Our family’s take on a modern tiki bar is a layered experience that takes our passion for the beauty of Hawaii, the heritage of our vineyard and wine family, and an inspiring combination of food and beverage — that will take you on a journey you never expected, the way Uncle Wilfred would have imagined it. We’ve taken our roots and given them a twist to create a watering hole where both locals and visitors alike can experience the same touch of warm hospitality we’ve cultivated for over 40 years in Napa Valley. Learn more.
This event is sold out. If you would like to be placed on the wait list, please contact us at (800) 913-1118 or info@florasprings.com.
The Flora Springs estate in St. Helena is home to one of the few remaining ghost wineries in Napa Valley, and one of the very few that have been revived as a working winery. We’ve often wondered about the history of our 19th century building. If its thick stone walls could talk, what would they say about this historic winery’s former inhabitants and passers-through? This longstanding intrigue was the inspiration for our Ghost Winery Malbec, an estate-grown wine we release each year at Halloween. It is also what led us to find out for ourselves if there are spirits still lingering in this place.
Introduced in 2018, our Ghost Winery Historical Tour and Tasting is one of Napa Valley’s most unique wine experiences. On select days each month through October, we partner with a team of paranormal investigators from Napa City Ghosts & Legends for a fascinating walking tour of our Ghost Winery accompanied by a tasting of our Ghost Winery Malbec and other Flora Springs wines. On this trip back in time, we meet the spirits who can’t quite tear themselves away from the place they once inhabited. Past encounters have included a Scottish barrel-maker with a taste for whiskey and a 1920s flapper who didn’t want the party to end. Our investigators tell us there are sixteen souls who still roam our old stone winery, and they are anxious to make themselves known. This is a fascinating, thought-provoking tour for believers and skeptics alike. And no matter which way you lean, you’ll enjoy our Ghost Winery Malbec, a wine we make in honor of our ethereal history.
Price: $75
Wine Club: $60 Limited to 12 guests.
Questions? Contact us at (800) 913-1118 or info@florasprings.com.
About Napa City Ghosts & Legends Ellen MacFarlane is a native Napan who has lived in Napa for over 30 years. She is the proud mother of three boys, likes writing, ghosts and travel. She grew up in Napa and knew by the age of 11 she wanted to work with ghosts.
Devin Sisk is a Paranormal Investigator and creator of the Benicia Ghost Walk. He has been in the paranormal field for 11+ years, and has logged over 650 cases. He has been featured on Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, Eye on the Bay and More.
Recently Ellen & Devin worked on the Travel Channel’s #1 Show, Ghost Adventures.
It’s no secret that Halloween is one of our favorite holidays, and it’s that time of year again when we conjure up the ghosts of spirits past. September 1 – October 31, join us at The Room for a frightful good time.
Enjoy an exclusive tasting of our seasonal, winery-only Halloween wines that will send shivers down your spine. Taste the new release of our limited-production 2017 Ghost Winery Malbec and 2017 All Hallows’ Eve, each year recognized by Catherine Bugue, the St. Helena Star’s tasting panel writer who writes “It’s Halloween…gather up friends and good wine on the 31st for a night’s respite from the weekly grind? Adding a wine like Flora Spring’s iconic All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc brings good fun to the mix.”
Since everyone loves Halloween decorations, we will have our favorite skeleton art installed on the front of the building.
Note: The following article was originally written by Chris Macias and published in the San Francisco Chronicle on October 30, 2018 and can be found here.
The Napa Ghost Wineries You Can Visit
Trek around Wine Country, near its luxury hotels and fine-dining destinations, and you’ll find the remnants of wineries that date back to a time when Napa wasn’t so flush. These are vestiges of the Dark Ages for California wine. They’re known as ghost wineries, not because they’re haunted (though that’s up for debate in some cases), but because they serve as an important link between Napa’s early years as a wine region and the bustling destination it is now.
Napa Valley had a thriving wine industry in the 19th century, with more than 140 operating wineries opened by the final decade. But starting in the late 1880s, the region was hit with a triple blow that left the local wine industry reeling for decades. First, an outbreak of the lethal grapevine virus phylloxera crippled wine production for 20 years. Then the Great Depression arrived, which dovetailed with Prohibition from 1920 to 1933.
This half-century of setbacks left many California wineries in ruins. Although a few were able to stay in business by selling sacramental wine or grapes for home winemaking, the industry had withered to about three dozen by the time Prohibition was repealed. Many of the buildings remained vacant for decades, falling into ruin. Halloween notwithstanding, Napa’s ghost wineries are worth visiting any time of year. They’re scattered throughout the valley, offering a peek into a storied history and a spirit of perseverance that defines the area.
Here are a handful of the ghosts you can visit:
Flora Springs: This former home of the 1900 Rennie Brothers Winery in St. Helena, suffered a one-two punch at the turn of the 20th century. Not only were its vineyards hit by phylloxera, but a fire in its wine cellar decimated its production capabilities. After decades of inactivity, the property was purchased in the mid 1970s and renamed Flora Springs. The ghost winery has since been renovated and serves as a production facility, which visitors can see during tours of the Flora Springs estate. Flora Springs plays up its ghost winery heritage with Halloween releases including All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc and Ghost Winery Malbec…
Note: The following article was originally written by Jess Lander and published in the Napa Valley Register on October 11, 2018 and can be found here.
Creepy visitors, ghostly wines: Flora Springs gets into the spirit of Halloween
As a tribute to their 1885 ghost winery, one of the few remaining in the area, Flora Springs Winery goes all out for Halloween.
You can’t miss the trio of enormous skeletons that dance outside their Highway 29 tasting room in St. Helena. Inside, the walls are covered in cobwebs, rooms are transformed into a crematorium and morgue, and you might just find a headless horseman sitting at your table and struggling to sip his wine (for a lack of mouth). But the decorations, done by local design team, The Baker Sisters, are just the beginning. The winery’s Halloween preparation starts months in advance.
For eight years running, Flora Springs has released a collection of limited release, Halloween wines. Featuring custom labels and usually 100 percent bottlings of varieties that are traditionally used for blending, the initiative was started by Nat Komes, general manager and son of proprietors John and Carrie Komes. He has a personal fondness for the holiday and even tied the knot on Oct. 31.
Komes’ inspiration for the Halloween collection came from an unlikely place: beer. Once a year, hundreds of thirsty fans spend hours lined up outside Santa Rosa’s Russian River Brewing Company, all for a taste of their cult release, Pliny the Younger.
He wanted his own version of that, saying, “I was trying to generate some of that excitement in the wine business.”
There might not be a line outside of Flora Springs, but there’s certainly a high demand among the winery’s followers. The Halloween wines often sell out well before Halloween each year and have become collectors items in the cellars of many wine club members.
It all started with the Ghost Winery series in 2010. For the labels, Komes partnered with artist Wes Freed, best known for his eerie illustrations on Drive-By Truckers album covers. One of those albums was a favorite of Komes’ brother.
“My brother passed away from cancer right when I was starting the Ghost Winery project,” said Komes. “That’s how I got a hold of Wes Freed, because that was his favorite record at the time. I reached out to him, started telling him about my brother, how he loved the art, and he came right back to me and said, ‘Let’s get going on this.’”
Over the years, the Ghost Winery series evolved into the Halloween collection with a Ghost Winery label at its centerpiece. Always a bottling of malbec —fittingly sourced right in front of Flora Springs’ ghost winery — the label is a modern interpretation of the 1978 label. It features a sketch of the stone ghost winery building, which was severely damaged in a fire in 1900, but has since been restored.
While the Ghost Winery Malbec stays the same every year, the labels of the others change. Komes develops his vision by scouring through children’s books, album covers, comic books and even skateboards, then contacts the respective artist and commissions them to create a one-of-a-kind wine label for that year’s release.
His favorite label of 2018 is the 2016 All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc, a throwback to old school Halloween imagery of a black cat and jack-o-lantern. The art was done by artist Emmenline Forrestal, a former wig maker who illustrated the children’s book “Gloppy,” a favorite of Komes’ daughter’s.
The true collectors item this year is the 2014 Drink In Peace Merlot. On it, a hand-etched, glow-in-the-dark skeleton holds a wine bottle across its chest. It even comes packaged in a coffin box.
And then there’s the 2013 Black Moon Cabernet Sauvignon. Available only in magnums, it’s already sold out and therefore as rare as an actual black moon (defined as an additional new moon that appears in a month or in a season, or the absence of a full moon or of a new moon in a month).
Skateboard artist Dennis McNett’s illustration depicts the phases of the moon surrounded by bats, which Komes said are regulars in the steeple of the ghost winery. The art is etched and hand painted on the bottle.
The new ghost tour
Those who want to taste the Halloween wines can reserve a tasting at The Room, Flora Springs’ St. Helena tasting room, but this year, the winery is taking their celebrations to a new level of creep with a ghost tour. Flora Springs has teamed up with Napa City Ghosts & Legends to lead a paranormal tour of the ghost winery and estate on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 10:30 a.m.
Komes said he was always curious if the ghost winery was haunted and that Napa City Ghosts have since identified three spirits during their recent visits. There’s Matthew, who supposedly died in a horse-related accident, a flapper who loves to party, and another man who gave off a particularly unsettling vibe.
Let’s hope he’s not in the mood for socializing that day.
For more information on Flora Springs’ Halloween tastings and ghost tour, visit www.florasprings.com/events.
Note: The following article was originally published in the Wine Spectator on September 27, 2018 and can be found here.
Paranormal Activity at ‘Ghost Winery’
“…But if you missed the chance to commune with Napa’s dead last weekend at the St. Helena Cemetery, fear not: There are plenty more spectral vintners doomed to roam the terroir for all time (it’s been said some Napa winemakers even sold their souls), and not a few so-called “ghost wineries” they’re thought to haunt. The old Rennie Brothers Winery, completed in 1900, is one—the once-thriving wine factory sat derelict through Prohibition before its rebirth as Flora Spring Estate. On Oct. 28, the winery is bringing in local paranormal investigators/Napa history fiends Ellen MacFarlane and Devin Sisk, who most recently appeared together on the Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures, to lead a haunted tour and wine lunch in the old stone cellars and caves. “As one of the few remaining Napa Valley ‘ghost wineries,’ we are constantly reminded that there are phantoms and spirits who walked here before us,” noted general manager Nat Komes to Unfiltered.
As in past years, Flora Springs is also releasing a set of Halloween-themed wines…with limited-edition label art from painters and illustrators: All Hallow’s Eve Cabernet Franc, Ghost Winery Malbec, Black Moon Cabernet Sauvignon and Drink in Peace Merlot (glow-in-the-dark label; comes in coffin-shaped gift box) are a few representative treats.”
It’s no secret that Halloween is one of our favorite holidays, and it’s that time of year again when we conjure up the ghosts of spirits past. October 1 – October 31, join us at The Room for a frightful good time.
Enjoy an exclusive tasting of our seasonal, winery-only Halloween wines that will send shivers down your spine, including our limited-production 2016 Ghost Winery Malbec.
This event is sold out. If you would like to be placed on the wait list, please contact us at (800) 913-1118 or info@florasprings.com.
The Flora Springs estate in St. Helena is home to one of the few remaining ghost wineries in Napa Valley, and one of the very few that have been revived as a working winery. We’ve often wondered about the history of our 19th century building. If its thick stone walls could talk, what would they say about this historic winery’s former inhabitants and passers-through? This longstanding intrigue was the inspiration for our Ghost Winery Malbec, an estate-grown wine we release each year at Halloween. It is also what led us to find out for ourselves if there are spirits still lingering in this place.
Introduced in 2018, our Ghost Winery Historical Tour and Tasting is one of Napa Valley’s most unique wine experiences. On select days each month through October, we partner with a team of paranormal investigators from Napa City Ghosts & Legends for a fascinating walking tour of our Ghost Winery accompanied by a tasting of our Ghost Winery Malbec and other Flora Springs wines. On this trip back in time, we meet the spirits who can’t quite tear themselves away from the place they once inhabited. Past encounters have included a Scottish barrel-maker with a taste for whiskey and a 1920s flapper who didn’t want the party to end. Our investigators tell us there are sixteen souls who still roam our old stone winery, and they are anxious to make themselves known. This is a fascinating, thought-provoking tour for believers and skeptics alike. And no matter which way you lean, you’ll enjoy our Ghost Winery Malbec, a wine we make in honor of our ethereal history.
About Napa City Ghosts & Legends Ellen MacFarlane is a native Napan who has lived in Napa for over 30 years. She is the proud mother of three boys, likes writing, ghosts and travel. She grew up in Napa and knew by the age of 11 she wanted to work with ghosts.
Devin Sisk is a Paranormal Investigator and creator of the Benicia Ghost Walk. He has been in the paranormal field for 11+ years, and has logged over 650 cases. He has been featured on Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, Eye on the Bay and More.
Recently Ellen & Devin worked on the Travel Channel’s #1 Show, Ghost Adventures.
The Flora Springs estate in St. Helena is home to one of the few remaining ghost wineries in Napa Valley, and one of the very few that have been revived as a working winery. We’ve often wondered about the history of our 19th century building. If its thick stone walls could talk, what would they say about this historic winery’s former inhabitants and passers-through? This longstanding intrigue was the inspiration for our Ghost Winery Malbec, an estate-grown wine we release each year at Halloween. It is also what led us to find out for ourselves if there are spirits still lingering in this place.
Introduced in 2018, our Ghost Winery Historical Tour and Tasting is one of Napa Valley’s most unique wine experiences. One Sunday each month we partner with a team of paranormal investigators from Napa City Ghosts & Legends for a fascinating walking tour of our Ghost Winery accompanied by a tasting of our Ghost Winery Malbec and other Flora Springs wines. On this trip back in time, we meet the spirits who can’t quite tear themselves away from the place they once inhabited. Past encounters have included a Scottish barrel-maker with a taste for whiskey and a 1920s flapper who didn’t want the party to end. Our investigators tell us there are sixteen souls who still roam our old stone winery, and they are anxious to make themselves known. This is a fascinating, thought-provoking tour for believers and skeptics alike. And no matter which way you lean, you’ll enjoy our Ghost Winery Malbec, a wine we make in honor of our ethereal history.
Price: $75
Wine Club: $60
The March 10 tour is sold out. Future dates are still available, see our Events page. Please contact us at (800) 913-1118 or info@florasprings.com with any questions.
About Napa City Ghosts & Legends Ellen MacFarlane is a native Napan who has lived in Napa for over 30 years. She is the proud mother of three boys, likes writing, ghosts and travel. She grew up in Napa and knew by the age of 11 she wanted to work with ghosts.
Devin Sisk is a Paranormal Investigator and creator of the Benicia Ghost Walk. He has been in the paranormal field for 11+ years, and has logged over 650 cases. He has been featured on Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, Eye on the Bay and More.
Recently Ellen & Devin worked on the Travel Channel’s #1 Show, Ghost Adventures.
This event is sold out. Future dates are still available!
The Flora Springs estate in St. Helena is home to one of the few remaining ghost wineries in Napa Valley, and one of the very few that have been revived as a working winery. We’ve often wondered about the history of our 19th century building. If its thick stone walls could talk, what would they say about this historic winery’s former inhabitants and passers-through? This longstanding intrigue was the inspiration for our Ghost Winery Malbec, an estate-grown wine we release each year at Halloween. It is also what led us to find out for ourselves if there are spirits still lingering in this place.
Introduced in 2018, our Ghost Winery Historical Tour and Tasting is one of Napa Valley’s most unique wine experiences. One Sunday each month we partner with a team of paranormal investigators from Napa City Ghosts & Legends for a fascinating walking tour of our Ghost Winery accompanied by a tasting of our Ghost Winery Malbec and other Flora Springs wines. On this trip back in time, we meet the spirits who can’t quite tear themselves away from the place they once inhabited. Past encounters have included a Scottish barrel-maker with a taste for whiskey and a 1920s flapper who didn’t want the party to end. Our investigators tell us there are sixteen souls who still roam our old stone winery, and they are anxious to make themselves known. This is a fascinating, thought-provoking tour for believers and skeptics alike. And no matter which way you lean, you’ll enjoy our Ghost Winery Malbec, a wine we make in honor of our ethereal history.
Price: $75
Wine Club: $60
The April 14 tour is sold out. Future dates are still available, see our Events page. Please contact us at (800) 913-1118 or info@florasprings.com with any questions.
About Napa City Ghosts & Legends Ellen MacFarlane is a native Napan who has lived in Napa for over 30 years. She is the proud mother of three boys, likes writing, ghosts and travel. She grew up in Napa and knew by the age of 11 she wanted to work with ghosts.
Devin Sisk is a Paranormal Investigator and creator of the Benicia Ghost Walk. He has been in the paranormal field for 11+ years, and has logged over 650 cases. He has been featured on Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, Eye on the Bay and More.
Recently Ellen & Devin worked on the Travel Channel’s #1 Show, Ghost Adventures.
