Posts Tagged "Winemaker"


An American in Spain

An American in Spain


Posted on Oct 2, 2014

An American in Spain

Dave Phinney is one of the rapidly rising stars in the American wine-making scene. From relatively humble beginnings as a harvest worker at Robert Mondavi in 1997 he started making wine for himself and others in 1998. He has also worked at Opus One and Whitehall Lane. He has since created his own highly successful label in Napa Valley called Orin Swift. The name is an homage to his parents; Orin being his father’s second name and Swift his mother’s maiden name. Orin Swift produces several wines, most notably a Zinfandel-based blend called The Prisoner. The Prisoner and its baby brother, Saldo (also a Zinfandel-based blend, sourced from vineyards across California, not just Napa) were sold in 2010 to Augustin Huneeus, owner of Napa’s Quintessa and Chile’s Veramonte.

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