Jayson Woodbridge on his visionary new winemaking projects

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Jayson Woodbridge has already earned a spectacular 78 perfect 100-point scores in his winemaking career. Decanter awarded three of these perfect scores to Hundred Acre’s 2021 vintage wines: Ark Vineyard, Dark Ark and Wraith – and Fortunate Son’s Hell’s Gate 2019, which will be released this spring, also received a 100-point score.

The 2021 vintage has special significance because it follows the devastating 2020 Napa Valley wildfires, which destroyed Hundred Acre’s entire production that year.

In our latest conversation with Jayson Woodbridge, the visionary behind Hundred Acre, we explore how his latest ventures, Fortunate Son and Summer Dreams, exemplify his innovative spirit and commitment to excellence.

Fortunate Son wines are made at the historic David Fulton Ranch. Credit: Matt Armendariz

Fortunate Son

What inspired you to create Fortunate Son, and how does it reflect your vision for Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon?

Jayson Woodbridge: I felt like I was a fortunate son; I had a great mom who took good care of us and taught me about the value of life and reading – so that’s why I call the wine Fortunate Son. There’s a lot of wines in the world, and a lot of them are not very good, but if you’ve got one of mine, then you’re particularly fortunate. You know life has been very good if you can afford my wines.

Can you tell us more about the historic David Fulton Ranch and how it became the heart of Fortunate Son?

JW: David Fulton was a pioneer, blacksmith and inventor. He built the Fulton Plow, which allowed other pioneers to use one man and one horse to plow a field instead of needing a team of horses and several men – he was a fortunate son, and he helped make a lot of other pioneer sons fortunate [and able] sustain life for themselves and their families.

The winery had been held by three generations of Fultons since the 1860s, and the family wanted to sell because they had no one to pass it down to – they wanted a buyer who would tell the story. I hit it off with Fulton Mather, the great-grandson of David Fulton, who shared many stories and a trove of historic family photos. I have the whole family history, which we will honour in the restoration of the 1863 farmhouse.

What makes the heritage micro-block sites you use for Fortunate Son wines unique, and how do they influence the character of the wines?

JW: Many of these little blocks are owned by long-time families that are growers. Their wine gets bought by a big corporation, and it gets shuttled off into a giant winery where they never see it again. By contrast, we work with the families to farm their micro-sites like we farm ours, and we pay families and growers more money so that they can farm it to the highest standards.

What should consumers expect from a bottle of Fortunate Son – flavour profile, ageability and food pairing suggestions?

JW: Fortunate Son is made side-by-side with Hundred Acre and to the same standards. Everything is hand-sorted, berry by berry. It goes into the best French wood puncheons to be fermented or into small wood tanks. With Fortunate Son, you’re getting exquisitely layered and extremely complex wine. It goes well with everything from caviar to cake.

Jayson Woodbridge describes his Summer Dreams wines as ‘a love letter to summers past’. Credit: Matt Armendariz

Summer Dreams

What was your vision when you started Summer Dreams, and how has the project evolved since its inception?

JW: For so many years, my wife, Helen, and I have always been chasing summer, following it into fall (harvest), wherever that would take us, and we wanted to recreate the feeling of a California summer in a wine. It’s a love letter to summers past.

How do the terroirs you work – particularly cool-climate vineyards in Sonoma – influence the Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs and Sauvignon Blancs in the collection?

JW: Helen and I love Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and so we set out to make a California expression of those varieties that we’d be proud to stand next to the very best of any country or region in the world – embracing the same standards that go into Hundred Acre.

The Sonoma Coast, with its special vineyards above the fog, gave us the perfect soil and climate to make wines we love – but only from select sites. The land, the forest and the collision with the wonderful Pacific Ocean environments. Those cooling winds and wonderful marine soils create beautiful fruit if farmed with the utmost attention.

What should consumers know about the winemaking process for Summer Dreams wines, from vineyard to bottle, that contributes to their quality and approachability?

JW: We love Healdsburg and its vibe, so we built a dedicated white wine and Pinot Noir facility there, with wooden fermentation tanks, custom stainless steel and barrels sourced from the best cooperages. In addition to our French oak, some of the wine is aged in acacia barrels and other kinds of wood. Much of the wine is fermented in 500L puncheons, with hand punch-downs many times daily. It’s labour-intensive, rigorous, time-consuming and expensive, but we are only interested in making ethereal wines.