Schug Carneros Estate Winery
Napa Valley AVA
Axel and Jennifer Schug are dedicated to preserving their father, Walter Schug's, rich winemaking legacy and passion for Pinot Noir.
Walter Schug's winemaking career and accomplishments have been well documented since the early 1970's. The German-born wine guru began turning heads when he served as the founding winemaker of the legendary Joseph Phelps Vineyards, one of the greatest success stories of the last quarter of the 20th Century. While at Phelps, Schug made California's first proprietary Bordeaux-style blend (Insignia) and also the legendary vineyard-designated Cabernet Sauvignons (Backus Vineyard and Eisele Vineyard). He was also responsible for making the first varietal Syrah wine in the United States, and he served as a pioneer in the development of Late Harvest dessert wines (Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Schuerbe) that were incredibly popular in his native Germany.
As winemaker at Phelps, Schug distinguished himself as one of the premier winemakers in the country, earning critical acclaim with just about every major wine varietal. He started making his own wine on the side starting in 1979, after Phelps decided to end their production of Pinot Noir (his favorite varietal). He knew Pinot Noir had great promise, even though at the time, it wasn't particularly easy to sell to American consumers. By 1983, Schug was ready to leave Phelps and concentrate solely on his own wines, and Schug Winery became a reality.
Schug and his wife Gertrud chose the cool, marine climate of the Carneros appellation for their family winery. Their mutual love of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir led to this decision from which the Schugs never looked back. The pair of Burgundian varietals have remained at the forefront of Schug's wine portfolio, but he has since added small amounts of other varieties including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Franc, all sourced from nearby vineyards in Sonoma Valley. The Schug Winery began as a small 2,000-case operation in 1983 and it has slowly grown to its present level of some 30,000 cases per year.
The year 2003 was one to note, marking Walter Schug's 50th harvest, which is a marvelous achievement that few California vintners can match.
Unfortunately for the wine community, Walter Schug passed away in 2015, just after celebrating his 80th birthday. His legacy has been carried on by his children, Axel and Claudia, who manage the winery today, and German winemaker, Johannes Scheid. We are happy to share this world-renowned winery with our Pinot Noir Wine Club members. Enjoy!
Map of the area
Johannes Scheid, Winemaker
Raised on a small family winery in the Mosel Valley of Germany, Johannes Scheid developed a passion for viticulture and winemaking early on. He learned the art of European winemaking first hand while at his family's winery and had the opportunity to travel to several of the world's top wine regions while growing up.
Johannes went on to study Viticulture and Winemaking at Geisenheim University, which is Germany's premier college for the wine industry, and happens to be Walter Schug's alma mater as well. In fact, Johannes first met Walter Schug after an annual presentation at Geisenheim, and after inquiring about the possibility of a harvest internship, was hired on the spot for a 2009 position at Schug. While in Sonoma that fall, Johannes met fellow Schug intern Jennifer, a California native who would later become his wife (they were married in the caves at Schug!). After traveling back to Germany and then to New Zealand and Australia for various harvest jobs, Johannes settled in the Bay Area where he worked for two European wine importers to experience another side of the wine industry. He also served as Production Manager for Benziger.
In 2016, Johannes became Schug's Assistant Winemaker, returning to the winery where his California winemaking career began and where he feels most connected. Now, as Head Winemaker, he is dedicated to preserving the legacy of terroir-driven and European-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay at the world-class Schug Carneros Estate.
Michael Cox - Winemaker
Michael Cox is a Sonoma native that originally attended UCLA to study chemical engineering. During summers he worked in a wine cellar. It was there he developed his appreciation and passion for the art of winemaking. He then transferred to UC Davis and earned an enology degree in 1991.
Cox had already begun working part time in the wine industry for two top wineries, Hacienda Wine Cellars and Dry Creek Vineyard, both bedrock wineries within Sonoma County. Upon completing his degree, he took a position as winemaker for DeMoor Winery, his first job as a working winemaker. Michael Cox brings a modern approach to his job and utilizes cutting edge technology to continue the winemaking traditions started by his remarkable predecessor.
Walter Schug - Proprietor
Walter Schug grew up with viticulture in his blood. He was raised on a Pinot Noir estate in the Rhine River valley area of Assmannshausen, Germany. His father was the director/winemaker at the winery which was run by the state. The area is considered one of the few outside of France capable of producing high quality Pinot Noir. It was there that Walter developed a lifelong fondness for the charm and elegance of Pinot Noir.
While in high school Walter worked on the estate learning the craft literally from the ground up. He admitted to us that his first love was actually architecture. "There was absolutely no pressure from home to study viticulture and enology,” Walter recalled. "But it was hard to combat because wine was already in the blood. It just seemed the most comfortable thing to do.”
By the time he was eighteen years old, he began his training as a winemaker. He was sent to live and work at other wineries in Germany for two years as part of his apprenticeship. Soon after, he gained entrance to Geisenheim, the U.C. Davis equivalent in Germany, and began to study viticulture and enology. When Walter was attending Geisenheim, a group of California winemakers came to Germany to observe the operation at Assmannshausen. Walter's dad put in a plug for his son to help out the group in California. The suggestion turned into reality and in 1959, after graduation, Walter flew to California for what was to be a special temporary work assignment at Cal Grape (the operation later became part of the 6 million gallon Sierra Winery in Delano). Things went so well that they offered Walter a full time position as Assistant Superintendent. Excited by this new prospect in America, Walter raced home, married his sweetheart Gertrud, then both headed back to California to live.
Walter was at Cal Grape for almost six years. Feeling like he had exhausted his opportunities there, he left to join ranks with the E.J. Gallo Company. Walter was hired to oversee grower relations and quality control for Gallo's contract grape sources in Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties. He traveled the area extensively, visiting with growers, making sure grape quality was being maintained and helping growers get the maximum potential out of their vineyards. It was a huge responsibility which he expertly handled for seven years. As huge as Gallo is, it was an invaluable training ground for how to do things the right way in the wine business.
Walter's reputation found its way to a Colorado developer named Joseph Phelps. Phelps hired Walter in 1973 to start his winery. Walter proceeded to put the Phelps winery on the map. He started from scratch and built it to an 80,000 case winery before leaving to start his own winery in 1983. As Winemaster at Phelps, Walter spent many years distinguishing himself as one of the premier winemakers in the country. He earned critical acclaim with just about every major wine varietal. Among his accomplishments was being the first in the U.S. to make a Syrah wine and a Botrytised Riesling. He also crafted their famous Insignia Meritage wine, gaining worldwide recognition as a top Cabernet Sauvignon producer.
