Mira produces hand crafted, all-natural wines, each a singular expression of unique grapes. Aged to produce flavors defined by their purity and understated elegance, Mira wines are ready to drink upon release and are built for enjoyment after years in the cellar.
In 2005 Jim “Bear” Dyke, Jr. and Gustavo A. Gonzalez met by chance at the Off The Record Bar at the Hay Adams Hotel in Washington, D.C. After a lengthy discussion of the Golden Ratio the conversation moved to wine and by the end of the evening the two had mapped out on napkins what they thought a premier Napa Valley winery could be with words like boutique, approachable, hand crafted, grape source.
Four years later the duo identified their first block of grapes in Hyde Vineyard and began to put the necessary pieces in place to become a winery. In 2012 they launched Mira Winery. Einstein said there are only two ways to live life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle. Mira which is the Latin root for miracle encompasses more than just a personal philosophy it captures all the process on the path to wine. The Mira logo is the symbol for good harvest.
Today Mira has vineyard blocks in acclaimed one-of-a-kind vineyards across Napa Valley. The diversity of vineyard blocks mirrors the diversity of wine produced. Mira produces hand crafted, all-natural wines year on year, each a true expression of the unique grapes that went into it. Aged to produce flavors defined by their understated elegance, Mira wines are ready to drink upon release and are built for enjoyment after years in your cellar.
Mira is defined by its roots, anchored in the lineage and longevity of the alchemy of Napa Valley.
For over 20 years Mira winemaker and cofounder Gustavo A Gonzalez has been practicing his craft in the Napa Valley and around the world to critical acclaim. Gustavo has worked in California, Italy, France, Argentina and Brazil, establishing vineyards and producing wines in areas that never have before. His local knowledge and global perspective bring a highly experienced and creatively expansive approach to Mira’s vineyard practices and wine making techniques.
Gustavo has a long and decorated history of making exceptional wines both at Robert Mondavi Winery and around the world. He was responsible for the 2001 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia “Masseto” Toscana which received 100 points from Wine Spector. In fact, James Suckling of The Wine Spectator described the 2001 Masseto as “possibly the best Tuscan red ever.”
In his 17 years at Robert Mondavi Winery, Gustavo earned the title of Head Red Winemaker and established the Robert Mondavi Winery Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon as one of the leading Napa Valley Cabernets, consistently receiving Wine Spectator ratings of 95 or higher. He produced the best Sauternes style wine of the new world and raised the Pinot Noir program to cult status.
In Mira’s infancy Gustavo’s reputation provided us with unmatched access to the finest blocks of grapes in some of the Napa Valley’s premier vineyards including Hyde Vineyard in the Carneros AVA and Schweizer Vineyard in the heart of the Stags Leap AVA.
In a recent blind tasting of eight of the world’s top wines from Bordeaux and the Napa Valley, the 2012 Mira Schweizer Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon took the top slot for Cabernet from the Napa Valley besting Screaming Eagle, Schrader To Kalon and Shafer Hillside Select.
With his superb craftsmanship and attention to detail, Gustavo has quickly established Mira as one of the top producers of small production single vineyard wines from the Napa Valley. In just the past year, Mira has received 90 plus ratings on 11 different wines highlighting both the breadth and quality of the winemaking.
Gustavo grew up with a love for winemaking that was developed through his family, and his interest in wine as a career stemmed in part from their agriculture business. Simply put, in Gustavo’s mind wine was a way to be creative through agriculture.
Gustavo believes that there is always something new to learn in the pursuit of making the highest quality wine. Every vintage is different, and you have to understand how to adjust to those differences. His experience allows him to do that at a higher level, in Napa, a place with the unique combination of optimal climate and exceptional soils. Working in an area that creates some of the finest grapes in the world, his goal is to allow the innate spirit of those fruits to shine through in the wines Mira produces.
He takes great pleasure in the response from those who enjoy savoring Mira wines, but is even more excited about where we are headed and what the future holds for Mira. With the soon to be completed winery and tasting room at 6170 Washington Street just south of the town of Yountville in the heart of the Napa Valley, Gustavo sums it up simply, “the best is yet to come.”
Our Collectors Series wines are 100% varietal, hand crafted and produced from the best small blocks from internationally renowned Napa Valley growers Hyde and Schweizer Vineyards. These limited production wines, representing the soul of Mira Winery, require longer aging in 100% French Oak Barrels, as well as in bottle, to allow their delicate nuances to fully express themselves.
The Mira process begins before the vineyard. Napa Valley is renowned for its diversity of soil and micro-climate which means different grapes grow better in different locations. Therefore in order to produce a exceptional broad portfolio of wine we have identified the best blocks from vineyards around the valley. Our blocks from these different vineyards provide the best grapes for the type of wine we want to make whether its a Cabernet Sauvignon from the Stags Leap AVA or a Pinot Noir from the Carneros AVA year after year.
The decision to harvest grapes is a combination of science, intuition and experience. Our primary objective is to pick the grapes when they are closest stylistically to the type of wine we are making. The grapes will ultimately reflect the season and their origin. All Mira blocks are hand harvested.
From harvest to fermentation we are minimally invasive so that the grapes are in pristine form when they make it to the tank. We use three 5 ton Taransaud French Oak Fermentors which were the first of their kind in the United States among other tanks for fermentation which includes a mix of whole clusters and de-stemmed grapes depending on the wine.
We use French Oak Barrels from 6 different cooperages with a variety of toasts for aging as well as some stainless steel barrels on our whites. Typically our white wines age for 12-24 months and our red wines age from 14-24 months depending on the wine.
After bottling mostly nonfined and nonfiltered we hold the wine for 12-18 months or until the wine is ready for release.
Home of our boutique, limited production winery.
Home of our tasting room for our Napa Valley wines.