Mount Eden Vineyards: winery information
Winemaker: F. Jeffrey Patterson
A native Californian, Jeffrey Patterson graduated from U.C. Berkeley in 1975 with a degree in biology. While in Berkeley, he witnessed and participated in the emergence of northern California’s fine wine and food culture. An enthusiastic wine drinker and collector, Jeffrey decided to pursue a career in the wine business and, in 1979, enrolled in the U.C. Davis viticulture and enology program, where he studied for two years. In 1981, Patterson became assistant winemaker at Mount Eden Vineyards. He had visited the Santa Cruz Mountain winery in 1978 and believed Mount Eden, with its long history of fine wine production, would be an ideal place to practice his craft. Jeffrey and his wife Ellie, a U.C. Berkeley history graduate, ornamental horticulturist, and textile artist, thus left Berkeley to begin a new life 2,000 feet above the Santa Clara Valley. A little over a year after his arrival, Patterson was promoted to head winemaker and general manager, and Ellie became the winery’s business manager. In 1986, they became significant shareholders in the company and, in 1993, Jeffrey became the winery's president.
Annual Production: 12,000 cases
Grape Varieties Planted