Inside look at... Kendall-Jackson

Affordable luxury with an eye to the future

The influence of Californian winery Kendall-Jackson cannot be underestimated. Indeed, founder, visionary and winemaker Jess Jackson is the founder of the popularity of Californian Chardonnay - particularly thanks to his Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay, which made him one of the most successful independent winemakers in the world. - TEXT VERBUNT VERLINDEN

Since the first planting in a pear and walnut orchard in 1974, wine has been in the best of hands with the family. Although the family of winemakers has expanded over the years, the family culture is one thing that has not changed. Wine is their passion! From this passion comes the vision. To grow distinctive wines, conduct business ethically and develop the staff. Anno 2021, Barbara Banke is the current owner of Kendall-Jackson Winery. Banke is one of the top managers and innovators within the wine industry. She spent the past two decades running the company she founded with her husband Jess Jackson, who died in 2011, while building and expanding one of the most beloved wine companies in the country. With success, for good reason - in 2013, Barbara was the very first woman to win Wine Enthusiast Magazine's Wine Personality of the Year award.

Affordable luxury

When Jess created Kendall-Jackson's first vintage, his goal was simple. He believed that no matter where you live - be it California or South Carolina - everyone deserves affordable luxury. For him, this meant giving customers quality wine at a reasonable price. And that includes the Vintner's Reserve, Kendall-Jackson's flagship series of wines. Which emphasises complex fruit flavours from the best vineyards. Winemaker Randy Ullom, who has been with Kendall-Jackson for more than 27 years, is tireless. Ullom is still working hard to carry forward Jess' vision. Together with his team, Ullom leads a leading barrel programme (95 per cent of Kendall-Jackson's Chardonnay is wood-aged in French oak). And he diligently manages vineyards set in cool maritime climates along the hills, mountains and ridges of California to ensure unparalleled quality.

Sustainability

At Kendall-Jackson, they are taking big steps to leave a small environmental footprint. They are redefining business as usual to lead the industry, feeling obliged to also be leaders in renewable energy, on-site energy storage, greenhouse gas reduction, water conservation, and waste management. Sustainability is part of the main goal of producing wines of the highest quality. For example, Kendall-Jackson has reduced water consumption by 32 per cent since 2008, a saving of over 109 thousand litres of water per year. Moreover, the wines are produced and bottled using the largest solar generator in the wine industry. They have 7,100 kW of solar panels in place that power almost 30 per cent of the annual winemaking operations.

This produces enough clean energy annually to also power more than 1,300 households. Finally, all vineyards and wineries are certified by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance as sustainable - to the full 100 per cent. The vineyards have minimal impact on the environment. They use advanced, industry-leading farming methods to maintain soil improvement, erosion control and healthy ecosystems. They do this by using native ground covers and natural enemies such as raptors, owls and bats.

Respect

All this makes Kendall-Jackson the benchmark within American family wineries for high-quality, sustainable wine from California. These are wines made from grapes from high-altitude vineyards with influence from the sea, giving the wines a unique character. Kendall-Jackson's philosophy is therefore 'farmer first': making good wine starts with respect for the land, the community and future generations.

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