Luchsinger Vineyard Trousseau, Touriga Nacional

Bernie Luchsinger emigrated to the United States in the mid 1960s from Chile and planted his vineyard in Kelseyville thirty years later. Now, Bernie along with his daughter Pilar are growing some of the most interesting grape varieties that we work with: both the Trousseau, and the Touriga Nacional for our rosé. The vineyard is planted at 1400’ on volcanic alluvium soils laid over ancient riverbed cobblestones in the Big Valley area west of Clear Lake, the second largest natural body of water in California after Lake Tahoe. These varieties both thrive in the long, warm days and cool nights of the Big Valley, and retain their acidity and personality well in this arid environment. We are lucky to have pioneers like the Luchsingers who were willing to take a risk with relatively unknown varieties in an effort to find what was best for their land, and in turn, gave us the opportunity to start something fresh. We feel fortunate for the gorgeous fruit cultivated each year under the watchful eyes of the Luchsinger family.

Elevation: 1400’
Clone/Selection: Trousseau: Clone 8 Touriga Nacional: Clone 2
Soils: Cole series; Alluvial fine sandy loam
Vine Density: 6’x8’
Farming: Sustainable
Planted: 2002