Tychson Hill Vineyard

	Josephine Tychson’s house after restoration

Pursuing a dream of having estate grown grapes, Ann Colgin purchased a five-acre parcel north of St. Helena across from Freemark Abbey Winery in 1996. The property once belonged to Josephine Tychson, documented as the first woman winemaker in California. Ann planted two and one-half acres of Cabernet Sauvignon under the supervision of vineyard manager, David Abreu in 1997. The special terroir features a unique Aiken soil type which runs from Grace Family Vineyard to just north of the property, now known as "Tychson Hill Vineyard." The Aiken soils coupled with carefully selected rootstock and clones on the rocky east-facing slope give a remarkable fresh berry scented wine of great proportions. In 2000 Ann and her husband, Joe Wender, completed the rebuilding of Josephine Tychson's 19th Century home.

Tychson Hill is rich with history. In 1881 Josephine Tychson and her husband, John, a Danish immigrant bought twenty-six acres including "Tychson Hill Vineyard" for $8,500. The property was known as Lodi Ranch and had been acquired by William Sayward in 1867 from Charles Krug. The couple planted vineyards and dreamed of building a winery. Tragically, John who was stricken with tuberculosis died in 1886 at an early age leaving Josephine with two young children, John Jr. and Annette. Josephine was a determined and courageous young woman and she had a great desire to fulfill their expansion plans. The St. Helena Star of August 27, 1886 noted that Mrs. Tychson was building a cellar on her property with an estimated capacity of between 20,000 and 30,000 gallons.

	Joe, Ann and her mother, Gertrude during harvest at Tychson Hill 2000

Josephine made wine there for eight years producing Zinfandel, Reisling and Burgundy, popular varietals of the time. In 1894 she sold the winery and a portion of the vineyards to her foreman, Nels Larsen for reasons that are not entirely clear. Phylloxera had affected some of her vineyards in 1893 and Josephine had suffered health problems throughout her life and perhaps these concerns prompted the sale. She lived alone in the two-story house at Tychson Hill until her death in 1939. She was 84 years old. Following Josephine's death, her son, John Jr. moved into the house with his wife, Pearl. He lived there until 1970 when he was 90 years old. The property had various owners during the next two decades until Ann purchased it and began the long process of restoring the vineyards, believed to have been taken out during prohibition, and eventually rebuilding the house.

Source: "Josephine Marlin Tychson, The First Woman Winemaker" by Dolly Prchal Vol. 3, Number 4, December 1986 Napa County Historical Society Gleanings

2.5 acres; planted in 1997
100% Estate Grown Cabernet Sauvignon

Herb Lamb Vineyard

	Herb Lamb Vineyard

Herb Lamb Vineyard is owned by Herb & Jennifer Lamb, who purchased the property in 1987. It consists of a 7.4 acre parcel on a rocky hillside with a Boomer series soil type, ranging from 600-800 feet in elevation on the eastern hillsides of St. Helena. The vineyard is just below the boundary defining the Howell Mountain Appellation, and the area is lovingly referred to as "Howell Hill." Mike and Linda Neal planted the vineyard in 1988 for the Lambs, using a variety of rootstocks with Clone 7. The vineyard is a steep sloped, low yielding parcel. In 2004, Colgin brought in David Abreu to manage our tiny portion of the vineyard consisting of just 14 rows. The Lambs sell their remaining fruit to Karl Lawrence Winery, and produce 50 cases under their own HL Vineyards label. Colgin first purchased grapes from this vineyard in the 1992 vintage.

5 acres; planted in 1988
100% Cabernet Sauvignon

IX Estate

	IX Estate

The newest estate property is simply called "No. 9", referring to the fact that it was formerly known as Parcel Number 9 of the Long Family Partnership. The 124.8-acre parcel is located on Sage Canyon Road in St. Helena in the stunning Pritchard Hill area adjacent to David Arthur Winery. No. 9 is rectangular in shape and the terrain varies from gentle to steep hillside. Elevations range from about 940 feet to over 1400 feet. The high elevation provides an inspiring view of Lake Hennessey and the rocky terrain provides ideal conditions for growing red wine varietals.

	Harvest at IX Estate

Vineyard Manager, David Abreu, supervised the planting designed with close spacing and a mix of carefully selected clones and rootstocks. At the northern end of the property Colgin has built a state-of-the-art winery where all of the Colgin wines are produced beginning with the 2002 vintage. The winery design emphasizes gentle handling of the fruit from the extensive sorting process to the gravity fed movement into the fermentation tanks.

20 acres; planted in 2000
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Syrah

The Vineyards for Cariad

	Madrona Ranch Vineyard

Located on the westerly mountain range that frames downtown St. Helena is the famed "Madrona Ranch Vineyard" owned by David Abreu and planted nearly two decades ago. Colgin buys Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc from this vineyard for the "Cariad" blend.

Following the contours of the hills, Abreu planted the steep slopes, orientating the vine rows to mostly face the south. The vines from this ranch produce miniscule yields giving intensely flavored wines. Usually, an element of forest floor, earth and even peat show in Cariad's complex aromatics and bouquet.

Madrona Ranch Vineyard is planted with rootstocks resistant to phylloxera. This decision seems commonplace now, but in the 1980's many vineyards were still being planted using a rootstock that would eventually fail to the root louse, Phylloxera vitifoliae. The Madrona Ranch Vineyard is now of the age to show the essence of the great terroir and it will continue to produce grapes of high intensity and resultant wines of finesse and balance for many years to come.