Vintner Collin Cranor and his family found great success in the Livermore Valley with their Nottingham Cellars wines, originated in 2009. Yet the lure of the Napa Valley and its vinous riches proved too enticing to deny, and after 15 years of Tri-Valley living and winemaking, Cranor and his family uprooted, making the move to Napa in 2021 to craft site-specific Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
Though Nottingham Cellars continues to thrive, Cranor is now a Napa Valley vintner and a successful one at that. His Grape Culture wines (the first vintage of which was 2019) have achieved ready acclaim, each scoring well more than 90 points and earning pre-release plaudits from The Wine Advocate. The excellent scores have given Grape Culture some early notoriety, lending gravitas to the new label.
“We invited The Wine Advocate’s Joe Czerwinski to taste with us, and he granted us a half hour,” said Cranor. “He ended up spending three hours with me and my winemaker Craig Ploof. Our Cabernets blew him away.”
“Hyper-clean, quality-focused, with a selection of grape sources that are still being curated and refined, this is a Napa newcomer to watch,” said Czerwinski.
Grape Culture Cabs are serious and substantial, made with grapes from some of Napa’s most esteemed vineyards in Sugarloaf Mountain, Oakville, Rutherford, Mt. Veeder, and Howell Mountain, to name a few. Access is the result of both Cranor’s longstanding relationships with growers and his being in the right place at just the right time. A timely cold call to Beckstoffer’s GM, paired with a wine sampling, resulted in the procurement of a few Beckstoffer tons. “These grapes are our crown jewels,” said Cranor. Winemaker Craig Ploof, a good friend of Collin’s since he and his family started the winery in Livermore, has a hand in the winery’s success. He began working as the winemaker for Grape Culture in 2018, eventually moving to Napa with his family in the summer of 2021.
Those interested in sampling Grape Culture wines can make an appointment to taste at the winery’s location off of Corporate Drive, and chances are good that the tasting will be hosted by Cranor or Ploof, both of whom are always eager to share and discuss the discernible qualities and nuances of wines made from various Napa AVA fruit. The wines can also be found at marquee Napa restaurants such as Mustards and Bistro Don Giovanni, as well as at K. Laz Wine Collection in Yountville and Acme Fine Wines in St. Helena, whose proprietors are known for their keen ability to suss out the finest and most under-the-radar labels in the valley.
“We took a big chance pivoting out of Livermore,” said Cranor. “It certainly feels like we made a good decision. There’s a seriousness here about wine and a dedication to quality. And it’s a fun place to be. I find here that people are willing to give others a chance. Everyone works together. I wanted to be part of that.”
