The Ballard Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon is from the Spring Mountain District in Napa Valley. It has a deep, dark inky appearance with touches of crimson, ruby and mulberry. The nose is beautiful with hints of coffee, cedar, spices like cinnamon and nutmeg with touches of black currant, and elderberry jam. The palate has a silky soft entrance evolving on a round mid-palate with amazing layers of fruit and flowers like tulips, roses and lavender, lingering on fine granular tannins with coco powder and blackberry. It is produced from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 100% barrel fermented and aged 24 months in 75% new oak. Only 165 cases produced.

Some come to the wine industry much later in life, often in a capacity somewhat removed from the daily operations of what is needed to run a vineyard. Not so with Christina Lüscher-Ballard; after a life in film, she started learning about the wine industry in her early 60s and, rather than taking a hands-off approach to the business, now personally manages a 15-acre vineyard. She and her husband, Carroll Ballard (prolific film director and Academy Award-winning film writer, who directed Black Stallion, Never Cry Wolf and Wind, and other films), purchased an old walnut orchard on the top of Spring Mountain. They fell in love with the location and soon purchased 70+ acres. An old garage was on site – rather than move in there, the family settled into a cozy tent while they built their home. One might think this quite rustic, but the family was used to living in various accommodations during various film shoots worldwide.

In 1992 they broke ground on Spring Mountain and planted thirteen acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, one acre of Merlot and one acre of Petit Verdot. In 2007, one ton was made into their first vintage under the guidance of John Kongsgaard from 2007 through 2016, at which point winemaker Aaron Pott took over. Winemaker Greg La Follette also crafted their wines for a short while and, more recently, Jean Hoefliger. The goal of Lüscher-Ballard is to achieve a wine that expresses its place of origin to the fullest, with grace, balance, and authenticity.

Connection to Winemaker Jean Hoefliger: Jean and Christina Ballard crossed paths and instantly connected, both being Swiss-born people who fell in love with the heaven that is Napa Valley. The connection was immediately evident, and the friendship snowballed, not only because of their love for Switzerland and movies but wine. When Jean visited their estate for the first time, she saw Christina driving the tractor around the vineyard, doing everything herself on a property at the top ridge of Spring Mountain, reminding Jean of his early days with Newton. He then tasted wines made by John Konsgard and Aaron Pott; he decided to not only buy grapes for AXR but was kindly asked by his friend Christina if he could make their wines. The balance between freshness and mountain fruit characteristics is a match made in heaven, just like their friendship.