Chavez-Leeds Vineyard
Rutherford, Napa Valley
32 Acres
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc
Our Connection
The Chavez, Leeds and Pesch families have been stewards of the beautiful Chavez-Leeds vineyard (and its neighboring blocks, Pesch and Leeds & Pesch), since the 1920s, when the Chavez family acquired the property, also known as the Helios Vineyard. Considered a pillar of the Frog’s Leap Estate program, this vineyard produces some of our most elegant, finesse-driven Cabernet Sauvignon and mineral-noted Sauvignon Blanc.
Originally farmed by his grandfather, it was Frank’s Uncle and mentor Roy Chavez who taught him the traditional methods — including dry farming, that became the foundation for the farming philosophies Leeds introduced to a young John Williams in the 1980s. Leeds earned CCOF organic certification for the Chavez Leeds vineyard in 1988 (and the Red Barn vineyard in 1989). Frank’s daughter, Lauren Pesch now works beside her father, marking a fourth generation of family working this noted Rutherford ranch, which occupies prime placement on the Rutherford Bench, adjacent to the Williams Rossi Ranch.