ASTON ESTATE

Thomas Rivers-Brown is one of California’s most sought-after winemakers. He began his winemaking journey when he was hired at Turley Wine Cellars by Ehren Jordan in 1997. Although known for his wine-making in Napa, his personal projects are centred around Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in Sonoma.

“In 2001 after finding a very intriguing 40 acre parcel in a remote part of
the northern Sonoma Coast, I established Aston Estate with partners Fred
Schrader (Schrader Cellars, Boars’ View) and Charles Sweeney (Vine Cliff).
After planting 14 acres later that summer, we vinified our first vintage in 2004 under the Aston Experimental label. As the years passed and the
partnership evolved, the one thing that never changed was my commitment
to the Aston Estate project. In the beginning, the style was a bit bigger
reflecting what was currently happening on the coast, the unpredictability
of the weather, younger vine characteristics and the logistics of hauling the
fruit out of this remote site.

With better access to the site, more vineyard activity in the area and older vines, it has become easier to take the quality of the fruit to exactly where we want it out at the Estate. There have been a few turning points out here in terms of wine quality. After tasting every single wine we’ve made from the estate a couple months ago, it was clear 2009 and 2015 ushered in new eras of quality.

When I was offered the chance to own Aston outright, I knew immediately
there was no way I could let this get away. After investing 20 years of effort
into this now mature 14 acre plot of Pinot Noir, I’m proud to announce this
will be part of the growing winemaking family for years to come.”

Thomas Rivers-Brown

www.astonestate.com