NAPA, Calif. - (Business Wire) Stanley Cheng, the celebrated global entrepreneur and cookware icon who is the CEO of Meyer Corporation, manufacturers of Circulon, Anolon, Farberware and KitchenAid cookware, has announced the launch of
“Stephanie
”, a new line of red Bordeaux varietal wines from his family
’s Hestan Vineyards in Napa Valley. The debut release includes the
2005 Stephanie Red Bordeaux Blend (940 cases $65), 2005 Stephanie Cabernet Sauvignon (930 cases $50) and 2005 Stephanie Merlot (475 cases $40). Named for Stanley and Helen Cheng
’s only daughter, whose concert harp is etched in gold on the bottle, Stephanie wines are made by consulting winemaker Jeff Gaffner (Saxon Brown, Black Kite, Xtant) using all five of the red Bordeaux varietals planted to Hestan Vineyards.
In making the announcement, Cheng said, “My wife, Helen, and I are thrilled to see the realization of Stephanie Wines. We’ve been humbled by the praise for our vineyard’s Cabernet Sauvignon and have for some time had the idea of making a line of wines to showcase all five of the red Bordeaux varietals we’ve planted here.”
Stephanie wines became more than just an idea in 2004 when Stanley was introduced to Gaffner’s winemaking at a blind tasting of Merlots from neighboring Nepenthes Vineyard. “I was blown away,” recalls Cheng, “by the seductive quality and varietal expression of his wine; it was precisely the type of Merlot that I wanted to make from our vineyard.” With Cabernet Sauvignon from the vineyard already being produced under the critically-acclaimed Hestan and Meyer labels by consulting winemaker Mark Herold, Cheng looked to build on the vineyard’s success with a new line that would showcase all five of the vineyard’s red Bordeaux varietals. He felt that given Gaffner’s expertise with Bordeaux blends (including Chateau St. Jean’s Cinq Cepages and Napa Valley’s Xtant) and his reputation for crafting elegant, well-balanced wines, he was just the winemaker to lead that effort. Gaffner began overseeing the viticulture at Hestan Vineyards in 2004 and made the first Stephanie wines from the 2005 vintage.
Speaking to the unusual move of hiring two consulting winemakers to produce separate labels from his vineyard, Cheng remarks, “We feel very privileged to have two winemakers of such accomplishment interpret our vineyards’ terroir in such wonderfully different and expressive styles of wine.”
About Hestan Vineyards
Hestan Vineyards is a picturesque, 127-acre ranch located on Napa Valley’s southeastern slopes at the base of Okell Hill. The vineyard is named for owners Stanley and Helen Cheng, whose passion for fine wines and love for Napa Valley's beauty and charm led them to purchase the property in 1996. They immediately prepared to plant grapes, adding blocks over the years to take advantage of the site’s myriad of exposures and well-drained soils. Today, 41 acres of individually-farmed blocks planted to all five of Bordeaux’s principle red varietals – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec – blanket the rolling hills that overlook the property’s 11-acre irrigation pond.
Winemaker Gaffner notes, “For someone who likes to call himself a novice, Stanley knew exactly what he was doing when he planted all five varietals to this property. The mixture of soil, climate, exposure and just plain luck of the draw makes this spot incredible for producing Bordeaux-style red wines.”
About Meyer Corporation
Based in Vallejo, California, Meyer Corporation (www.meyer.com) is the largest cookware distributor in the United States and second largest in the world, with labels including Circulon, Anolon, KitchenAid and Farberware. The company also produces private label cookware for numerous retailers and celebrity chefs including Rachael Ray, Sur La Table and Paula Deen. In 1984, Meyer Corporation CEO Stanley Cheng developed and patented Circulon, which revolutionized the cookware industry with its “high-low food release system.” Soon after, Cheng pioneered the first flat-surface hard anodized non-stick cookware line under the brand Anolon - the first that was dishwasher safe. Today, Stanley Cheng is recognized as an industry icon and leader in the development and manufacture of innovative quality cookware, with world wide distribution and plants in Italy, Thailand, and China. In 2002, the International Housewares Charity Foundation honored Cheng with its Humanitarian of the Year award for personal commitment to philanthropy. Since 2000, Cheng has served as trustee of Copia – The American Center for Wine, Food, and the Arts.
About Hestan Vineyards Wines
The Stephanie, Hestan and Meyer wines are sold directly to the public via the winery website at www.hestan.com and at select restaurants and wine shops in CA, NY, FL, and GA. Hestan Vineyards is not open to the public.
Hestan Vineyards, One Meyer Plaza, Vallejo, CA 94590. 707-521-2882. www.hestan.com.
Samples Upon Request
for Hestan Vineyards
Samples/Media:
Marty LaPlante, 707-939-1243
mlpspotzy@aol.com
or
Winery:
Aileen Zurawski, 707-551-2882
aileen@hestan.com
