The Estate
PERKINS GRAVELLY LOAM: FORMED IN ALLUVIUM DERIVED FROM
MIXED VOLCANIC ROCK SOURCES FROM THE ALLUVIAL TERRACE
ON THE EASTERN CORRIDOR OF THE OAKVILLE APPELLATION.
FINE-LOAMY, MIXED, SUPERACTIVE AND THERMIC WITH SLOPES OF
ZERO TO TEN PERCENT CONSIST OF VERY DEEP, WELL-DRAINED SOILS.
BALE CLAY LOAM: VERY DEEP SOILS WITH
AVERAGE DRAINAGE WITH SLOPES RANGING
FROM ZERO TO THREE PERCENT. FORMED IN
STRATIFIED, GRAVELLY AND SANDY ALLUVIUM
FROM MIXED SOURCES CARRIED DOWN FROM
THE EASTERN ALLUVIAL FAN.
PLEASANTON LOAM: GRAVELLY FINE SANDY LOAM SOILS ARE
WELL-DRAINED WITH MEDIUM RUNOFF AND MODERATELY SLOW
PERMEABILITY. THESE FINE-LOAMY, MIXED, SUPERACTIVE AND
THERMIC SOILS RANGE IN SLOPE FROM ZERO TO TWO PERCENT
WERE FORMED FROM THE ALLUVIAL FAN FROM THE EASTERN
OAKVILLE GRADE
CLEAR LAKE CLAY: VERY DEEP SOILS WITH MINIMAL DRAINAGE IN A BASIN AND
SWALE OF DRAINAGEWAY WITH SLOPES RANGING FROM ZERO TO TWO PERCENT.
FORMED IN FINE TEXTURED ALLUVIUM DERIVED FROM SANDSTONE AND SHALE.
Positioned on the eastern side of the Oakville appellation, tucked below the foothills of the Vaca mountain range, our 42-acre estate vineyard is the cornerstone of our winemaking program here at PlumpJack Estate Winery. We are extremely fortunate to have several different soil types on our property, giving us the ability to cultivate and blend copious blocks with different flavors and characteristics to craft wines with intriguing complexity.
The majority of our estate lies on a rocky, gravelly base that has been coated in alluvial soils that were washed down from the Vaca Mountains. This alluvial fan spilled out across the east side of our estate sharing land rich in volcanic nutrients creating a near-perfect soil composition – the gravelly base provides excellent water drainage, putting more stress on the vines, and the robust volcanic soils create more complex aromatics with structured, concentrated dark fruit character.
As we move west on our estate, towards the bowl of the Napa Valley, we are introduced to a few more different soil variations. Here the vines are influenced by sandy loam soils, and it’s this part of our property that we see expressions of raspberry, cherry, mint and the quintessential Oakville component, sage.
The last part of our estate, the west most portion, lies in the Napa River flood zone and is predominantly clay based. This particular soil and corridor of the property does not drain as well as the west side of the property. It is for this reason that we have planted a couple rows of sauvignon blanc and viogner, all of which thrive here with the extra dosage of water.