PlumpJack Winery was founded in 1995 by Gavin Newsom and Gordon Getty as part of the PlumpJack Group, a hospitality company also known for the PlumpJack Inn in Lake Tahoe and a small chain of San Francisco wine shops. The estate sits on 42 acres along Oakville Cross Road in the heart of the Oakville AVA, where deep well-drained soils and a long warm growing season produce the richly structured Cabernet Sauvignon that made Napa famous. The name comes from Shakespeare’s Falstaff, affectionately nicknamed Plump Jack, a choice that signals the winery’s combination of wit, ambition, and seriousness about quality.

Founding Story and the Dual-Closure Experiment

Gavin Newsom, then a San Francisco businessman and later California Governor, launched PlumpJack in 1995 with backing from Gordon Getty, the oil heir and San Francisco cultural philanthropist. The winery attracted attention quickly, but the moment that put it in wine history was the 1997 Reserve Cabernet experiment. Winemaker Tony Biagi bottled identical lots of the same wine under traditional cork and under screwcap, then released both at the same price and asked the market to decide. A decade later, when both bottles were opened together at a follow-up tasting, the screwcap version showed equal or slightly better development. The experiment was widely cited in the global debate about closure technology and helped legitimize screwcap for serious red wine at a time when corks still dominated at every premium level.

The 1997 dual-closure experiment, bottling the same Cabernet under cork and screwcap, showed that both closures could succeed and helped legitimize screwcap for premium red wine.

Vineyard, Terroir, and Oakville Character

The PlumpJack estate covers 42 acres in the Oakville AVA, one of the most prized addresses in Napa Valley. Oakville soils are predominantly Bale and Yolo series, deep loams with excellent drainage that force vine roots deep in search of moisture and produce naturally low yields and concentrated fruit. The site sits at around 280 feet elevation with good air drainage, reducing disease pressure and allowing fruit to hang into October without risk of rot. Cabernet Sauvignon dominates the planting, with smaller blocks of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah. The estate is certified sustainable under the Napa Green program.

The Wine Portfolio

The Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is the winery’s signature, a structured Oakville Cab with cassis, dark plum, and cedar character and the tannin frame needed for medium to long cellaring. The Reserve Cabernet is produced in small lots from the best blocks of the estate and aged longer in French oak before release. The winery also produces Chardonnay sourced from cool-climate Carneros vineyards, a Merlot, and a Syrah. CADE Estate Winery on Howell Mountain is a sister project under the PlumpJack Group umbrella, producing high-elevation Cabernet from above the fog line.

Food Pairing at PlumpJack

Oakville Cabernet from PlumpJack is a food wine built for the table. The tannin-rich Estate Cab needs fat to come alive, making it ideal alongside prime rib, lamb chops with rosemary and garlic, or a dry-aged strip steak. The wine’s firm structure also holds up to braised meats like osso buco or short ribs, where the slow-cooked collagen in the sauce mirrors the wine’s own richness. For lighter occasions, the Merlot pairs well with mushroom dishes, duck confit, or mild aged cheeses, while the Chardonnay is a natural match for roasted chicken, butter-poached fish, or creamy pasta.

PlumpJack Winery: Frequently Asked Questions