Valravn

In 2008, three guys hatched a business in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood. The plan: to buy some stellar barrels of Pinot Noir, label them as their own, and sell the wine for a steal. This was the humble beginnings of Banshee Wines, which went on to become one of the leading value Pinot Noir producers in California. Every vintage was a patchwork quilt of sorts: purchased fruit and wine from dozens of plots throughout Sonoma Valley.
Six years later, in 2014, a friend offered us some old-vine Zinfandel grapes. Not just any zin, though; these were the old, bush-pruned vines that we had always envied from afar as we drove by this amazing gnarly vineyard all the time. However, the focus on Banshee was always Pinot Noir, so we decided that the Zinfandel deserved its own identity: Valravn.
The name Banshee has roots in Irish mythology (though that was not, in fact, the real inspiration for the name – another story, another time), so we looked to similar lore in other cultures for inspiration, finding Valravn in Danish folklore of the 1800s. Valravn Zinfandel was launched in 2014, the first iteration of our new model: grapes to glass. In 2017, another opportunity presented itself, and we expanded the Valravn line to include Chardonnay, Cabernet, and Pinot Noir, anchored in Sonoma County.
Valravn represents over a decade of working and learning in the Sonoma Valley. Over the years, we have established a dynamic network of friends and colleagues, including vineyard owners, growers, and winemakers. While we successfully navigated the négociant market with Banshee, Valravn represents the next evolutionary step for us.
Because of these relationships, we have exclusive access to grapes from a select group of fantastic vineyards, allowing our winemaking team to oversee hands-on production from vineyard to bottle. We are proud of our past achievements and excited to bring to fruition a decade of learning and focus, bringing authentic wines to the table that we have found, seen, and touched at every step.
Today, Valravn spreads its wings as we continue to seek out similar opportunities, finding a vineyard parcel here and a row there to craft quintessential Sonoma County wines: ones that are approachable out of the gate, delicious, and table-ready.