Thomas Brown (Schrader Cellars, Outpost, Maybach, Jones Family, Round Pond, etc.) is the meticulous and masterful artist who crafts Black Sears wines. He is a veritable star in Napa Valley, but he knows that when it comes to great wine, the fruit is the star of the show. He simply sets the stage, and like a great director, he does it in such a way that he brings out the best in the grapes. The results of his work are beautiful wines that sing of the land and the conditions that created them.

The Black Sears vineyards lie nestled among hundreds of acres of wild oak forests at the top of Howell Mountain. Approximately twenty-four acres of the nearly four-hundred acre ranch have been planted as vineyard over a hillside where an apple orchard once stood.

Looking down from high above the valley fog, the vineyard shares its home and its view with black bears, mountain lions, hawks and rattlesnakes. At just over 2400 feet, it is the highest vineyard on Howell Mountain and is among the highest vineyards in all of Napa Valley. The unique climate of Howell Mountain gives its grapes a better structure with intense fruit flavors and bright acidity. The ashy, iron-laden soils are perfectly suited for growing full-bodied, spicy Zinfandel and soft, elegant Cabernet Sauvignon. These mountaintop conditions and the varied hillside microclimates combine to produce wines of complex structure, incredible intensity, and the intrepid flavors of a remote and distinctive terrain.