Winemaker Interview Series – KWG Blog Post Ry Richards of Chappellet – August 2026

On Wednesday, August 5, 2026, we interviewed Ry Richards. Ry took over as the winemaker at Chappellet in 2023. He has been there 20 years working alongside their Vice President of Winemaking, Phillip Titus. Phillip is now transitioning to Senior Winemaking Advisor. During the interview, we covered their 2025 Chenin Blanc; 2023 Merlot, Malbec, and Cabernet Franc wines; and “Las Piedras” Red Blend. Then we jumped into their 2023 vintage Cabernet Sauvignon wines, starting with “Signature,” then “Hideaway”, and wrapping up the tasting with their fantastic “Pritchard Hill.” In the interview, we got to know Ry and a bit about his background. You can read about him and the summary of our reviews of all of these impressive wines in this post!

Before we get to the wines, I thought I would share some tidbits that Ry shared in the interview.

• Chappellet winery updates and what is new?
  • Phillip is still consulting for the winery and is now Senior Winemaking Advisor.
  • The Chenin Blanc.
    • Was set to be picked in early on August 8th. About 1 month early on average. In 2023 it was picked on October 9th.
    • They currently have 3 acres of Chenin.
    • They are planting 3 new blocks of Chenin on Pritchard Hill (6 more acres)
      • They are budding over so they expect the grapes in 1 to 2 years.
    • There are 18 acres of Chenin Blanc in Napa Valley. With the new plantings they have half of them.
    • Their Chenin is the wine with the least intervention.
      • They do half in stainless and the other half in neutral oak barrels.
    • Vineyard updates.
      • Last year on Pritchard Hill they pulled out or fallowed 17 acres of vineyards.
      • They replanted 5 to 10% of them.
      • The best yields and health of the vines for their top wines is about 8 to 20 years old.
    • Ry Richards Voyage into Wine.
      • First of all, Ry is not a nickname. He was named after a musician, Ry Cooder. 
      • When he was 16 years old, he was a stock clerk in the East Bay.
        • Ry was allowed learn, taste, and appreciate wine. (Illegally of course)
      • His family was involved in agriculture.
      • He went to UCLA to be a doctor. He got sidetracked.
      • He landed an internship at William Harrison Winery in 2006.
        • He fell in love with the process.
        • He loved that you use all your senses in winemaking.
        • Phillip was consulting here and at the end of the season, Phillip offered Ry a cellar position.
        • He has been at Chappellet ever since. 20 years so far.
        • He has done all the roles at Chappellet during his tenure.
    • Ry hired Steven Cruzen at Chappellet. They worked together that year before he went over to Titus.
    • Chuck McKahn is now the winemaker at Titus. He also worked at Chappellet.
    • Chappellet has two Assistant Winemakers.
      • One has been there 13 years and the other 6 years.
      • They are part of the blending team.
    • The Merlot.
      • Comes from the Sugerloaf Vineyard in the south valley.
        • The vineyard has the same volcanic rock as Hideaway.
      • Merlot excels in cooler temperatures.
      • The 2023 Merlot is only available to the wine club, online, or at the winery,
    • The Malbec.
      • The cool dragon drawing on the label, was done by Carissa the daughter of Don and Molly.
      • Majority of the fruit comes from Pritchard Hill.
      • It is a sun loving grape and ripens great.
      • The 2023 Malbec is also only available to the wine club, online, or at the winery,
    • The Cabernet Franc.
      • 60% of the fruit comes from two blocks at Chappellet.
      • Typically likes cool vintages, but can handle the heat.
      • You must pay very close attention at harvest. Cabernet Franc can go from underripe to overripe very quickly.
      • Their Cabernet Franc ages very well.
    • The “Las Piedras” Red Blend.
      • Uses all five Bordeaux varieties.
      • It must minimally include 50% Cabernet Sauvignon.
      • Then the best of the rest. Whatever shines in a given vintage gets the most in placement in the blend.
    • The “Signature” Cabernet Sauvignon.
      • The berries in 2023 were expanded and got bigger than usual.
    • The “Hideaway” Cabernet Sauvignon.
      • 2016 was the first vintage of Hideaway.
      • There are only 15 acres at the site.
      • It is always 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. However, there are multiple clones.
      • This wine will cellar nicely.
    • The “Pritchard Hill” Cabernet Sauvignon
      • 2018 Vintage – Considers it pretty.
      • 2019 Vintage – Considers it a weighted vintage.
      • 2021 Vintage – Shows power and structure.
      • 2023 Vintage – Just power!
    • The Mountain Cuvée.
      • Is their calling card wine and readily available thru distribution.
      • The fruit is a little bit young fruit and a little old vine fruit.
      • A lot of fruit comes from Rancho Salina vineyard, near Monte Rosso.
    • The Zinfandel label is a painting by the Liza the eldest daughter of Don and Molly.
    • Vintage Overviews
      • The 2026 vintage is their earliest vintage on record.
        • It is a full month ahead of their average harvest.
        • It is two months ahead of the 2023 vintage.
      • The 2025 vintage was a cooler vintage.
        • You didn’t get the desired brix.
        • It was a long window of maturity.
        • It was a race against rain at harvest. The speed of the sorter helped deliver the fruit on time.
      • The 2023 Vintage – What vintage!
        • It was the coldest vintage on record.
        • No distress.
        • Large crop (No Rains) (No Disruption)
        • 21 crush days.
        • They also got a new optical sorter in November.
          • They were able to process 8 to 10 tons per hour. (It used to be 4 tons per hour)
        • The wines have herbal aromatics.

The links below are to our full reviews. If you are interested in ordering and trying these wines, you will find the “Signature” Cab and the “Pritchard Hill” Cab via your favorite fine wine shop or on top quality wines lists. The Chenin, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and “Las Piedras” are also available for order via the Chappellet website. The “Pritchard Hill” and “Hideaway” are for members of the Pritchard Hill Estate Allocation list. If interested, you should join the list.

1. Chappellet 2025 Chenin Blanc “Signature” (Napa Valley) $75 (KWGTP 92)
2. Chappellet 2023 Merlot “Napa Valley” $70 (KWGTP 93.5)
3. Chappellet 2023 Malbec “Napa Valley” $75 (KWGTP 93.5)
4. Chappellet 2023 Cabernet Franc “Napa Valley” $95 (KWGTP 96)
5. Chappellet 2023 Red Blend “Las Piedras” (Napa Valley) $95 (KWGTP 94.5)
6. Chappellet 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon “Signature” (Napa Valley) $95 (KWGTP 94.5)
7. Chappellet 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon “Hideaway” (Napa Valley) $225 (KWGTP 97)
8. Chappellet 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon “Pritchard Hill” (Napa Valley) $325 (KWGTP 98.5)

Additional Chappellet Wine Covered In A Subsequent Tasting:
Chappellet 2023 Chardonnay “Grower Collection Sangiacomo” (Carneros) $60 (KWGTP 94)
Chappellet 2024 Red Blend “Mountain Cuvée Proprietor’s Blend” (Napa/Sonoma) $50 (KWGTP 92.5)

You can find reviews of past and future Chappellet wines that we cover on the Chappellet KWG winery page on our website. We hope you enjoy these terrific wines as much as we did. Cheers! – Ken