{"id":2840,"date":"2026-09-02T01:45:42","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T01:45:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/?p=2840"},"modified":"2026-09-02T01:45:42","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T01:45:42","slug":"winemaker-interview-series-jeff-gaffner-of-saxon-brown-may-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/?p=2840","title":{"rendered":"Winemaker Interview Series &#8211; Jeff Gaffner of Saxon Brown &#8211; May 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Black-Kite-Jeff-Gaffner.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2133\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Black-Kite-Jeff-Gaffner.jpg\" alt=\"Jeff Gaffner\" width=\"353\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Black-Kite-Jeff-Gaffner.jpg 353w, https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Black-Kite-Jeff-Gaffner-235x300.jpg 235w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 353px) 100vw, 353px\" \/><\/a>On Thursday, May 28, 2026, we had the opportunity to interview <a href=\"https:\/\/www.saxonbrown.com\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><u>Jeff Gaffner<\/u><\/strong><\/a> again. Jeff is the winemaker and owner of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.saxonbrown.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><u>Saxon Brown Wines<\/u><\/strong><\/a>. During the interview, we covered four single-vineyard 2023 Chardonnays, three Pinot Noirs, a cuvee, and two single-vineyard offerings, also from the 2023 vintage. We wrapped up the tasting with a 2023 Zinfandel. In this post, we also added reviews from a 2023 single-vineyard Zinfandel and another 2023 single-vineyard Chardonnay that we covered in subsequent tastings. We wrapped up the interview with some updates and tidbits that Jeff shared with the group since our last chat. You can read the summary of our reviews of all these new-release wines in this post!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Before we get to the wines, I thought I would share some tidbits that Jeff shared in the interview.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\">2023 Vintage Update<\/span><\/strong><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Everything lined up nicely.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Vines are in balance and performed well.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Larger Crop.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">If you could not make great wine in 2023, perhaps you should try something else!<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Green Acres Hill is a section of the Sangiacomo Vineyard.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The wind at Green Acres and its stony soil adds influences.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Roberts Road Chardonnay is a combination of Dijon clone and Robert Young clone.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Durell Vineyard &#8211; Most of the Chard goes to Kistler. Some to Three Sticks before Jeff get his.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The \u201cFighting Brothers\u201d wines are named for his two sons, Jason ,and Tyler, who\u2019ve managed to blend their many differences into something approaching harmony.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">These are Jeff&#8217;s entry level wines.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The Pinot Noir is a blend of three vineyards. Jeff says that the Roberts Road Vineyard offers feminine qualities to the blend, while Durell offers an earth tone, and Gap\u2019s Crown brings in cherry flavors.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The 2023 \u201cFighting Brothers\u201d Pinot Noir is blend of 45% Roberts Road and 27.5% each from Gap\u2019s Crown and Durell.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The 2023 \u201cFighting Brothers\u201d Zin is a blend of 3 small vineyards Sonoma Valley.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Two of the vineyards are a field blend of mixed black grapes.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The third vineyard is 100% Zinfandel.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">All the grapes for this wine picked and co-fermented together.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Roberts Road Pinot Noir is owned by Sangiacomo Family<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">It is 80 acres and is broken into 4 sections.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">There are four clones grown there: 777, Pommard, 115, and Swan.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The Gap\u2019s Crown Pinot Noir has two clones.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">777 clone grown at the bottom of the vineyard and 115 grown at the top.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The 2023 vintage was a 50%\/50% blend of both clones.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The barrels and cooper for all the Saxon Brown wines are exactly the same. So, that variable is neutral. This helps preserve the refection of the vineyard.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Update on Other and Future wines.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Jeff has made a 2025 Chenin Blanc from Freestone. There are 75 cases and it is bottled. These are labeled as Mabelton.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Jeff has made a Cote Rotie styled Syrah wine called \u201cCordell Bank\u201d from the 2019, 2021, and 2022 vintages. We look forward to covering these wines.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Jeff uses 5-7% Viognier in the blend.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The wines have a cold marine influence.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">These wines are currently under Saxon Brown, however, will eventually have its own label.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Below is a summary of all the impressive wines that we covered with Jeff. The links are to our full reviews. If you are interested in ordering these wines, you find a few of them via your favorite wine shop or fine dining restaurant. The rest are available for order via the <a href=\"https:\/\/members.saxonbrown.com\/wines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown website<\/strong><\/a> or even better, you can request them by e-mailing Tracey at <span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong><u><a style=\"color: #0000ff;\" href=\"mailto:Tracey@saxonbrown.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tracey@saxonbrown.com<\/a><\/u><\/strong><\/span>. As Jeff says, Tracey is the glue that keeps Saxon Brown together and keeps Jeff organized so he can concentrate on making wine.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Saxon-Brown-Logo.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2623\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Saxon-Brown-Logo.gif\" alt=\"Saxon Brown Logo\" width=\"300\" height=\"195\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">1) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Green-Acres-Hill-Vineyard-Chardonnay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Chardonnay &#8220;Green Acres Hill Vineyard&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Carneros) $75 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 93<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">2) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Roberts-Road-Vineyard-Chardonnay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Chardonnay &#8220;Roberts Road&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Coast) $85 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 92.5<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">3) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Hyde-Vineyard-Chardonnay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Chardonnay \u201cHyde Vineyard\u201d<\/strong><\/a> (Carneros) $90 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 92.5<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">4) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Durell-Vineyard-Chardonnay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Chardonnay &#8220;Durell Vineyard&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Coast) $75 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 94<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">5) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Fighting-Brothers-Pinot-Noir\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Pinot Noir &#8220;Fighting Brothers&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Coast) $75 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 93<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">6) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Roberts-Road-Vineyard-Pinot-Noir\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Pinot Noir &#8220;Roberts Road&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Coast) $75 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 93.5<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">7) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Gaps-Crown-Vineyard-Pinot-Noir\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Pinot Noir &#8220;Gap&#8217;s Crown Vineyard&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Coast) $75 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 94<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">8) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Fighting-Brothers-Zinfandel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Zinfandel &#8220;Fighting Brothers&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Valley) $50 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 92.5<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong><u>Additional Saxon Brown Covered In Subsequent Tastings:<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">9) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Richard-Dinner-Vineyard-Chardonnay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Chardonnay \u201cRichard Dinner Vineyard\u201d<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Mountain) $90 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 96<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">10) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine_review\/Saxon-Brown-2023-Stonewall-Block-Zinfandel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Saxon Brown 2023 Zinfandel &#8220;Stonewall Block&#8221;<\/strong><\/a> (Sonoma Valley) $50 (<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>KWGTP 93<\/strong><\/span>)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">You can find reviews of past and future Saxon Brown wines that we cover on the <strong><u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/wine.php?winery=2800\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Saxon Brown KWG winery page<\/a><\/u><\/strong> on our website. We hope you enjoy these terrific wines as much as we did. Cheers! \u2013 Ken<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Thursday, May 28, 2026, we had the opportunity to interview Jeff Gaffner again. Jeff is the winemaker and owner of Saxon Brown Wines. During the interview, we covered four single-vineyard 2023 Chardonnays, three Pinot Noirs, a cuvee, and two single-vineyard offerings, also from the 2023 vintage. We wrapped up the tasting with a 2023 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1823,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[92,1544,13,34,3629,1457,3160,3161,2049,3162,3353,2517,11,2311,12,3643,1187,3644,3163,2549,1444,1120,2070,70,1456,31,126,8,6,240,1292,39,1288],"tags":[3639,3014,1551,491,1047,3159,3635,3622,1468,1455,3641,1475,1448,3146,1763,1447,3638,3642,492,3626,3637,2520,3322,2051,2523,1635,1446,2522,1124,268,3636,3640,1462,3152,1272,523],"class_list":["post-2840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-california","category-carneros","category-chardonnay","category-chenin-blanc","category-dijon-clone","category-durell-vineyard","category-fighting-brothers","category-freestone-vineyard","category-gaps-crown","category-green-acres-hill-vineyard","category-hyde-vineyard","category-jeff-gaffner","category-kens-wine-guide-tasting-panel","category-library-selection","category-pinot-noir","category-pommard-clone","category-red-wine","category-richard-dinner-vineyard","category-roberts-road-vineyard","category-sangiacomo-vineyard","category-saxon-brown","category-sonoma-coast","category-sonoma-valley","category-sonoma-wines","category-three-sticks","category-viognier","category-wine-ratings","category-wine-recommendations","category-wine-reviews","category-wine-tasting","category-winemaker","category-zinfandel","category-zoom-wine-tasting","tag-115-clone","tag-777-clone","tag-carneros","tag-chardonnay","tag-chenin-blanc","tag-cordell-bank","tag-cote-rotie","tag-dijon-clone","tag-durell-vineyard","tag-fighting-brothers","tag-freestone","tag-gaps-crown-vineyard","tag-gaps-crown","tag-green-acres-hill-vineyard","tag-hyde-vineyard","tag-jeff-gaffner","tag-kistler","tag-mabelton","tag-pinot-noir","tag-pommard-clone","tag-richard-dinner","tag-richard-dinner-vineyard","tag-robert-young-clone","tag-roberts-road","tag-roberts-road-vineyard","tag-sangiacomo-vineyard","tag-saxon-brown","tag-saxon-brown-winery","tag-sonoma-coast","tag-sonoma-valley","tag-stonewall-block","tag-swan-clone","tag-three-sticks","tag-tracey-walker","tag-viognier","tag-zinfandel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2840"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2840\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2845,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2840\/revisions\/2845"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}