The cat is out of the bag. A few months ago, Herzog Wine Cellars announced that they had successfully acquired the world-famous Sonoma-Loeb winery. Its debut in the kosher wine world brings three highly anticipated and sought-after wines: Dignitary Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir. Sonoma-Loeb Winery uses grapes from some of the nation’s most prestigious AVAs, or American Viticultural Areas, including the Russian River and Carneros regions. The winery, despite its success, is a rather young innovation, established only 41 years ago by a U.S. ambassador from Denmark named John Loeb. He began his journey making Chardonnay and Pinot Noir of exceptional quality using traditional winemaking practices while using state-of-the-art equipment. The winemaking team at Sonoma-Loeb embraces the belief that great wines start in the vineyard. By carefully selecting vineyards and fruit of the best quality, the wines they produce do a wonderful job of expressing the terroir of Sonoma County.

Sonoma County’s cool climate, diverse soils, and microclimates are the most important factors in creating the unique flavors and aromas of the grapes, particularly in the case of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, which are known to thrive in this region. Winemaker Phillip Titus was fully immersed in wine culture, having grown up in Sonoma. Phillip helped his dad in his family’s vineyard and learned about wine both at the table and in the vineyards. Wine was a huge part of his life, and he was fascinated by it enough to decide to learn all he could about the field. He studied at UC Davis in the areas of agronomy, viticulture, and enology, after which he furthered his experience working in select wineries in France. Upon his return to the U.S., he worked not at one or two wineries but three. Afterward, he took the helm at Sonoma Loeb in 1990 while continuing to work with another winery, as well as launching the label with his brother.

Sonoma-Loeb uses grapes from several different family farms around the region. The first family farm is the Duttons’. They have been farmers in this region since 1881, not always growing grapes, but for the last 50 years, the family has run one of Sonoma County’s most acclaimed vineyard operations in the Russian River and Green Valley AVA. In 1969, Sangiacomo Vineyards became one of the leading vineyards in the region, and they also provide grapes for the production of Sonoma Loeb wines. Now, the third generation lives out the Sangiacomo family motto: “Respect the land and it will bear fruit.” They are some of the most well-established and studied viticulturists in California.

The winemaking process at Sonoma-Loeb combines traditional and modern techniques to bring out the best in the grapes. Grapes are then hand-harvested according to traditional methods to ensure the highest quality control. We see the winery’s dedication to preserving the essence of the terroir is unique and appreciated as they handle their grapes so delicately from the fields of the vineyards all the way up until bottling. The region’s diverse microclimates, unique location, and soil makeup create conditions ideal for growing all types of grapes. The terroir, or the specific environmental factors influencing the grapes, is one of the most important factors in influencing the flavors and cellaring potential in these high-quality wines.

The new kosher wines produced with the collaboration of Phillip Titus and Herzog’s Head Winemaker David Galzignato are named Dignitary, in honor of John Loeb, Jr. and his storied legacy. Sonoma Loeb Dignitary launched with three offerings: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon. All of these are now available at your favorite retailers. The Chardonnay is particularly captivating with its tropical pineapple flavors and subtle balance of oak. This wine was fermented in French and American oak barrels, aged on the lees for 10 months, and underwent partial malolactic fermentation during the aging process. The Pinot Noir is aged unfiltered for 10 months in 100% French oak barrels, bearing the typical cherry bomb and spicy flavors expected in this California favorite. The distinguished Cabernet Sauvignon wine, made from grapes grown in the rich volcanic soil at the foot of the Chalk Mountains, does not disappoint. The wine is aged unfiltered for 18 months in French oak barrels.

Having tasted all three of these new offerings, I can say they certainly live up to the hype and the high bar set by the history of this California gem of a winery. L’chaim!