Levy & McClellan

Levy & McClellan is the independent Napa Valley project of Robert Levy and Martha McClellan, a husband-and-wife team who joined their decades of winegrowing experience in 1999. Both built careers around some of Napa’s most exacting estates before focusing that experience on a vineyard of their own.

The family vineyard sits at roughly 500 feet in the western foothills above Calistoga and spans about six acres. It is planted primarily to Cabernet Sauvignon, with Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot, on a hillside site chosen for its cooler western exposure, low-vigor volcanic soils and ability to be farmed with precision.

The approach is deliberately hands-on from soil to cellar: organic farming, high-density planting, minimal irrigation as the vines mature, native-yeast fermentations and fermentation in small French oak barrels. The wines are not fined or filtered, with every decision aimed at preserving the character of the vineyard rather than forcing it into a predetermined style.