Stonefly Featured in Sony Vaio Ads


When Sony started a new ad campaign in dozens of glossy magazines, it looked for a stylish wine to compliment its cutting-edge Vista-based Vaio notebook computers. Naturally Sony turned to Stonefly Vineyard.

View the full ad here.

Visit the Sony Vaio website here.


Stonefly Honored for Challanging the Law
From the Napa Valley Register, December 7, 2007

The three Napa Valley vintners who challenged a law that prevented them from pouring wine at charitable events or donating wine to charities were honored last week by Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, who authored a bill that changed the law.

The trio — Eagle Eye Wines, Elkhorn Peak Cellars and StoneFly Vineyards — were cited at a fundraiser in Tiburon in May 2006 and were told that they could either have their licenses suspended or pay a fine. They opted instead to appeal and after a lengthy hearing before an administrative law judge, their licenses were suspended for 10 days, with five days of the suspension stayed, provided that no violations or disciplinary actions occur within the next year.

But the incident started a firestorm of protest, especially from nonprofit organizations that depend on donations from wineries to raise funds through auctions.

Evans stepped into the fray, bolstered by the support of major wine and agricultural organizations, and guided AB 323 through the Sacramento maze. She obtained unanimous approval in both houses of the legislature and got Gov. Schwarzenegger to sign the bill as emergency legislation in July so it could take effect immediately.

Last Thursday at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone she presented each of the vintners — Bill Wolf of Eagle Eye, Ken Nerlove of Elkhorn Peak and Claudia Sansone of StoneFly Vineyards — with framed copies of the resolution including original signatures of the governor and legislative leaders.

Read The Rest of the Story Here >>



Guess what! We just won a Silver Medal!

Thirty of the most powerful women in wine say our StoneFly Vineyard 2004 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a winner!

The National Women's Wine Competition is the first and only competition where wines from across the nation were blind taste-tested by 30 of the most accomplished and respected women winemakers, writers, educators, master sommeliers and consultants in the wine industry.

Over 1850 wines were tasted and evaluated by seven panels of judges. Judges were specifically instructed to grant awards only to those bottles that the judges agreed were outstanding.

And StoneFly Vineyard's 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon won a silver medal.

Rob and Claudia visit the Loire:

2007 brings in the second generation:

Marketing Director: JJ Sansone, hard at work.

When he is not immersed in the wine world with StoneFly Vineyard or waist deep in the Snake River in Idaho fly fishing with stoneflies, JJ (the entrepreneurial marketing maniac), runs an independent record company call The NEST Records in Hollywood, California. Through his multiple unique roles, JJ has cultivated some cross-over marketing campaigns that tie in his passions for the dynamic worlds of fly fishing, wine and music. No one actually knows if he ever sleeps. Look for him at the next wine dinner event near you where StoneFly is being served. Be sure to ask your local wine event organizers and wine shop proprietors to book this guy to come speak at your next wine dinner.  This jet setter has been traveling the country giving people the opportunity to be exposed to the wines of one of the worlds finest from the Napa Valley… StoneFly Vineyard.

He can be reached at: jj@stoneflyvineyard.com, when he’s not sleeping…which is always.

Watch for us!

August, 2005

Napa vintner, dentist and artist/sculptor, Rob Hampton, used his passion for fly-fishing to entice bids reaching $11,000 from the Sun Valley Wine Auction in Sun Valley, Idaho at the end of July. 

StoneFly Vineyard’s signature wines are Cabernet Franc and Caberenet Sauvignon, available in limited quantities.  All bottles feature a clever fishing line winding from the base to the neck of the bottle, and a cork inviting the reader to “Tie one on”. 

Rob’s fishing-themed auction collection included a hand-painted fly-fishing scene adorning an etched five-litre bottle of StoneFly Vineyard’s 2002 Cabernet Franc,  his canvas companion fly-fishing scene, Fishing on the Lost River, and was paired with a float trip down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.

Proceeds of the auction were donated to The Sun Valley Center for the Arts.

July, 2005

Dear Friends, It was bound to happen: StoneFly Cabernet Franc has turned a corner.

After discovering this elegant, seductive variety for ourselves on a trip to the Loire Valley in the mid 80's, we went on something of a mission to duplicate its many charms here in California. A decade later, after a successful search for the best vineyard site we could find in Napa Valley, we debuted our 1996 Cabernet Franc. Now, several highly acclaimed vintages later, we're considered one of the valley's leading producers of this wonderful variety - and a couple of others you might know.

Of course, it hasn't happened by accident, or without help.

Enter our newest partner in the StoneFly venture: Claudia Sansone. From writing cookbooks to running her own cooking school to rubbing elbows with some of the world's best-known chefs, Claudia boasts a fantastic culinary resumé. And while she has extensive, hands-on experience in kitchens around the United States and Europe, she's equally at home in television studios, working with celebrity chefs and wine professionals like Jacques Pepin, Michael Chiarello, and Andrea Immer. In addition, Claudia worked for several years in the 90's as Senior Editor for Outbound Traveler Magazine and also coordinated the magazine's special events and public relations.

Claudia's extensive media experience and wonderful culinary savvy are a unique combination of talents. We're happy to have her on board.

So, as we turn a new corner together, Claudia and Rob invite you experience StoneFly for yourself and "tie one on."