Stony Hill Vineyard

Stony Hill Vineyard is a Napa Valley winery in Saint Helena, California, USA, within the Spring Mountain District AVA.

The winery was founded in 1952 and was family-owned until 2018; it is now part of Lawrence Wine Estates, owned by Gaylon Lawrence Jr. and master sommelier Carlton McCoy Jr. Stony Hill occupies 160-acre (65 ha) of land[1] north of St. Helena, California, cultivating grapes on approximately 42 acres, from 400 feet (120 m) to 1,500 feet (460 m) in elevation, facing north and east on the side of Spring Mountain.

[8] The winery uses decades-old neutral oak barrels, historically avoided malolactic fermentation, and produces more acidic and less alcoholic Chardonnays than those popularized in the revival of the grape in the 1990s.

[3] In 1943,[2][13][6] San Francisco advertising executive Fred McCrea and his wife Eleanor bought the land, formerly a goat ranch, as a vacation property.

[3] The original wooden winery building was erected in 1951; Fred McCrea carved bunches of grapes on the doors.

[7] The McCrea house has been renovated to serve as a tasting room and guest facility, the Residence at Stony Hill.

[13] Replanting of much of the vineyard had begun in 2020, and is rebalancing production to primarily red wines, which are more tolerant of the higher temperatures brought about by climate change.

Winery doors from 1951