BoaVentura de Caires Winery

BoaVentura de Caires Winery
9309 Tesla Rd.
Livermore Valley, California
USA 94550
Phone: (925) 606-9672
http://www.boaventuravineyard.com

Contact: Brett Caires
Email: [email protected]

Brett Caires, a self-made realtor, chef, and winemaker, hails from the stock of wine connoisseurs. BoaVentura Baptiste de Caires, Brett’s grandfather and the winery’s namesake, handed down a passion for relishing good wine. Brett recalls family meals with his Oakland, California-based grandparents, where wine was always a staple at the dinner table: “The table was set with glasses of wine, port, and milk.” To boot, according to family legend, Brett’s great grandfather, Antonio Caires, was deported during Prohibition for winemaking after he brought his family to America. A devotion to his family heritage was a natural inspiration for Brett to cultivate his own knowledge of winemaking.

Through the influence of family, friends, and fellow winemakers, including Karl Wente, Noah Taylor, and Bob Taylor, Brett learned about the art of making wine. On a trip with Karl to Europe in 1997 – through France, Greece, Portugal, and England – he sampled regional wines, amassing knowledge that would later help him produce his first Cabernet, made available to the public in 2002.

On April 29, 1999, Brett realized his dream of owning a winery when he and his wife, Monique, purchased a five-acre property perched atop a sunny ridge in the southeast corner of Livermore Valley, California. What was once part of a 360-acre ranch owned by the Concannon family, and subsequently a Livermore wine family’s farm stocked with geese, chickens, sheep, goats, and a donkey, is now home to the Caires vineyard. The century-old farmhouse is Brett and Monique’s home, and the rustic barn is used to host tastings, weddings, birthday parties, and family gatherings.

The Caires estate offers spectacular views of rolling hills stretched out among painted skies, creating the perfect setting for growing the most delectable yet unpretentious wines California has to offer. Three microclimates and a diverse terroir, ranging from a low, cold creek bed to a rocky hillside slope -- replete with an interesting clay and static soil makeup -- contribute layers of complexity and depth to BoaVentura wines.

Since the land is well-suited to growing Cabernet grapes, BoaVentura Winery specializes in Cabernets. Yet, as Caires notes, he also “fell in love with the Vino Verde white wines while traveling through Spain and Portugal,” both of which are made from the Albarino grape – the same grape he used to create BoaVentura’s newly released white table wine. “It’s really unlike anything we have in the United States,” he adds.

BoaVentura wines are truly handmade. The grapes are hand-picked by family and friends, and Brett and Monique take pride in crafting wines that BoaVentura Baptiste de Caires would be proud of. After all, his spirit is manifested in the name of the winery, Boa Ventura, or “Good Venture.”

Winemaker: Brett Caires

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