United States · California

Fait-Main

Havens Wine Cellars was a small Napa Valley winery founded by Michael Havens in the late 1980s, specializing in Merlot and Rhône varieties at a time when both were underexplored by Napa's Cabernet-centric establishment. The winery built a following with its Bourriquot Syrah blend and Hudson Vineyard Syrah before Michael Havens retired and sold the label to subsequent ownership. Hudson Vineyard in Carneros — shared with Kistler, Kongsgaard, and other acclaimed producers — is one of California's most celebrated multi-producer sites for Chardonnay, Syrah, and Viognier. Havens' Reserve Merlot was produced from premium Napa sources and positioned as a Pomerol-influenced alternative at a time when Napa Merlot was more commonly treated as an accessible varietal rather than a collectible category. At auction, 112 lots average just $46 per bottle — the lowest average in this dataset — reflecting the label's discontinued status and the modest collectibility of the wines relative to more famous Napa Merlot producers. The Hudson Syrah is the most interesting lot from a terroir perspective, occasionally reaching $60–$80 for late 1990s vintages when it earned strong scores from Robert Parker. The Bourriquot blend was among the first commercial expressions of Syrah-based blending in Napa Valley, preceding the broader California Rhône Rangers movement's commercial traction.