David Falchek, Times Shamrock Writer
Flora Springs is a dying breed among veteran wineries in Napa Valley: It's family owned and operated.
There are still plenty of tiny, boutique producers that remain in the family. But midsize wineries that make enough wines to be widely distributed are being gobbled up by big corporations.
In the midst of consolidations and sell-offs, Flora Springs' founding Komes family is working to keep it in the family.
At Flora Springs, the family actually runs the winery as its job — from crushing grapes to cleaning up.
Preserving that sort of intimate attachment to the family business has gotten difficult as the vineyard and winery — launched in the 1970s by a former executive for construction giant Bechtel — makes it to its third generation. Flora Springs ownership is now spread among more than 20 cousins scattered across the nation.
Julie Komes Garvey remembers her brother in Texas asking her why the winery didn't have a very profitable year. The winery did well, she explained, but they used the proceeds to buy shiny steel equipment to improve wine quality and efficiency. That didn't mean much to someone sitting in Texas.
"It became clear to me that we needed to better communicate to the rest of the family what we were doing," she said.
The result was G3, short for "Generation 3." Flora Springs' principals called the family together for what was part shareholders' meeting, part family reunion at the winery in 2006 for an intense crash course on Flora Springs and its place in Napa and the industry.
The goal was to show the owners what they owned and spur deeper involvement.
Julie Garvey has already pulled back from the winery.
Her husband, Pat, remains vineyard director while her son, Sean, handles communication.
I recently tried some family-forged wines from Flora Springs.
Flora Springs 2006 Soliloquy Sauvignon Blanc is a special wine made from a unique type of sauvignon blanc called the "musque clone" that was planted long before the Komeses acquired the property. But over time, disease ravaged the vines and the vineyard nearly died. A unique plant propagation method at the University of California Davis allowed Flora Springs to replant with the same sauvignon clones without the disease susceptibility. The effort was worth it.
Soliloquy is slightly pungent with lemon cream, mango, and slight smoke character. Sharp acids deliver a crisp, mouthwatering finish with white pepper and spice notes. (PLCB stores have the '05.) $20. Four stars.
Two other typically outstanding Flora Springs wines faced a challenging year in 2004. A cool early season and late season heat wave resulted in some wines that didn't have the structure of other vintages.
Flora Springs 2004 Trilogy, a pioneering red blend, has seedy raspberry and toasted almond character. A hint of malbec in this cabernet-dominated blend gives it some ginger and clove character. While it finishes smoothly, it's not well integrated and may benefit from a few more years of age. $66. Three and a half stars.
Flora Springs 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon has juicy berry fruit with some oak spice and vanilla but this medium-bodied wine is loose and slightly vegetal and lacks the tannin kick you'd expect from a wine at this level. The 2003 is at $17 and is probably a better bet. Three stars.
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