Caldwell Vineyard

We found John F Caldwell and his winery on a recent trip to the valley with friends. This was my third time to Napa yet first to consider every wine I sampled at a winery outstanding. We made reservations well ahead for our small group F hosted inside his caves. It’s my favorite winery tour to date. After beginning with his prized offering at the time I asked that F how he was going to sell to us at that table any of its servile followers. John and his products F all delivered!
F. Caldwell’s stories of smuggling vines and how his middle name was birthed should be on your do not miss list. I place all of Caldwell’s 6 – 8 varieties we sampled on my personal list of favorites.

Caldwell was a wonderful experience. It was our last stop of the day on our first day in Napa and it was very different than what we experienced moving forward. The wine is wonderful and Christina was a fantastic host. We were really hoping to catch John as we were recommended by friends to do a tour with him but Christina didn’t disappoint. We tried a variety of wine and they accompanied it by a wonderful cheese platter (seriously, so good!) The one thing I will say is that we had signed up for the tour and tasting experience and there wasn’t much of a tour. We sat in the tasting room the whole time. I would suggest that Caldwell may be a place people should book only the tasting for and visit some of the other cave wineries for the tour. We ended up purchasing a few bottles of Rocket Science to bring home with us!

Went to this winery about 2 ½ years ago and reminiscing what an amazing experience it was, which led me to write a Unilocal review. We were greeted by the owner, John Caldwell, who personally gave us a private tasting (with MORE than enough wine for a «tasting!») in his very unique wine cave, along with snacks. His company and story telling were enough for an amazing experience, but his wine was delicious too! If we ever make it back to Napa, we will 100% be back to hang out with John Caldwell in his wine cave!

I don’t care if I can’t make another mortgage payment ever again, John (F) Caldwell’s wines are worth EVERY penny. If you ever have the opportunity to have a tasting with the smuggling legend himself, do yourself a favor and make sure that you do it. Sell your house, husband, wife, dogs, cats, and make a worthwhile investment in some JFC wine… What a legendary experience…
He has a 22,000 square foot cave of awesomeness. The stories that John has are unparalleled and I could not have had a better time.
This is a NAPA valley must… this is a bucket list must…

This winery is a «must visit winery’ in Napa Valley. The view is incredible and all of the winery operations are in caves. The wines are first class and impressive! Christina Machamer knows her wines and can answer the most challenging questions. We had the good fortune of meeting owner John Caldwell and hope to visit with both Christina and John in future visits! Great wines, great experience and great people!

Fantastic experience at Caldwell. This is my first private tasting at Napa. They are the booze sponsor of the new space conference from the rocket science red blend. Enough reason for me to love them. The cheese they offered were all from oxbow an local selection from Napa. I would go back again to the cave

One of the prettiest wineries I have been to! I am from the area and thought the property was breathtaking. The cave is great! There is a gorgeous tasting room and delicious wine, what more could you ask for? Not to mention the staff is hilarious and knowledgable. Expect to have a fun time! Not your average winery, highly recommend!

Such a unique, intimate, and wonderful experience. Exceptional way to see behind the scenes. The wines are fantastic and the accompanying charcuterie much appreciated.

Small hands on tour … One on one with John. Always a great time !!! Just a great time and the wine is Outstanding !!!

The winery and the scenery was nice. If you are black and/​or a foreigner, better yet not white, do not attempt to go there! The owner was extremely racist and condescending that our Napa Valley experience was cut very short. I believe the owner, old white man with a cowboy hut and a Kane, and another white worker may be in his forties at the winery, simply couldn’t stand two black customers stepping on their vineyard. Warning for non whites, avoid this place the best you can!

Went to Caldwell off a recommendation from
. I have to agree that it was definitely a 5 star recommendation.
Met at the entrance to the cave after a long steep windy road, I was very happy to have someone else driving.
We tasted 7 or more wines. So many good ones.
We left with a bottle of the Rose, some Rocket Science, and Experiment.
The Rocket science was blended to drink, and it was so easy to sit back and drink. I am looking forward to grilling up some nice big burgers with this one.
But Experiment 09, has the best story. All of John’s stories were great, the gold chains and the silk shirts; his *smuggling* days,
This is a great winery. The Cave is worth the experience!

Caldwell Vineyard has to be the best stop in all of Napa. John «Fu#%ing» Caldwell not only prepares one of the best tastings paired with food, you enjoy this in a cave with the best story teller in all of Napa. We love our visits with John. He is not only funny, but also very kind. His wines are not cheap but Rocket Science is priced to take several bottles home. Hope to get back soon. Ask him to tell the smuggler story. Just be prepared to visit awhile. It is worth every minute.

It’s hard to find the right words to describe the experience you’ll have at a Caldwell Vineyard tasting. To be honest, I was glad that I got the recommendation for this vineyard from a friend rather than from reading Unilocal reviews… there’s something about the experience that makes the ambiguity and mysteriousness fun.
The website doesn’t promise this, but your tasting very well may be led by John Caldwell himself, and that really makes the experience so incredible. You must ask the story of how he started his vineyard here. If you’re an Ayn Rand fan, you’ll immediately notice and appreciate the «Who is John Galt?» sign in the tasting room.
We had one minor hiccup during the visit; I was under the impression that the tasting would just be my group (as the website says they host only private tastings), but another couple showed up at the same time as us and insisted they had a reservation for the same day and time (but of course couldn’t provide the confirmation). John was nothing but hospitable to them and still made it the best experience for all of us.
John and Elizabeth were excellent hosts and walked us through 11 different wines. The website is 100% accurate in saying that, in addition to the tastings, you’ll have some tall tales and four-​letter words… I think there was more story-​telling than there was description of the wines, which was more than ok with me considering how easy the wine went down. We walked out of there with a bottle of the Platinum Proprietary Red and can’t wait to drink it on a special occasion. Thanks, Caldwell, for a great experience.

Visited on ¹⁰⁄₁₄ and this was the the best tasting we encountered out of the 6 we visited while in Napa Valley. John Caldwell sat with us for two hours and provided us with interesting stories about his wine and his life over a variety of great wines and cheese. The story about how the caves were dug and the tasting room in one room of the cave were great. Loved the Cabernet Gold and more affordable Rocket Science. If you are in Napa, it is worth the trip and you won’t be disappointed.

There is no better vineyard in Napa than Caldwell.
Bar none, there is no greater experience in Napa than Caldwell.
Sure, you can get caught up in the Disney-​like experiences of more popularized wineries, but you will NOT encounter, cannot encounter, a wine master like John (effing) Caldwell.
John (effing) Caldwell comes from a lineage of Scottish smugglers. His vines are old world and got here, indeed through questionable means. When you sit with the badass that is John (effing) Caldwell, inside one of the most gorgeous caves you’ve ever encountered in your life – you will be transformed and transfixed, while sipping on wines and listening to the most outrageous stories ever told. I won’t ruin it for you, but do yourself a favor and make sure you ask him to tell you the story.
«John is the man responsible for introducing the most prized Bordeaux root stock and grapevine clones to California.»
Yes he did, the mischievous little minx.
John (effing) Caldwell, who could literally charm the pants off any living being, is like rough velvet in a cowboy hat. Married to one of the most delightful humans on earth, Joy (effing) Caldwell is the embodiment of walking sunshine wrapped in rainbows and has a straight-​up bangin’ rosé wine in her name. Be sure to ask about it!
And you think that wine is divine? Wait until you try Joy’s otherworldly cheese plates to compliment your epic imbibing experience.
Mind = Blown.
Let’s touch on the wine for a moment. It’s not just the experience that is going to rock your pants off. Sauvignon blanc, syrah rosé, chardonnay (the best I’ve ever had, I normally hate chardonnay), merlot, malbec, cabernet franc, petit verdot and more – seriously. You will want to sip them all damn day. ALL. DAMN. DAY.
If you are going to Napa, GO TO CALDWELL. If you are going to other vineyards, make this one the last on your list, or you’ll be disappointed in every other vineyard. Trust me on that.
Loving!
Sylvia
PS. If you get the opportunity to have a tasting with Marissa the sommelier, you will a) immediately fall in love with her, and b) be delighted by her expertise.
PSS. The caves are haunted. Ask about the Tommy Knocker!

One of, if not THE, best winery experiences of my life. First and foremost, the drive into Caldwell, up the side of a sun-​drenched mountain just outside Napa, is utterly breathtaking. Once inside, it is really something special. The tasting is with legendary owner John Caldwell and an small group in a literal cave inside the mountain. You get to sit and listen to John for over 2 hours. Believe me, the time (and the wonderful varietals) will fly-​by. John is full of great anecdotes, perspective and general vision that is refreshing for much of the wine industry. And yes, he really does curse like that. GO TO CALDWELL.

Pros:
–intimate tasting where you get to learn about John and his winery
–not pretentious or expects you to know a ton about wine. Low key and casual
–good wine, mostly reds with one or two whites and a port
–as well as quantity of wines… you taste a lot
–great venue as you do the tasting in his“cave” in his cellar
Cons:
–expensive tasting but I’d argue worth it and standard for two hour tastings

This place was a recommendation from a friend.
.AWESOME.
I would equivocate John Caldwell to the Willy Wonka of the wine business. You have to make a reservation and when you pull up to the parking lot (where you are supposed to park), there is a sign that says No Parking. The entrance to the wine cave is not marked. So you basically stand around outside until he comes out to greet you.
It all adds to the experience of course. After some small talk, you follow him into the wine cave where you are surrounded on all sides by wine barrels and all you can hear is the tapping of his cane as he leads you into a candlelit cove where the table has been set for the tasting.
And then it begins… you will not be disappointed. A fun experience and don’t leave without purchasing his signature wine glass ;)

We had the most amazing tasting experience last weekend with Caldwell Director of Winemaking, Marbue Marke. After giving us a tour of the facilities which included direct tasting from the barrel, we went into the beautiful tasting cave. The ambiance in the cave was wonderful and the wine was even better.
We started with a Chardonnay and then slowly progressed to the Cabernet Gold. With each pour, Marbue explained the complexity of the wine and we each experienced great artistry. I think if he did not have another appointment that afternoon we could have easily spent the evening chatting and sipping. This was by a long shot, my best Napa experience to date.
I highly recommend it.

Asked our friend Roland for a recommendation of a winery to visit in Napa this weekend and the first thing out of his mouth was… you’ve got to visit Caldwell winery. I realized we had tasted the Rocket Science about a year ago at Bacchus & Venus in Sausalito and got excited about all the other wines we would be able to taste this time.
As a side note, the June 2012 issue of Sunset Magazine has an entire article about this new area outside of Napa called «Coombsville» and Caldwell Winery is one of the top ones listed to visit. It was a «no brainer» that we would visit.
We arrived about 10 minutes early and were greeted by John Caldwell, himself. As we were waiting for the other four people to show up via tour limo, my boyfriend and I got to sit outside with John and his assistant, Elizabeth, and enjoy the beautiful view while we talked about things — wine, dreams, how he got there and what we liked to do… It was as if John was an old friend we hadn’t seen in a while and we came for a visit to catch up.
After about 15 minutes, we went to the cave and decided the others could catch up when they arrived. The cave was gorgeous while being homey — and we sat around for a little more than 2 hours tasting more than 8 different wines (Savignon Blanc, Syrah Rose, Cabernet Savignon, Tannat, and Port, just to name a few) paired with a fabulous cheese and charcuterie plate.
What a fantastic visit. We’ll be back again and we’ll be bringing friends…