Lynmar Winery

Old Winery, New Face

Nestled in the Russian River Valley in Sebastopol is one of the newest tasting rooms in the region: Lynmar Winery. Although Lynmar Winery has been around for a little while, in the recent year there have been many changes that include a new tasting room, upgraded winery facility, caves, and new land purchases.

Background

Lynmar is owned by Lynn Fritz, past CEO of Fritz Companies and current CEO of his humanitarian non-profit organization Fritz Institute. In talking with Lynn, he told me the name Lynmar was actually a combination of two words: Lyn (for his name) and Mar (referring to the sea, where the winery is literally just a crow's fly away from.

Lynn and his family purchased the Quail Hill Ranch, where the winery is located today, back in 1980 and planted grapes. They sold grapes for years to other famous Pinot Noir and Chardonnay producers until Lynn decided the quality of the fruit was such that he wanted to make his own wine. With a small winery in place, their first release was 1994 Pinots and Chardonnays, which were released in 1996, so they are a fairly new arrival as far as Sonoma County’s wine history goes.

Winemaking Staff

Even though Lynmar is fairly new to the scene, Lynn wasted no time in getting top-notch people on board. Currently the winemaker is Hugh Chappelle ,who was previously at Flowers Winery as their winemaker. Lynn also hired Paul Hobbs to come in as consulting winemaker, who is famous in his own right, making high-scoring wines under his own label.

The output of the winery is still rather small--about 9,000 cases or so--and focuses mainly on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (although there is a tiny bit of Syrah that they produce. I tried it, it’s quite good).

Lynn's Vision

If you head out to visit Lynmar, you’ll notice the breathtaking views of the Laguna out to the east and the vineyards of Quail Hill heading up toward the winery from the tasting room. It really is a spectacular view. One particular morning I was there and Lynn came down the hill (his house is up by the winery) to go for his morning stroll to the tasting room to see how things were going. He’s quite a charismatic figure! He always has a smile and his eyes light up when you want to talk to him about his winery and his vision for the place.

So he and I talked a little while his little puppy Sam ran around barking at the wild turkeys that stroll through the vineyard mid-morning. I asked him about his winery, and why he created a new tasting room and extensive upgrades to the winery, including caves. His answer was simple: To be the best it can be, using the best grapes, best technology and old world knowledge, and best staff to execute it.

I could tell he had run a Fortune 1000 company, that’s for sure, he is a quick thinker and succinct answerer. After he sold his shipping and logistics company to UPS back in 2001, he had more time to spend focusing on his winery, which really is his passion, you can tell.

To be the Best

Lynn says that he wants to be among the names of other wineries in Sonoma County that are regarded as top producers, such as Dehlinger, Rochioli, and Kistler. From the looks of things, it seems they are doing a pretty good job. Wine and Spirits recently gave the 2003 Quail Cuvee Pinot Noir 94 points and just last week the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article about the 2004 Pinot being worth trying.

Caves

A big part of the new winery facility is the caves. They are drilled right into the side of the hill where the winery sits and go around and out the other side in a big half-circle. Caves are wonderful because they keep a constant temperature inside regardless of how hot or cold it is outside. They’ve been around for centuries and many old world wineries have them.

Taking a walk through Lynmar’s caves, one gets a feeling of old world meets new world. The cold drab floor and barrels laid out in a row makes you think old world, yet the track lighting and ventilation systems is definitely new world.

Visiting

If you decide to visit and taste the wines, I recommend calling ahead to request a food pairing to go with your tasting flight. The executive chef creates small little pairings that go with each wine in the flight, but you need to plan ahead and call before you request one. If not, the normal tasting flight of wines is terrific.

They use Riedel Vinum series Burgundy and Montrachet stems to showcase each of their wines. The tasting is $10, and the pairing with food is an extra $10. If you can, go on a clear sunny day so you can sit outside and enjoy the views. If not, the all-wood interior and glass walled wine library is a treat for the eyes if you have to sit inside.

They present the wine flight very nicely! They actually ask you to sit down wherever you'd like and they bring everything to you. This hands off approach is nice if you're looking to relax and enjoy conversation and take your time. Either way, Lynmar is a must for the Pinot and Chardonnay lover on your next stop up in Sonoma County.

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