Chateau Felice Winery

A Bit of History…

It truly was love at first sight when Barry and Phyllis Rodgers drove through the gate off Chalk Hill Road. The property captivated their imaginations. That June day in 1997, Chateau Felice was conceived.

Over the following months, the Rodgers family set to work on the overgrown, unkempt cattle ranch. By 1998, the land was ready for planting 20,000 vines on 25 acres.

New structures were built, and winemaking facilities and equipment were installed in preparation for the first crush of estate grapes in 2001.

Soon into the venture, their older daughter, Genevieve and son-in-law Patrick Llerena joined Barry and Phyllis. Genevieve, a graduate of U.C. Davis, worked with Barry to establish the winemaking operations, while Patrick focused on sales and marketing. Genevieve and Patrick left Chateau Felice late in 2006 to pursue their own business activities (www.iridessewines.com). In April of 2006, Samantha joined the team to manage the Healdsburg tasting room and in October became the Director of Sales and Marketing.

Vineyards & Winemaking…

Chateau Felice’s winegrowing philosophy echoes that of many of the best vineyards in California and Europe – Great wines are made in the vineyard. Only by producing the best possible fruit can truly world-class wines be produced.

Chateau Felice farms 25 acres planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Syrah and Zinfandel surrounding the winery. These vines, carefully tended to produce a low-yield, allow the winemaker to craft small lots of extraordinary wine.

The goal is to allow the unique essence of these grapes to come through, providing true varietal character in the aromas and flavors of each wine. Chateau Felice has nine different blocks of vineyard, each with a slightly different exposure. Slopes and hillsides have long been considered prime wine-growing locations, as they allow for better drainage and sun exposure. The primarily clay-loam soils have a generous supply of water at their disposal. Chateau Felice Estate Vineyards are blessed with a combination of climate factors that contribute to the production of extraordinary wine grapes.

Constant observation by the winemaking team – and the tending of the vineyards by the vineyard management company – ensures that the grapes that will become Chateau Felice wines are of the highest quality and most representative of the terroir in the Chalk Hill Appellation.

Link to Chateau Felice Winery