Quixote Winery stands apart from every other tasting destination in Napa Valley, not just for its wines but for the building you taste them in. Founded in 1999 by Carl Doumani, who previously owned and built Stags Leap Winery into a Napa landmark, Quixote occupies an estate in the Coombsville AVA southeast of the city of Napa. The winery building was designed by Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser, making it the only Hundertwasser structure in North America. With its rounded walls, gilded onion domes, mosaic tilework, and complete absence of straight lines, the building is a living artwork. The wines inside match the ambition of the architecture: small-production Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon from Coombsville estate fruit, farmed with care and bottled with intention.

The Hundertwasser Building: Art You Can Drink In

When Carl Doumani commissioned Austrian visionary Friedensreich Hundertwasser to design the Quixote winery building, he was making a statement: wine is culture, and the place where wine is made should reflect that. Hundertwasser, celebrated across Europe for buildings that reject the tyranny of the straight line, created a structure unlike anything else in American wine country. Undulating tile mosaics wrap exterior walls. Gilded onion domes top the towers. Windows lean at odd angles. The floors roll and shift like a slow wave.

The building was completed in 2004 and has been recognized internationally as an architectural landmark. Visitors come from across the globe specifically to see it, and then discover that the wines inside justify the trip on their own terms. There is nowhere else like this in Napa Valley, and nowhere else like it in North America.

Coombsville is the coolest AVA on the Napa Valley floor, shaped daily by cold morning fog rolling north from San Pablo Bay. That fog is the winemaker’s invisible tool at Quixote, slowing ripening and building structure that warmer-valley Cabernets rarely achieve.

Coombsville AVA: The Cool Corner of Napa

Coombsville did not receive its own official American Viticultural Area designation until 2011, but the area’s cool-climate potential had been recognized by serious growers for decades before that. Situated in the southeastern corner of Napa Valley, Coombsville is the closest part of the valley to San Pablo Bay, the inland arm of the Pacific that drives marine air and fog northward each morning and evening.

That marine influence slows the growing season, keeps acids elevated, and forces vines to work harder for ripeness. The result is Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah with more tension and structure than fruit grown in the warmer central Napa benchlands. At Quixote, the estate vineyards sit in this cool corridor, giving the wines a signature freshness that sets them apart from the opulent, sun-driven style common to Oakville or Rutherford.

Soils in Coombsville are primarily clay loams with volcanic influence from the nearby Vaca Range, offering both water retention during dry summers and the mineral complexity that Napa’s best vineyard sites deliver. Quixote farms its estate blocks thoughtfully, keeping yields low to concentrate flavor without sacrificing the fresh acidity that defines the AVA.

The Wines: Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon

Quixote produces a deliberately small lineup, centered on two varieties that thrive in Coombsville’s cool conditions. The estate Petite Sirah is the winery’s signature: inky, structured, and built for aging, with the dark fruit concentration and chewy tannins the variety is known for, balanced by the lifted acidity that Coombsville’s cool mornings impart. This is Petite Sirah for serious collectors, not an easy-drinking weeknight pour.

The Cabernet Sauvignon from estate Coombsville fruit is equally thoughtful: precise and focused, with cassis and black cherry fruit backed by firm but integrated tannins and a long mineral finish. Both wines benefit from several years of cellaring, though they are approachable on release for those who enjoy structured, food-friendly Napa reds.

Production numbers are intentionally small. This is not a winery built for volume. Each bottle reflects the vision that Carl Doumani brought to Quixote from the beginning: make something worth making, build something worth visiting, and never compromise either.

Visiting Quixote Winery

Quixote operates by appointment only, which keeps visits intimate and focused. The estate is located along the Silverado Trail, one of Napa’s two main north-south corridors, giving it easy access from the city of Napa or from wineries further north.

A visit to Quixote is unlike any other tasting room experience in the valley. You are guided through the Hundertwasser building, learning about its design and construction alongside the story of the wines. Tastings are unhurried, personal, and tied to the sense of place that both the architecture and the vineyard convey.

For visitors planning a Napa trip, Quixote pairs naturally with other Coombsville producers and with the broader southeast Napa experience. The city of Napa itself, with its expanding restaurant and culinary scene, is minutes away. This is a winery for people who want their visit to mean something beyond a standard tasting room stop.

Food Pairing: What to Drink with Coombsville Reds

Petite Sirah’s formidable tannin structure calls for proteins with matching fat content: a well-marbled ribeye, braised short ribs, or a rack of lamb are ideal partners. The fat in the meat softens the tannins, and the wine’s dark fruit amplifies the savory depth of the dish. Avoid delicate foods that would be overwhelmed by the wine’s weight.

Quixote’s Cabernet Sauvignon is more versatile at the table. Its precise fruit and firm but polished tannins work beautifully with roasted lamb, aged cheeses like a sharp cheddar or aged gouda, or a classic Napa-style prime rib. The wine’s Coombsville acidity keeps it lively through a full meal, cutting through richness and refreshing the palate between bites.

For cheese board pairings, both varieties pair well with aged hard cheeses and charcuterie. The key principle: match the weight of the wine to the weight of the food. Quixote’s reds are not light wines, and they are best served with food that can hold its own alongside them.

Quixote Winery: Frequently Asked Questions