Aerika Estate: The
Prologue

BY ANTONIO GALLONI |&nbsp;JUNE 11, 2024Over the years, I have been fortunate to see many projects get off the ground in Napa Valley. These include VHR Vine Hill Ranch,
The Vineyardist, Gandona, Dakota Shy, Cathiad, Brand, Kinsman-Eades, Accendo, Pym-Rae,
Haynes, MacDonald, Sinegal, Ulysses, Seven Apart, Beta/Jasud, Bella Oaks, Ink
Grade, DiCostanzo, Promontory, Alejandro Bulgheroni and Fe, among others that I
have tasted from or close to their inception. Founded by Rob Black and Julia
van der Vink, Aerika Estate is one of the most exciting and promising new
ventures I have seen in Napa Valley in some time.

I first met Rob Black atop a catwalk at Screaming Eagle as I
was working my way through tanks of Merlot that were finishing fermenting. It
was 2014 or 2015. The winery was full of energy and the heady perfume of
harvest. Black was the Assistant Winemaker and made sure I did not do anything
stupid at the end of a long day of tastings, like dropping my phone into a
tank. I ran into Black and van der Vink about a year and a half ago at their
home in Coombsville as I was finishing my map of the appellation, and word was starting
to get out about their new project on Mount Veeder. It was the very, very early
days of Aerika. Contracts had not even been signed. I was intrigued. Mount
Veeder is an appellation I have long been attracted to.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1718129401475-Rob+and+Julia_Napa+Debut2.jpg">Rob Black and Julia van der Vink at their Aerika Estate,
high atop Mount Veeder.

“Have you been to Aerika Estate yet?” noted geologist David
Howell prodded me recently when I spoke about our vineyard maps in his class at
Stanford. “You really have to go,” he told me. I assured him it was in the
works.

Rob Black was born in New Zealand but has spent more than
half his life abroad. His first harvest was in Oregon. Stints in Spain, Canada
and Australia followed, and before he ended up at Domaine Comte Senard in
Aloxe-Corton, where he spent a decade. Black met winemaker Nick Gislason at
Screaming Eagle during a swing through Napa Valley. The pair later spent time
in New Zealand. A bond was forged. “Rob and I instantly hit it off,” Gislason
told me recently. “Frankly, he was overqualified for an assistant winemaker
position at Screaming Eagle, but we had such a meeting of the minds and thought
it would be great to do something for a year or two. Instead, we ended up working
together for eight years.”

Julia van der Vink followed a more circuitous route to
viticulture and winemaking. A rowing scholarship took her to Harvard
University. Henry David Thoreau’s Walden inspired van der Vink to
explore a simpler life with a deeper&nbsp;connection to nature. She worked as a sommelier and in retail while contemplating potential&nbsp;next steps. Those experiences ultimately led to positions in
various wineries in California and then a job with Mac Forbes in the Yarra
Valley before she settled in Napa Valley. Van der Vink worked at Maycamas in
2015, just as the estate was getting a major makeover courtesy of its new
owners. She helped Graeme MacDonald plant the vineyard in front of his home and
then worked with Ketan Mody on his Jasud estate before becoming Vineyard
Manager at Harlan Estate, where she remained for nearly eight years.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1718118702572-Aerika_Napa+Valley+Debut.jpg">Exploring various blocks at Aerika Estate. 

Eventually Black and van der Vink decided they wanted to do
their own project, which is extremely hard in Napa Valley given land prices.
They identified a site, formerly Veedercrest, which was&nbsp;owned by Hess and&nbsp;being
carved up into what are now three distinct properties. This rugged, rocky vineyard first gained notice in the early 1970s when the Veedercrest Chardonnay was
featured in The Judgment of Paris.

Black and van der Vink chose the upper section of the ranch
and then set out to build an investor group that could finance their ambitious
project, not an easy task, especially in today’s environment. Through a
combination of grit, persistence and bootstrapping pragmatism, Black and van
der Vink put together a group of 18 angel investors and were able to hit the
ground running after several starts and stops.

Like many mountain sites, Aerika is marked by several exposures
and variations in soil types. Some spots are quite windy, which is one of the
references to the estate’s name. Elevations reach nearly 1,900 feet, which is
where volcanic soils are most prevalent on Mount Veeder. The property
encompasses 50 acres of land, of which 14 are under vine of a planned 20 or so.
Broadly speaking, there are three main soil types on the ranch, although a more
in-depth look at the terrain reveals several pockets and striations. The
western part of the ranch is mostly white rhyolitic ash-flow tuff, while basaltic
and andesitic soils rich in iron are more prominent on the eastern side. In
some places, those two volcanic soils meld together. There is some Aiken loam
as well, but those blocks have yet to be developed.

At present, Aerika is planted with a mix of 16 heritage Cabernet
Sauvignon clones, some of which have origins that can be traced back to the
early part of the 20th century. These are among the most famous and
coveted selections in Napa Valley. When Aerika is fully planted, acreage should
include about 10% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot and a smattering of white grapes.
Some sections will be head-trained and/or dry-farmed.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1718118723537-Bottles_Napa+Valley+Debut.jpg">The 2023s were made from purchased fruit, focusing on sites with similar characteristics to Aerika Estate. 

Obviously, it will be at least a few years before Black and van der Vink can work with estate fruit. In the meantime, they purchase fruit
from nearby properties that they feel share some similarities with their own.
The goal is to accelerate learning by becoming familiar with some of the
attributes they expect to find in their own fruit. This is not at all uncommon
with new estates that are just getting started. However, I have seldom seen
choices made in such a thoughtful and well-articulated manner. It’s a sign that
bodes very well for the future.

Black and van der Vink made five wines in 2023, two of which
will be released. The Cabernets are picked at relatively modest Brix levels and
are fermented with native yeasts and minimal SO2. Malolactic fermentations are
spontaneous. Aging is done in a mix of neutral 500-liter Austrian oak barrels
and a bit of French oak barriques for the smaller volumes. Production for 2023
will be approximately 200 cases. Both 2023s I tasted are fabulous, hugely
promising wines.© 2024, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or re-distributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright, but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.<hr> You Might Also Enjoy<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/2012-2013-napa-valley-too-close-to-call-may-2024">2012 &amp; 2013 Napa Valley: Too Close to Call</a>, Antonio Galloni, May 2024 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/the-2021-napa-valley-cabernets-part-one-dec-2023">The 2021 Napa Valley Cabernets, Part One</a>, Antonio Galloni, December 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/the-2001-napa-valley-cabernet-sauvignon-stepping-back-in-time-apr-2023">The 2001 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: Stepping Back in Time</a>, Antonio Galloni, April 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/napa-valley-the-frantic-2020s-stunning-2021s-feb-2023">Napa Valley: The Frantic 2020s &amp; Stunning 2021s</a>, Antonio Galloni, February 2023

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