Description
A partnership between Stu and Karen Lerner and winemaker Russell Bevan, the Lerner Project is only a few vintages into its trajectory, but it’s already creating some noteworthy wines. Stu initially acquired an interest in wine by selling pallets to many Napa Valley wineries—his first account was Robert Mondavi—eventually growing into management; at one time, his Mississippi-based company was the country’s largest purchaser of board wood for three straight years. In 2017, the Lerners purchased the Armstrong Ranch on Diamond Mountain—originally planted by Dick Steltzner in 1983—but they also purchase fruit from a number of Bevan-favorite sources, like Tench and Houyi. All of the wines are aged in 100% new French oak and follow Bevan’s preference of going to barrel with just a bit of their primary fermentation remaining, as he says this leads to better oak integration. While these wines are expensive, they deliver quintessential Napa richness allied to unusual balance, with the best examples showing remarkable complexity as well.
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