The founding voice of the Chalk Hill AVA, 1,477 acres of heritage oak woodlands with 60 small vineyards meandering through the volcanic tuff soils that name the appellation. Frederick Furth's 1972 vision, now a Foley Family property. Elevated tasting pavilion with vineyard views; Hummer tours, garden walks, seated estate flights.
The pioneering estate of its appellation, Chalk Hill was one of the first wineries to recognize the potential of the volcanic ash soils that give the AVA its name. Founded in 1972 by Frederick Furth and developed into a 1,400-acre showpiece estate, it set the standard for Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grown above the fog line. The chalky white tuff soils — drawn from ancient volcanic eruptions of Mount St. Helena — produce wines of distinctive mineral tension at yields lower than surrounding appellations. The estate changed ownership in 2010 but the vineyards and their irreplaceable old vines remain the defining asset.
Estate Chardonnay, Chalk Hill — The flagship: rich, creamy and age-worthy from the volcanic-tuff hillsides, with baked bread, pear and hazelnut.
Estate Sauvignon Blanc, Chalk Hill — A bright, layered white (often with Sauvignon Gris and Musqué) showing citrus, apricot and fresh acidity.
Estate Red, Chalk Hill — A dense, structured Bordeaux blend with black cherry, vanilla and roasted coffee; built to age 15 years.
Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Chalk Hill — Youthful, full-bodied hillside Cabernet framed by firm tannins.
Estate Syrah, Chalk Hill — A small-lot, dark-fruited estate red.
Founded by Frederick Furth (vineyard 1972, winery 1980), Chalk Hill pioneered its namesake AVA on volcanic-tuff soils above the Russian River fog line. A Foley Family property since 2010, with winemaker Courtney Foley; Chardonnay is the house signature, alongside Merlot and Cabernet Franc within the Bordeaux reds.
Chalk Hill Estate Vineyards is the appellation's founding voice — 1,477 acres of heritage oak woodlands with a patchwork of 60 separate small vineyards meandering through the volcanic tuff soils that give Chalk Hill its name. The tasting pavilion sits at elevation with panoramic vineyard views and pairs seated Estate tastings with seasonal culinary bites featuring Journeyman Meat Company salumi, local artisan cheeses, and Rustic Bakery flatbreads. More immersive experiences include a Hummer tour through the 1,300-acre estate, culinary garden walks, and extended multi-course wine and food pairings. The winemaking is estate-team led under the Foley Family Wines umbrella, with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc as the house signatures alongside structured Cabernet Sauvignon from hillside blocks.
Head of Winemaking at Chalk Hill Estate since June 2018, Courtney Foley is the youngest daughter of Bill and Carol Foley, whose Foley Family Wines & Spirits acquired Chalk Hill from founder Fred Furth in 2010. She didn't take the easy path into the family business — earning a JD in Environmental and Ocean Law at the University of Oregon before realizing the law wasn't her calling, then working her way up from stocking shelves and tasting room hospitality through sales and brand development. Before Chalk Hill she served as winemaker and general manager of Foley Sonoma Winery in Alexander Valley, with formative winemaking experience under Leslie Renaud at Lincourt and Foley Estates in Santa Barbara. She continues the Chardonnay legacy established by former Chalk Hill winemaker David Ramey in the late 1980s — rich, balanced, and elegant — while expanding the estate's seven-Chardonnay portfolio to include Founder's Block, Felta, Little Patch, and the Carol Ann Oak Hill bottlings. She is also Executive VP and second-generation vintner for the broader Foley Family Wines & Spirits portfolio.
Frederick Furth founded Chalk Hill Estate in 1972 after spotting the property’s natural amphitheater of hills from his airplane. A prominent San Francisco antitrust attorney and pilot, Furth assembled what became a 1,300-acre estate in the appellation he helped make famous, planting vineyards on the area’s distinctive chalky, volcanic-ash soils and adding an equestrian center and culinary gardens. He and his wife Peggy built Chalk Hill into one of Sonoma’s grand estates before selling to the Foley family in 2010. Furth died in 2018, but the estate he envisioned still anchors the Chalk Hill AVA.
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Estate Chardonnay, Chalk Hill — The flagship: rich, creamy and age-worthy from the volcanic-tuff hillsides, with baked bread, pear and hazelnut.
Estate Sauvignon Blanc, Chalk Hill — A bright, layered white (often with Sauvignon Gris and Musqué) showing citrus, apricot and fresh acidity.
Estate Red, Chalk Hill — A dense, structured Bordeaux blend with black cherry, vanilla and roasted coffee; built to age 15 years.
Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Chalk Hill — Youthful, full-bodied hillside Cabernet framed by firm tannins.
Estate Syrah, Chalk Hill — A small-lot, dark-fruited estate red.
Founded by Frederick Furth (vineyard 1972, winery 1980), Chalk Hill pioneered its namesake AVA on volcanic-tuff soils above the Russian River fog line. A Foley Family property since 2010, with winemaker Courtney Foley; Chardonnay is the house signature, alongside Merlot and Cabernet Franc within the Bordeaux reds.
The pioneering estate of its appellation, Chalk Hill was one of the first wineries to recognize the potential of the volcanic ash soils that give the AVA its name. Founded in 1972 by Frederick Furth and developed into a 1,400-acre showpiece estate, it set the standard for Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grown above the fog line. The chalky white tuff soils — drawn from ancient volcanic eruptions of Mount St. Helena — produce wines of distinctive mineral tension at yields lower than surrounding appellations. The estate changed ownership in 2010 but the vineyards and their irreplaceable old vines remain the defining asset.
Chalk Hill Estate Vineyards is the appellation's founding voice — 1,477 acres of heritage oak woodlands with a patchwork of 60 separate small vineyards meandering through the volcanic tuff soils that give Chalk Hill its name. The tasting pavilion sits at elevation with panoramic vineyard views and pairs seated Estate tastings with seasonal culinary bites featuring Journeyman Meat Company salumi, local artisan cheeses, and Rustic Bakery flatbreads. More immersive experiences include a Hummer tour through the 1,300-acre estate, culinary garden walks, and extended multi-course wine and food pairings. The winemaking is estate-team led under the Foley Family Wines umbrella, with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc as the house signatures alongside structured Cabernet Sauvignon from hillside blocks.
Head of Winemaking at Chalk Hill Estate since June 2018, Courtney Foley is the youngest daughter of Bill and Carol Foley, whose Foley Family Wines & Spirits acquired Chalk Hill from founder Fred Furth in 2010. She didn't take the easy path into the family business — earning a JD in Environmental and Ocean Law at the University of Oregon before realizing the law wasn't her calling, then working her way up from stocking shelves and tasting room hospitality through sales and brand development. Before Chalk Hill she served as winemaker and general manager of Foley Sonoma Winery in Alexander Valley, with formative winemaking experience under Leslie Renaud at Lincourt and Foley Estates in Santa Barbara. She continues the Chardonnay legacy established by former Chalk Hill winemaker David Ramey in the late 1980s — rich, balanced, and elegant — while expanding the estate's seven-Chardonnay portfolio to include Founder's Block, Felta, Little Patch, and the Carol Ann Oak Hill bottlings. She is also Executive VP and second-generation vintner for the broader Foley Family Wines & Spirits portfolio.
Frederick Furth founded Chalk Hill Estate in 1972 after spotting the property’s natural amphitheater of hills from his airplane. A prominent San Francisco antitrust attorney and pilot, Furth assembled what became a 1,300-acre estate in the appellation he helped make famous, planting vineyards on the area’s distinctive chalky, volcanic-ash soils and adding an equestrian center and culinary gardens. He and his wife Peggy built Chalk Hill into one of Sonoma’s grand estates before selling to the Foley family in 2010. Furth died in 2018, but the estate he envisioned still anchors the Chalk Hill AVA.
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