What is Vermentino?
A Mediterranean Grape Finds Its Place in Napa Valley
Some wines are familiar before the first sip. Vermentino is not one of them. Many guests try it and pause, surprised by its freshness and vibrancy. For Seth, bringing this Mediterranean grape to the LOLA portfolio was a vision more than fifteen years in the making.
The sardinian Grape
The grape thrives in warm climates near the sea, where sunlight ripens the fruit while coastal breezes preserve acidity. Because of this balance, Vermentino became a natural partner for Mediterranean cuisine, particularly seafood. Along the Sardinian coast, it has long been served with dishes like bottarga, the salt cured mullet roe that shares the same maritime intensity as the wine itself.
Vermentino is a historic white grape of the western Mediterranean, most closely associated with coastal regions such as Sardinia, Liguria, Corsica, and southern Provence. In these sunlit coastal landscapes, Vermentino has been grown for centuries, producing wines known for their brightness, aromatic lift, and distinctive saline mineral character.
The Vines LOLA Farms
LOLA’s Vermentino is grown in the estate vineyard in Rutherford, one of the most historic growing regions within Napa Valley. The block was planted about six years ago after Seth Cripe spent years searching for the right site to bring this grape into the portfolio.
Rutherford’s warm afternoons, well drained alluvial soils, and cooling evening air provide conditions surprisingly similar to Vermentino’s Mediterranean homeland. These elements allow the grape to ripen fully while preserving the lively acidity that defines its character. The vineyard is farmed carefully to balance stress and vitality, encouraging concentrated fruit without sacrificing freshness.
What Does Vermentino Taste Like?
In the glass, the wine is dry, fresh, and crisp with a distinctive mineral edge. Aromas of apple, citrus, and nectarine appear alongside hints of almond and a subtle saline note often described as the “fresh air of the sea,” a classic characteristic of Vermentino. The result is a vibrant, food friendly wine that reflects both its Mediterranean heritage and its Napa Valley home.
Why We Make It
The inspiration for LOLA’s Vermentino began long before the vineyard was planted. Seth Cripe had long admired the classic pairing of Vermentino and bottarga, a tradition deeply rooted in Mediterranean food culture. The grape’s citrus brightness and saline character cut beautifully through the rich, oceanic intensity of cured mullet roe.
That connection became even more personal through the family’s seafood brand, Cortez Conservas, based in Cortez, Florida. Bringing Vermentino into the LOLA portfolio meant creating a wine that could bridge those two worlds: Mediterranean tradition and California terroir.
After fifteen years of waiting for the right vineyard and the right moment, the result is a wine that does exactly what Seth always imagined. It brings together sea, soil, and table in a way that feels both ancient and entirely new.