Founded in 2005 by David Jeffrey on a 17-acre Chalk Hill hillside above Windsor, shale and sandstone with views toward Mount St. Helena. Planted to the five red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. Philippe Melka consults; Jeffrey farms, blends, and pours. Six wines per vintage, intimate by design.
Calluna Vineyards is a small 17-acre hillside estate in Chalk Hill founded in 2005 by David Jeffrey, who serves as both owner and winemaker with Philippe Melka consulting. The estate is planted to the five red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, farmed on the chalky volcanic soils that give the AVA its identity. Jeffrey's approach is quietly rigorous — small-lot fermentation, long barrel aging in French oak, and a commitment to structured, age-worthy wines that reflect site rather than style. One of Chalk Hill's most serious small producers.
Calluna Vineyards Cuvée (CVC), Chalk Hill — The flagship: a Merlot-led, five-variety Bordeaux blend in the Saint-Émilion mold.
Colonel's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Chalk Hill — A single-block, summit-vineyard Cabernet (clone 337), barrel-fermented in the Bordeaux method.
Aux Raynauds, Chalk Hill — A Cabernet-led Bordeaux blend named for founder David Jeffrey's Saint-Émilion mentor, Alain Raynaud.
Estate Cabernet Franc / Merlot, Chalk Hill — Single-variety bottlings showcasing the estate's Right Bank varieties.
Calluna Estate Blanc, Chalk Hill — A white Bordeaux blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.
Founded by David Jeffrey, who apprenticed under Dr. Alain Raynaud at Château Quinault in Saint-Émilion, Calluna planted its Chalk Hill estate beginning in 2004. The 17-acre vineyard grows the five red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, made into structured, 100% estate-grown wines.
David Jeffrey founded Calluna in 2005 after a 2003 harvest working in Bordeaux shaped his conviction that classic structure and balance could be translated to California. The 12-acre original planting sits high above Windsor on fractured shale and sandstone with 360-degree views of Russian River Valley, Alexander Valley, Chalk Hill, and Mount St. Helena; five more acres of whites were added in 2014. Six wines per vintage — the Colonel's Vineyard Cabernet, the CVC proprietary blend, Aux Raynauds, Cuvée Estate, a single Malbec bottling, and the Estate Blanc. Philippe Melka consults, but Jeffrey himself farms and blends. Visits are intimate by design: small groups, tasting fees waived with purchase, and the winemaker is often the one pouring.
A former Seagram corporate treasury executive in New York City who left a 20-year wine-collecting career for winemaking at age 44 in 2001, enrolling in Fresno State's Enology and Viticulture program while his family moved to California. After a 2003 vintage at Château Quinault l'Enclos in Saint-Émilion under Dr. Alain Raynaud, David and his wife Marla searched for the right hilltop site — eventually finding 80 acres of undeveloped land in the Chalk Hill appellation with 360-degree views of Mount St. Helena, Knights Valley, and the Russian River. They planted 12 acres in 2005 (expanded to 17 acres today) to the five classic red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, on clay-loam over fractured shale and sandstone. His winemaking philosophy is Bordeaux-classical: balance, intensity, longevity, made naturally without water or tartaric acid additions. Wine writer John Gilman has called Calluna's Estate Red “one of California's very top division red wines from Bordeaux varieties.”
Marla Jeffrey co-founded Calluna Vineyards with her husband David, the pair discovering an 80-acre parcel of undeveloped hilltop land in the Chalk Hill appellation with sweeping views toward Mount St. Helena, Knights Valley, and the Russian River. The winery grew out of David’s mid-life leap from a New York corporate career into winemaking; together the Jeffreys planted their Bordeaux-variety estate beginning in 2005. The name “Calluna” — the botanical name for the heather growing on the property — honors an extended family member, a fitting emblem for this deeply personal family estate.
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Calluna Vineyards Cuvée (CVC), Chalk Hill — The flagship: a Merlot-led, five-variety Bordeaux blend in the Saint-Émilion mold.
Colonel's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Chalk Hill — A single-block, summit-vineyard Cabernet (clone 337), barrel-fermented in the Bordeaux method.
Aux Raynauds, Chalk Hill — A Cabernet-led Bordeaux blend named for founder David Jeffrey's Saint-Émilion mentor, Alain Raynaud.
Estate Cabernet Franc / Merlot, Chalk Hill — Single-variety bottlings showcasing the estate's Right Bank varieties.
Calluna Estate Blanc, Chalk Hill — A white Bordeaux blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.
Founded by David Jeffrey, who apprenticed under Dr. Alain Raynaud at Château Quinault in Saint-Émilion, Calluna planted its Chalk Hill estate beginning in 2004. The 17-acre vineyard grows the five red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, made into structured, 100% estate-grown wines.
Calluna Vineyards is a small 17-acre hillside estate in Chalk Hill founded in 2005 by David Jeffrey, who serves as both owner and winemaker with Philippe Melka consulting. The estate is planted to the five red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, farmed on the chalky volcanic soils that give the AVA its identity. Jeffrey's approach is quietly rigorous — small-lot fermentation, long barrel aging in French oak, and a commitment to structured, age-worthy wines that reflect site rather than style. One of Chalk Hill's most serious small producers.
David Jeffrey founded Calluna in 2005 after a 2003 harvest working in Bordeaux shaped his conviction that classic structure and balance could be translated to California. The 12-acre original planting sits high above Windsor on fractured shale and sandstone with 360-degree views of Russian River Valley, Alexander Valley, Chalk Hill, and Mount St. Helena; five more acres of whites were added in 2014. Six wines per vintage — the Colonel's Vineyard Cabernet, the CVC proprietary blend, Aux Raynauds, Cuvée Estate, a single Malbec bottling, and the Estate Blanc. Philippe Melka consults, but Jeffrey himself farms and blends. Visits are intimate by design: small groups, tasting fees waived with purchase, and the winemaker is often the one pouring.
A former Seagram corporate treasury executive in New York City who left a 20-year wine-collecting career for winemaking at age 44 in 2001, enrolling in Fresno State's Enology and Viticulture program while his family moved to California. After a 2003 vintage at Château Quinault l'Enclos in Saint-Émilion under Dr. Alain Raynaud, David and his wife Marla searched for the right hilltop site — eventually finding 80 acres of undeveloped land in the Chalk Hill appellation with 360-degree views of Mount St. Helena, Knights Valley, and the Russian River. They planted 12 acres in 2005 (expanded to 17 acres today) to the five classic red Bordeaux varieties plus Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, on clay-loam over fractured shale and sandstone. His winemaking philosophy is Bordeaux-classical: balance, intensity, longevity, made naturally without water or tartaric acid additions. Wine writer John Gilman has called Calluna's Estate Red “one of California's very top division red wines from Bordeaux varieties.”
Marla Jeffrey co-founded Calluna Vineyards with her husband David, the pair discovering an 80-acre parcel of undeveloped hilltop land in the Chalk Hill appellation with sweeping views toward Mount St. Helena, Knights Valley, and the Russian River. The winery grew out of David’s mid-life leap from a New York corporate career into winemaking; together the Jeffreys planted their Bordeaux-variety estate beginning in 2005. The name “Calluna” — the botanical name for the heather growing on the property — honors an extended family member, a fitting emblem for this deeply personal family estate.
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