Our Story

Inhabited by Western novelist Vingie Rose in the 1920's and 1930's, this historic property was dubbed the “Lost Valley Ranch” given its location along Wooden Valley Road, a winding and narrow road nestled between two canyons in the southeast Napa Valley. In the early 20th century, the dangerous road and the vast surrounding terrain caused travelers to find themselves lost wandering in the valley, giving it the name we know today.


Rose lived on the ranch with her mother, where she drew upon the land for inspiration in writing her Western adventure novels. She regularly hosted meetings for the members of the League of American Penwomen at the Lost Valley Ranch, and women came from Napa, Sacramento and Santa Rosa to attend the gathering of writers.  


The Lamb Family bought the property in 2008 and planted its first vines in 2009, with several blocks added since then from elevations of over 500’ to over 700’. Over the course of the past decade, the Lambs have fostered a great love and appreciation for the Napa Valley and obtained a wealth of knowledge and experience within the grape growing industry that has allowed them to produce this rich variety of rootstocks perfectly suited to the region and its microclimates.

 
Birds Eye

Vineyard Map

 

Grape Varieties

Cabernet Sauvignon

This is the predominant varietal at Cordero Vineyards.  There are several clones including 07, 337, 169 and 04. These vines produce high quality grapes used in one of  the most popular, opulent wines in Napa.

Sauvignon Blanc

The Lamb Family has 3 acres planted with the Muscat clone of Sauvignon Blanc, one of the oldest domesticated grape varieties.  It is used in the top White Bordeaux (Sauternes) and great Loire Valley wines (Sancerre).

Chardonnay

Recently planted, there is a smaller vineyard of just 110 vines of Clone 04 Chardonnay near the lower portion of the vineyard to test these vines in the Wooden Valley microclimate.

 

Cordero Vineyards has recently introduced beehives to the property, where they plan to extract fresh honey throughout each upcoming season. As an added bonus, the bees pollinate the crops as they gather nectar, in turn helping the vines to be more viable and efficiently return nutrients to the soil. 


In addition to these grape varieties, Cordero Vineyards also has over 100 Tuscan Cultivars, Leccino and Frantoio olive trees, that are harvested and pressed each November at the Il Fiorello milling facility in Fairfield to produce our own artisan Olive Oil.