Cathy Corison loves wine. The first woman Winemaker-Proprietor in the Napa Valley, she produces three Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons, hand-crafted without compromise. Grapes are sourced from some of the finest vineyards in the Napa Valley, all located on classic benchland between Rutherford and St. Helena, where deep, stony alluvial soils provide the ideal growing conditions for the Cabernet vine. These vines regularly produce some of the most concentrated and superbly ripened fruit anywhere. Kronos Vineyard, one of the estate vineyards, surrounds the winery on all four sides. Corison Cabernets are juicy with fruit and hints of violets, olives and spice and are moderate in alcohol. Fresh and lively on the palate, they are supple and decidedly drinkable as young wines, but structured for decades of rewarding bottle development.
Academic preparation included a B.A. in Biology from Pomona College, 1975. She landed in the Napa Valley in June of 1975, days after graduating, with a vague notion that she wanted to make world-class wine. An M.S. in Enology from U.C. Davis, 1978, provided the technical foundation she needed to proceed. Decades of winemaking for others, including Chappellet Vineyard, 1980-1989, Staglin Family Winery, 1989-1990, Long Meadow Ranch, 1994-2003, and York Creek Vineyards, 1990-1999, left her eager to express her own winemaking voice. She founded Corison Winery in 1987, guided by her belief that winemaking and wine appreciation are a timeless, creative celebration of life, with the goal of making Cabernet Sauvignon that is powerful and elegant, has a sense of place, and is structured to grace the table and enjoy a long, distinguished life. With her husband, William Martin, they purchased Kronos Vineyard in 1995. William designed and built the Victorian-inspired winery barn surrounded by Kronos Vineyard in 1999. Nearby Sunbasket Vineyard was added to the portfolio in 2015. Securing grape sources for the future has been a focus with a long view for their family farm. Corison Winery will harvest their 35th vintage of Corison in 2021! Daughters Rose Corison Martin (Harvey Mudd, 2016) and Grace Corison Martin (Syracuse University, 2019) have been working at the winery, on and off, since they were in utero.
Cathy is honored to have had a front seat for over 45 years as the Napa Valley established itself as one of the best places in the world to grow grapes and make wine. She was the San Francisco Chronicle Winemaker of the Year in 2011, Corison Winery’s 25th anniversary. In 2018, 2019 and 2020 she was a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for Excellence in the Outstanding Wine, Beer or Spirits Producer category. Her greatest joy is being out in the vineyards. Great grapes make great wine. Period.
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