Event
Frog's Leap - Founder John Williams
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Time: 05:00pm - 07:30pm
Type: Meet the Winemaker
Location: The Wine Cabinet
Number of guests: 0
Event Free
We're very pleased to welcome John Williams, Founder of Legendary Frog's Leap Winery to the shop for an evening tasting wines that have garnered critical and consumer raves as long as I can remember!.
Frog's Leap Winemaking Approach
Believing that a grapevine should be grown in healthy soil that supports all the nutrient needs of the plant, Frog's Leap has been farming organically since 1988. We also believe that most of the great and historic wines of the world have been made from non-irrigated grapevines, and to that end Frog’s Leap farms all of its vineyards without irrigation.
?We adhere to the premise that the greatest wines are those that most truly reflect their soil, climate and circumstance (collectively referred to as “terroir”), and that it is the winemaker’s role to simply stand back and let the natural beauty of the grapes show through.
We don't make great wine, we grow it.
Sauvignon Blanc $27.99
Chardonnay $34.99
Merlot $44.99
Zinfandel $34.99
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon $59.99
No reservations are needed!!
Stop by and enjoy the fine wine and exceptional winemaker!!
Before the Pond
As undergraduate at Cornell, John Williams obtains an internship at Taylor Wine Company, and discovers that a winery is full of tanks of booze, pretty girls giving tours and absolutely no cows unlike the dairy farm he grew up on. falls in love with wine.
1974-76
John makes a pilgrimage to the Napa Valley on the Greyhound Bus, meets Larry Turley while illegally camped on his property, a former frog raising farm; after two bottles of wine they agree to start a winery together. Larry helps John get a job with his friend Warren Winiarski. As the only employee at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars John keeps cellar notes and helps bottle the ’73 Stag’s Leap Cabernet. He proceeds to total Warren’s car on his 5th day on the job. At Larry’s urging John obtains a motorcycle to make the commute between UC Davis, Stag’s Leap and the Frog Farm.
While quaffing almost the entire batch of fizzy Chardonnay John made from grapes he borrowed from Warren, the two coin the name Frog’s Leap as well as the inexplicable clever phrase “Time’s fun when you’re having flies!” that becomes the winery’s official motto.
John is (still) the sole employee of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars when the announcement is made that the '73 Cab had won the Paris tasting. A serious pain in the ass!
