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Having grown up in Vancouver and Stockton respectively, Fiona and Hal Barnett became enamored with Napa Valley through frequent visits on the weekends of the early 1980’s. A vision began to form, and after an extensive search, they purchased a 40-acre property located atop Spring Mountain in 1983. The lot consisted of nothing but trees, rocks, shrubs, and dozens of rattlesnakes. After extensive work clearing, grading, and terracing the land, the first Cabernet Sauvignon vines were planted the following year. Since the very beginning, the intent was to produce small amounts of hand crafted wines that would showcase the unique characteristics found in grapes cultivated on such challenging, high elevation terrain.
Over the next five years, as the vines developed and the estate was established, the Barnett’s commuted from their San Francisco home. Barnett Vineyard’s first harvest was in 1989 and yielded 232 cases of “Spring Mountain Cabernet”.
In 1991, Fiona and Hal moved full time to the property, where they raised their 3 daughters. The winery has expanded gradually since then, selecting outstanding vineyard sites for grapes in addition to those grown on the estate, leading to a current total production of approximately 8,000 cases. Rattlesnake and Spring Mountain District wines, including Merlot and Cabernet Franc, remain the focus with total estate production varying between 5,000 and 6,000 cases annually. In addition, we produce limited amounts of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Sauvignon Blanc sourced from coveted single vineyards located in astounding appellations.
Barnett Vineyards is located at the very top of Spring Mountain, at its peak of 2050 feet, well above the inversion layer of fog that blankets the Valley floor below. Due to the inversion layer, this unique microclimate influences the mountain vineyard by allowing up to 3 hours more sunlight per day. The additional sunlight is a critical element in why Barnett Vineyards’ fruit achieves more consistent ripening and flavor development vintage to vintage. During the afternoon, breezes come in from the Pacific Ocean creating a desirable cooling influence on the vines and thus benefiting the fruit development even more.
The estate is a 100% hillside vineyard with a dramatic series of steep terraces planted exclusively to the red Bordeaux varietals of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. The vineyard is planted in blocks specifically contoured to the steep 35-degree + slope and soil conditions of each carefully selected varietal planted on the estate. The soil is extremely rocky and porous, resulting in additional stress and vigor on the vines and small clusters of rich intense fruit. The estate’s average yield is less than two tons an acre and often closer to one ton depending on the vintage.
Rattlesnake Hill is the highest point on the estate, approximately 2050 ft. elevation. The vineyard has a slightly added advantage of elevation, sun direction and less mineral content in the soils. The result is tiny clusters with deeper fruit concentration. Yielding barely one ton per acre, Rattlesnake Hill, Cabernet Sauvignon is extremely limited.
Winemaking and viticulture practices at Barnett Vineyards are influenced by the artisan craft of creating wines by hand. Due to the estate’s low yielding vineyard, it is critical to hand-harvest the vineyard vine-by-vine to ensure each cluster is picked at optimal ripeness. This manual work is additionally challenging on a 35º slope that is not conducive to any normal farm equipment.
To preserve the integrity of each individual vineyard block, the grapes are fermented separately in small batches. The “must” is punched down several times a day utilizing traditional techniques. This process maximizes the extended skin to juice contact providing added richness, flavor concentration, aromatics, and deep color extraction, while allowing the tannin levels to be micro-managed.
Only French oak barrels are used, with a preference to use between 65% and 100% new oak barrels and the balance being one to four year old barrels. The winemaking at Barnett Vineyards is undertaken with the utmost care and attention, assuring that the wines possess the ultimate fruit, complexity and well-balanced tannins necessary to age the wines for decades to come.
For additional technical information, please see our tech sheets.
At Barnett Vineyards, sustainability isn’t just a practice—it’s a core value that guides every decision we make, from vine to bottle. As a Napa Green Certified winery, we proudly uphold a rigorous, third-party verified standard of environmental stewardship that focuses on energy efficiency, water conservation, waste prevention, soil health, climate action, and social equity.
We’re committed to protecting the land, water, and community that make Napa Valley so special. Our estate is:
At Barnett, sustainability isn’t a trend—it’s a long-term commitment to preserving the beauty and bounty of Spring Mountain for generations to come.
Fiona was born in the UK and raised in Mexico & Canada, before meeting her husband, Hal, and moving to California. Fiona earned her undergraduate degree from Simon Fraser University while also holding her masters degree in finance. She is a certified public accountant and a licensed real estate broker. Fiona’s deep appreciation and fondness for the Napa Valley, spurred her and Hal to cultivate forest atop Spring Mountain Road. She would spend the next 30+ years establishing and expanding what is now Barnett Vineyards. Her energy and deep desire to foster a familial community among guests and the Barnett team is what makes Barnett Vineyard’s truly unique. Hal was born and raised in Stockton, CA and is a fifth generation Californian. He graduated from Oregon State University with a degree in business. For the next 25 years, Hal worked in real estate development before joining in managing and expanding Barnett Vineyards in 1999. Fiona and Hal raised their three beautiful daughters on the property and spend a lot of time with them and Hal’s children from a previous marriage. Aside from family time, they love to play tennis, golf, ski, hike, read, cook and have fun. Fiona and Hal’s favorite Barnett wine? Any 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon.
David has been the winemaker and General Manager at Barnett Vineyards for fourteen complete vintages, beginning with 2007. David has worked in the Barossa Valley, Australia; Provence, France; Canterbury, New Zealand and has traveled to every fine wine region in the world. David graduated from Brock University in 2002, with an Honors Degree in Enology and Viticulture. Prior to working with Barnett, David was the assistant winemaker at Ridge Vineyards for five years atop Montebello in the Santa Cruz Mountains. When he is not doing all things wine he is hanging out with his son Nolan and tinkering around on his vintage VW bus. His favorite wine is the one in his glass!