Rafael et Fils
Founder Georg Rafael got into the hotel industry after living in east Berlin, ultimately running the Regent Hotels in Hawaii. After falling in love with the Napa Valley and meeting and befriending such Napa luminaries as Warren Winarski, Georg and his wife Rosie purchased 50 acres of land in 1982 in the southern part of the Valley, on a bench right up against Mt. Veeder in what is now the Oak Knoll district. At the time, the land was being used for cattle grazing. This stunning piece of land, on the same bench as the Mayacamas mountains, has a top elevation of 500 feet and is significantly cooler than vineyards located up valley. Over the next four years, Georg and Rosie planted grapes, mostly Cabernet, with the intent of becoming grape growers, ultimately planting 23 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and two acres of Chardonnay. For 15+ years, they sold their grapes to producers such as Duckhorn, Robert Mondavi and Far Niente. The beginnings of Rafael et Fils as a label date to about 1996 when Tom Farella of Farella Family Winery convinced the couple to bottle their own wine. Tom became their winemaker and stayed in that role until 2009. Georg’s son Marc joined the business in 2009 when the family realized that they had about eight thousand cases of unsold Napa Cab dating back to the late 1990s. Needless to say, Marc, who studied economics in London and winemaking at UC Davis, had no problem selling through the stock. Today Marc is the sole proprietor of Rafael et Fils. Despite the fact that their first vintage was produced more than 20 years ago, Marc feels like he is building a startup.Marc’s philosophy is to create 100% varietal specific wines from the family vineyard in Oak Knoll as well as a vineyard to the north in Mendocino County. The focus is on wines that are old world in style – showing more restraint when it comes to ripeness, level of alcohol and feature long aging. With a track record of over 20 years, these are wines that have proven to age very well.For more information on the estate, check out the website or visit Napa Wine Project
Wines from this producer
Commitment to Craft Wine
We are dedicated to craft wine. Real wine produced by real people in limited quantity, from the new generation of natural winemakers to the classic high-end Burgundians. Sorry, no industrial wine here!
Selling Wine is an Art, Just Like Making It
We are not just another Direct-to-Consumer website. Actually, we don't sell directly to consumers at all, as we believe selling wine is an art. We don't want to replace it, rather just make it easier, so you can focus on the art.
The Trade Should Be as Liquid as Wine
We believe the trade should be as fluid as wine. Processes, information and transactions should flow as a fine wine, in and out of a Zalto glass. That's where a Digital Platform can help.
Winemakers First, Always
For the wine market to be healthy, firstly it must take care of the producers. We believe that the trade should be fair and transparent, across all channels, from the producer to the final consumer.
