In 2001, Dave Miner set out on a mission to make a wine that would forever change the Miner Family Winery brand. His idea was to make a wine that would distinguish the Miner brand and forever be the face of Miner wines. This year we are celebrating the tenth vintage of this nationally celebrated wine and we’re doing it in style. The Oracle has become the image behind the brand that is Miner Family Winery after ten years of artfully crafting a wine that represents exactly what it’s named after: inspiration and revelation. But as is with any exceptional wine, it took a little winemaking genius and hard work to get there.
Following a number of years spent working in the software industry, Dave Miner got his start in wine in 1993 as President of Oakville Ranch Vineyards, owned by his late uncle, Robert Miner. Having spent years as an enthusiastic wine consumer and collector, Dave had a natural affinity for the business. After several years of running the winery, in 1996 Dave decided to branch out with his own effort, and thus the Miner Family Winery brand was born. It started as just a small custom crush project. Dave was able to use the Oakville Ranch Vineyards to make his wine and in 1999 Dave, along with his wife Emily, decided to purchase the building for his family and the first vintages of Miner wines were released.
In 2001, Dave along with the help of winemaker, Gary Brookman, decided to make a wine that was not just Cabernet Sauvignon but Cabernet influenced. As with any other vintage at Miner, we brought in our fruit in the Fall of 2001, fermented the juice to turn it into wine and stored it in barrels for aging. About 18 months later, Dave & Gary decided to pull samples of the Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. They began playing with the blend, deciding what ratio of wine would be best for the wine style they had in mind. Little did they know that what started as a fun project, would turn into Miner’s flagship wine. Once the final blend was approved and had been put back into barrels blended for further aging, bottling was just around the corner and a name was in need. Thus the name “The Oracle” was chosen. Dave decided to create this wine in homage to his late Uncle Robert, who gave him his first insight into the winemaking business. And with Robert Miner having a history with Oracle Software Company, he thought this would be the perfect name.
As The Oracle continued to be made, Dave & Gary continued to perfect the blend. 2004 was the first year in which a fourth grape varietal, Malbec, was added to the blend and shortly after Petit Verdot was blended in as well. Jan Krupp from Stagecoach Vineyard, upon Dave and Gary’s request, specifically started to grow these two grape varietals on his mountainous terrain for The Oracle. The added varietals have added complexity to the blend and have also made it truer to the Bordeaux style that was the goal of this wine.
This year we are celebrating the release of the 10th vintage of The Oracle. Dave and Gary’s fun project has turned into more than what they could have ever hoped for and has shaped the Miner Family Winery brand forever. We will be celebrating in style on October 4th at the winery with our first ever Oracle Release Party in the caves and loading dock! We hope you will join us for this event where you will first be able to sample at the winery the aromatic, rich and enticing flavors of the 2010 vintage of The Oracle.
For more information on The Oracle Release Party click here!
–Alex Dickens, Marketing & Hospitality Manager