Corison Winery

Cathy Corison founded Corison Winery in 1987, when she began buying Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from benchland vineyards between Rutherford and St. Helena. In the early years the wines were made from purchased fruit in space at other wineries. Her husband, William Martin, led the search for a home, and in 1995 the couple bought Kronos Vineyard, closing escrow on the last day of that year. Ground was broken in the spring of 1999 for the Victorian-style winery barn, which William designed. The second estate vineyard, Sunbasket, was bought in 2015 after Corison had sourced it for over 25 years. The 2026 harvest was Corison's 40th vintage.

• Founded in 1987 by Cathy Corison
• Kronos Vineyard bought in 1995
• Ground broken for the winery barn in spring 1999
• Sunbasket Vineyard bought in 2015
• 40th vintage harvested in 2026

Cathy Corison is Winemaker and Founding Partner and William Martin is Partner. Cathy Corison earned a master's degree in Enology at UC Davis, served a harvest internship at Freemark Abbey in 1978, and held winemaking positions at Yverdon in 1979-1980 and at Chappellet Vineyard in the 1980s. William Martin designed the winery barn, orchestrated the purchase of Kronos Vineyard and negotiated the purchase of Sunbasket Vineyard. Their daughters returned to work at the winery in 2020: Grace Corison Martin works full time as Assistant Winemaker, and Rose Corison Martin works part time, helping with bottling, harvest, bookkeeping and IT. Manuel Pineda is Cellar and Vineyard Lead, and Justin Boudrie is Sales Manager.

• Cathy Corison: Winemaker, Founding Partner
• William Martin: Partner
• Grace Corison Martin: Assistant Winemaker, full time since 2020
• Rose Corison Martin: part time (bottling, harvest, bookkeeping, IT)
• Manuel Pineda: Cellar and Vineyard Lead
• Justin Boudrie: Sales Manager

Kronos Vineyard surrounds the winery. It was planted in 1971 by Leo Nachbaur on St. George rootstock, which is resistant to phylloxera, and the vines are Cabernet Sauvignon clone 2. Yields are about 1.25 tons per acre. Sunbasket Vineyard, a stone's throw from the winery, was originally planted in the early 1950s by André Tchelistcheff, who called the site a "sunbasket" for its sunshine. Corison shared Sunbasket's fruit with Shafer Vineyards for many years before taking all of it, and the first Sunbasket Vineyard wines were released in the fall of 2017. Corison sources Cabernet Sauvignon grown on well-drained Bale loam on the benchland between Rutherford and St. Helena. The 2021 Corison Cabernet Sauvignon, St. Helena Napa Valley, was made from Sunbasket, Grech and Hayne vineyards.

• Kronos: planted 1971 on St. George rootstock; about 1.25 tons per acre
• Sunbasket: planted in the early 1950s by André Tchelistcheff; first vineyard-designate wines released fall 2017
• Soils: well-drained Bale loam on the benchland between Rutherford and St. Helena

Kronos and Sunbasket were certified organic by CCOF in 2023, a certification Grace Corison Martin obtained, and the winery and both estate vineyards are Napa Green certified. No synthetic pesticides or herbicides are used. Sheep mow the cover crop in early spring, weeds are managed by tilling with electric tractors, and nesting boxes draw birds that eat harmful insects. Mature vines are encouraged to dry-farm when possible. Solar panels on the winery roof produce all of its electricity, and the winery barn was designed with passive night-cooling.

• CCOF organic certification for Kronos and Sunbasket in 2023
• Napa Green certified winery and vineyards
• No synthetic pesticides or herbicides
• Solar panels produce all of the winery's electricity

Canopy management aims for fully ripe fruit that keeps bright acidity at moderate sugar levels, and the grapes are picked early. Winemaking is largely traditional and non-interventionist. No sulfur dioxide is added when the grapes are crushed, and fermentations are allowed to become hot early, up to 90 degrees F. After fermentation the wines spend 20 months in small French oak barrels; the 2021 Corison Cabernet Sauvignon, St. Helena Napa Valley, was aged in 50% new French oak. The wines are under 14% alcohol, typically between 12.8% and 13.4%, and are 100% varietal.

• Early picking for moderate sugar levels
• No sulfur dioxide at crush; hot early fermentations up to 90 degrees F
• 20 months in small French oak barrels
• Under 14% alcohol, typically 12.8% to 13.4%

The Corison Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has been the winery's cornerstone since 1987 and is blended from three benchland vineyards between Rutherford and St. Helena. Two estate vineyard-designates follow it: Kronos Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Sunbasket Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, the latter a very limited bottling selected from favorite barrels. Helios is a Napa Valley Cabernet Franc from Sunbasket Vineyard, made at only four barrels a year. Selene, a label whose trademark Cathy Corison bought after learning in 2021 that Mia Klein was discontinuing it, was created by Rose and Grace as a blend of Kronos and Sunbasket Cabernet Sauvignon, the first time Kronos fruit was blended with another vineyard; Selene amounts to two barrels' worth of wine each year. The Corison Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon, from Bella Oaks Lane, is a one-time-only wine. Under the Corazón label the winery makes a dry Gewürztraminer, a barrel-fermented rosé and a Cienega Valley Riesling.

• Corison Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (since 1987)
• Kronos Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
• Sunbasket Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
• Helios Napa Valley Cabernet Franc (Sunbasket)
• Selene Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Kronos and Sunbasket blend)
• Corazón Gewürztraminer, Rosé and Cienega Valley Riesling

Corison's stated goal is Cabernet Sauvignon that is "both powerful and elegant". The winery picks early so the grapes express Cabernet fruit flavors "from cherries and blueberries, through plums, cassis, and blackberries," with "ample, velvety tannins" and firm acidity. Naming her The Chronicle's Winemaker of the Year, the San Francisco Chronicle wrote: "In an era when the most humble Napa Cab lands somewhere in the low 14s, Corison finds a way to deliver power with a porcelain touch."

• Stated goal: Cabernet that is "both powerful and elegant"
• Fruit range from cherries and blueberries through plums, cassis and blackberries, in the winery's own words

Cathy Corison was The Chronicle's Winemaker of the Year for 2011. In 2019 she was a James Beard Foundation semifinalist in the Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer category. In 2023, Wine & Spirits Magazine named Corison one of the Top 100 wineries in the world.

• The Chronicle's Winemaker of the Year 2011
• James Beard Foundation semifinalist, Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer, 2019
• Wine & Spirits Magazine Top 100 wineries, 2023

The winery at 987 St. Helena Highway is open daily by appointment from 10am to 5pm. Tastings include a 60-minute Discovery Tasting and a 90-minute Library Tasting with library vintages, both with a walk in Kronos Vineyard.

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://www.corison.com/, https://www.corison.com/our-story/, https://www.corison.com/our-family/, https://www.corison.com/our-team/, https://www.corison.com/vineyards/, https://www.corison.com/winemaking/, https://www.corison.com/sustainability/, https://www.corison.com/all-wines/, https://www.corison.com/visit/, https://www.corison.com/in-the-vineyard/. Secondary sources: The Napa Wine Project, "Corison Winery" (https://www.napawineproject.com/corison-winery/); San Francisco Chronicle, "Cathy Corison - Chronicle's Winemaker of the Year 2011" (https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/Cathy-Corison-Chronicle-s-Winemaker-of-the-Year-2433541.php); San Francisco Chronicle, "How top California winemaker Cathy Corison saved her Napa winery" (https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/article/cathy-corison-winery-napa-19913254.php); San Francisco Chronicle, "Nyum Bai, Angler and Sorrel lead Bay Area nominees in 2019 James Beard Awards" (https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/Nyum-Bai-Angler-and-Sorrel-lead-Bay-Area-13648975.php). Last verified 2026-10-14. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs.