Gallo Buys Prized Snows Lake Vineyard

E. & J. Gallo has bought what many consider to be Lake County’s most-prized grape source, Snows Lake Vineyard.

The sale price has not been disclosed, but sources tell Wine Industry Insight that the deal include the Snows Lake trademark and approimately 800 acres of vineyards.

The vineyards produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and other varietals which are sought after by such premier brands as Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, Cakebread Cellars, and Rosenblum Cellars.

The vineyards are located in the Red Hills AVA,  southwest of Lower Lake at 2,000 to 2,500 feet in the Mayacamas Mountains and are composed of the same sort of volcanic red gravelly soils as Diamond Creek in Napa Valley some 15 miles south.