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The story of Havens Wine Cellars is one in which love, passion, and art intersect with apple trees, flatbed trucks and Friday night brown bag dinners. A colorful tapestry of events led Michael and Kathryn Havens to found and develop their winery, and today the result is a collection of graceful wines that reflect Napa Valley's uniquely blessed geography and climate, capturing and expressing the nuances of this area's character in each bottle. Michael Havens crafts Albariño, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Franc into what he describes as "a style of wine that wants to be clearly California, but is elegantly understated." Michael and his wife Kathryn, with a small group of enthusiastic friends as partners, co-founded Havens Wine Cellars in 1984, with the first crush performed in the back of a flatbed truck. "We were gypsies," recalls Michael of the couple's efforts to make wines at borrowed winery facilities. Depicting the instance of bud break on the vine, Kathryn captured that moment on the Havens label design, as Michael describes it, "when everything that is beautiful and wonderful and delicious is about to emerge." At one of their weekly Friday night "brown bag" dinners, Kathryn served a bottle of California Merlot that Michael was convinced was a St. Emilion. Bolstered by the potential shown in this wine, he decided to create a Merlot in the tradition of some of his favorite Right Bank Bordeaux. Thus the Havens brand was launched with what is now known as the Napa Valley Merlot. In 1988, Michael quit his job at UC Davis to focus on his winemaking full time. Coincidentally, that same year, Robert Parker gave the Havens Merlots an enthusiastic review, bringing the winery to a new level of recognition. In 1995, Havens Wine Cellars purchased the current 10-acre location of their winery. Throughout the years, the Havens have continued to collaborate in their passion for wines. They travel to both the established and obscure wine regions, seeking inspiration from an international group of winemakers. And they still relish the task of walking through the vineyards, tasting the season's fruit. Ever the philosopher-winemaker, Michael approaches his craft with an intellectual as well as a scientific methodology. He takes a highly active role in every moment of the grape-growing process, having distinct opinions on everything from watering to trellising. This hands-on approach is of course continued in the winery where he aims for a moderate-alcohol, food-friendly wine. A great lover of music, peculiarly jazz, Havens compares his wines to music, saying, "I don't like music that plays loud all the time. I like changes in tempo, harmonics and mood, and I like that in my wine and food too." Press KitBackground Havens Wine Cellars Fact Sheet (PDF, 21 KB) Havens Reserves Ratings (PDF, 45 KB) Artisanal
Wine Making - An interview with wine grower Michael Havens (PDF, 279 KB) Press Release The story of Havens Wine Cellars (PDF, 29 KB) |
