In the News

  • New 25th Anniversary Video

    March 2013
     2012 marked a very special milestone for us - the anniversary of our 25th harvest. We take joy in looking back on our dream to make great wines. In fact, we became so excited about our 25 year anniversary, we set out to make a video with our most loyal fans in mind. Telling our story in a fun and playful way, with the help of a few of our grower partners (Joe Dutton, Lee Hudson and Gary Pisoni), made this experience one to remember. We unveiled this short video at our spring release party last weekend, and we are now thrilled to share it with you today.

    Watch the Patz & Hall Anniversary Video Now

  • No. 1 Wine of 2012: Defying All Odds, We Have the Possibility of a ‘Three-peat’

    Bob Johnson, Wine Lines Online | January 2013
     “If Pat Riley, erstwhile coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, were the winemaker at Patz & Hall, right about now he’d be running around and yelling, ‘Three-peat! Three-peat!’

    Although he did not coin the phrase, Riley did trademark it — for use on hats, jackets and shirts — after his Lakers won their second consecutive NBA championship in 1988. The Lakers did not “three-peat” in 1989, but the Chicago Bulls did four years later, and Riley cashed in on the “three-peat” merchandise sold thereafter.

    By now you’re undoubtedly wondering, what does all this have to do with Wine Lines’ No. 1 wine of 2012?

    Well, defying all odds, Patz & Hall is in position for a possible ‘three-peat’ with its bottling of Pinot Noir from the Carneros region’s Hyde Vineyard. Patz & Hall’s 2009 vintage of Hyde Pinot earned our No. 1 ranking in 2011, and the winery’s 2010 vintage of Hyde Pinot has now claimed the top spot for 2012.

    Improbable? More like impossible — except that it has happened.

    Let’s take a look at just how odds-defying this accomplishment is for Patz & Hall..."

    Read the complete article here.

  • Tom Simoneau’s Winery of the Year 2012

    Tom Simoneau, The Wine Guy, KSRO Radio | January 2013
     "Celebrating their 25th Anniversary, known for small batch single vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Patz & Hall is always looking to improve their wine quality. Over the years they have fine-tuned their vineyard sources and winemaking techniques looking to world class wines every vintage. The taste is in the bottle.”

  • 25 Vintages of Wine Growers as Rock Stars at Patz & Hall Wines

    Mary Orlin, The Huffington Post | September 2012
     ***To the Blog Team: I do not have a business or financial relationship with Patz & Hall Wines.***

    Dutton Ranch.  Durell. Hudson. Hyde. Chenoweth Ranch. Pisoni.  What do all these names have in common?  Yes, they are all vineyards, and some are wine brands too.  But they all provide grapes for the single vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines of Patz & Hall.

    The Sonoma-based winery isn't the first to put single vineyard designations on their wines but they also champion the grower.  "The longest grower relationship we have is with Larry Hyde.  We started to buy Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay in 1990," says winemaker James Hall.

    Patz & Hall began as a partnership between James, Anne Moses and Donald and Heather Patz in 1988.  The first wine released was a single vineyard Chardonnay, although it wasn't labeled as such.  That began in 1994 with the Carr Vineyard in Mt. Veeder, a Chardonnay,  They released their first single vineyard Pinot in 1996, a Hyde Vineyard bottling.

    "For us, a single vineyard wine is a way to seek out vineyards with a great voice," says James.  "At first, we were just looking for great sites to work with. Places with the ideal locations, soils, clones, and of course great growers. After establishing relationships with a few fantastic growers, we started focusing more on diversity." Now they work with 14 to 16 vineyards for the single designate wines. There are only two vineyards that they source both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from, the Alder Springs Vineyard in Mendocino and the Hyde Vineyard in Carneros.

    "These are partnership," says Anne. "You can't make great wine unless you have incredible fruit and we knew there were people out there doing great things in the vineyard.  James says "it's about all the extra handwork and all the extra details that can be very expensive and so the growers really appreciate that their hard work is going into a bottle of wine and of course we really appreciate the heart and soul that the grower brings."

    You could say Patz & Hall leads the way in recognizing their growers as rock stars. More>

  • Harvest 2012 with Patz & Hall

    September 2012
     Join Patz & Hall partners James Hall and Anne Moses, with Didier Loustau of ToutSuite, as they discuss the 2012 harvest season at Patz & Hall, complete with clips of harvest. 

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzmu5n3gqw8

  • Patz & Hall Names James McCeney Assistant Winemaker

    March 2012
     Patz & Hall is pleased to name James McCeney as its new assistant winemaker. In this important role, McCeney will be working alongside Winemaker James Hall to produce Patz & Hall’s acclaimed portfolio of vineyard-designate Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, as well as the winery’s Sonoma Coast Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. More>

  • The Value of Index Wines

    Jim Laube, Wine Spectator | November 2011
     James Hall was quoted in the November 15th edition of the Wine Spectator, speaking to the creation of our Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. "James Hall, winemaker for Patz & Hall in Sonoma, compares making appellation blends to playing Legos; you assemble tiny bricks to build something grander. Patz & Hall typifies many small wineries, seeking out unique sites and producing up to a dozen single-vineyard wines. Each of those vineyards is treated as an individual wine."

    Read the full Patz & Hall reference here.

  • 25th Anniversary Hall of Fame

    Wine & Spirits | October 2011
     Patz & Hall was inducted into Wine & Spirits "25th Anniversary Hall of Fame" for earning six "Top 100 Winery" awards over the past twenty-five years!

  • Q&A: James Hall

    Tina Caputo, Wine Review Online | August 2011
     "For followers of California Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Patz & Hall is one of the greats." - Tina Caputo

    Read a great Q&A session between James Hall, Patz & Hall Winemaker and co-owner and Tina Caputo, writer for Wine Review Online.

  • Podcast featuring Heather Patz

    Life Between the Vines | May 2011
     This months Life Between the Vines podcast is dedicated to women in all areas of the wine industry. This month, Heather Patz was one of three women featured. Listen to her full length interview here.

  • Winemakers for Good Wood

    May 2010
     James Hall is the featured winemaker of the month for 'Winemakers for Good Wood'. Over the next few weeks, new photos and video interviews with James will be released.

    Read about Winemakers for Good Wood
    Become a fan of Winemakers for Good Wood

    "Napa’s Patz & Hall is focused on perfection from the beginning to the end of the winemaking process. James Hall, founder and winemaker, makes it his business to do Pinot Noir and Chardonnay like no one else, and he has succeeded. Like a great mathematician, James tweaks the equation until he has perfected every step. It adds up to some fantastic wine."

  • Southbound Food Show (radio)

    April 2010
     James Hall made a guest appearance on the Southbound Food Show during a recent trip to Houston. Listen to the complete interview here.

  • 15 California Pinot Noirs

    James Laube, WineSpectator.com | March 2010
     Patz & Hall wines were recently spotlighted in a special Tasting Highlights Pinot Noir feature on Wine Spectator online, in which James Laube hailed 2007 as “probably the best Pinot Noir vintage across the map in California’s history.” In this roundup of 15 exceptional Pinot Noirs from all over the state, our wines were ranked #1, #2 and #6, with the 2007 Pisoni Vineyard – Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir earning 94 points, the 2007 Chenoweth Ranch – Russian River Valley Pinot Noir receiving 93 points and the 2007 Hyde Vineyard – Carneros Pinot Noir garnering 92 points.

  • Auberge du Soleil & Patz & Hall Caribbean Cruise aboard Silversea Cruise Line

    October 2009
     Join James Hall and Anne Moses aboard the amazing Silver Cloud cruise with Robert Curry, Executive Chef at Auberge du Soleil. More>

  • California's best lesser-known vineyards

    Jon Bonné, SF Chronicle | June 2009
     Alder Springs Vineyard has been highlighted as a “superstar vineyard with amazing potential" in a recent SF Chronicle article. More>

  • The New California Tasting Room

    Tim Fish, Wine Spectator | November 2008
     The Patz & Hall Salon is one of eight wineries highlighted in the November 15th edition of Wine Spectator magazine for our "notable" tasting experience. More>

  • Waiting, Bears and Berry Size

    Nate Weis, Pinot Harvest Blog | September 24, 2008
     Nate Weis, our Assistant Winemaker, blogs about Patz & Hall's newest 2008 Pinot Noir harvest developments. Visit Pinot Harvest to get our most recent information.

  • Pinot, Pinot Everywhere, But None to Drink!

    James Hall, Pinot Harvest Blog | September 8, 2008
     James Hall blogs about Patz & Hall's 2008 Harvest. Visit Pinot Harvest to get all of the up-to-the-minute harvest information. 

  • Press Democrat Wine of the Week

    Press Democrat | September 2008
     The Patz & Hall 2006 Dutton Ranch - Russian River Valley Chardonnay was just named "Press Democrat Wine of the Week."  Click here to view Peg Melnik's video interview with James Hall.

  • Five Perfect Days in California Wine Country

    Condé Nast | April 2008
     Condé Nast recently gave the Patz & Hall Salon Experience a fantastic write-up in their article titled “Five Perfect Days in California Wine Country.” More>