Fortunate Son

Fortunate Son is a Napa Valley winery, founded by the famous winery Hundred Acre, that focuses on heritage vineyards, rare micro-block sites, and modern winemaking.

History
Fortunate Son was launched in 2018 by renowned vintner Jayson Woodbridge, founder of the Hundred Acre Wine Group. The winery is located around historic vineyard sites in Napa Valley connected to some of the earliest winemakers of the region.

The home base is the David Fulton Ranch, a vineyard and property established in 1860 by the Fulton family, one of Napa’s earliest wine families. Woodbridge bought this estate in 2020 along with other heritage vineyard parcels like the Larkmead Lane property acquired in 2022, forming a network of sites rich with history.

The Vineyards
Fortunate Son’s vineyards include the historic David Fulton Ranch in St. Helena, dating back to the 1860s, and the 10-acre Madrigal property between Calistoga and St. Helena. These sites house vines that are often over 80 years old, planted in small heritage blocks.

The soils in these vineyard sites are well-known for their terroir, often consisting of volcanic rock, gravel, and clay loam. The vineyard blocks are farmed carefully, often with the expertise of viticulturalist Jim Barbour, to maintain the quality and production of these old vines. This patchwork of vineyards allows Fortunate Son to produce limited wines with a true sense of place and historic depth.​

The Terroir
The terroir of Fortunate Son’s vineyards varies but consistently features well-drained soils and ideal hillside locations that force the vines to struggle just enough to produce the unique flavors. The David Fulton Ranch, for example, benefits from elevations and cool mountain air to balance ripeness with freshness. The Madrigal vineyard shares similar topography and soil profiles, marked by volcanic and alluvial soils with fine gravel and clay. These conditions allow the wines to create depth, structure, and a beautiful flavor profile.

Way of Winemaking
The winemaking at Fortunate Son follows a strict, hands-on approach with low yields to guarantee quality. Fermentation takes place using local and cultured yeasts depending on the lot, often in small open-top fermenters with frequent punch downs for extraction.

Aging occurs in French oak barrels from highly regarded cooperages, with a blend of new and seasoned wood. The winery focuses on small-batch fermentations and blending to express its origin. Barrel aging times are extended to allow the wines to develop fully before release, often longer than most Napa producers take.​

3 Fun Facts
The David Fulton Ranch winery building, which is part of Fortunate Son, is one of the oldest in Napa Valley and has been restored because of its historical importance.

The vineyards are made up of very small, hand-farmed blocks sometimes measuring less than an acre, which proves the focus and importance of micro-terroir wines.

Fortunate Son wines have benefitted from the involvement of multiple generations of the Woodbridge family, including Jayson’s son Cameron, which guarantees the help of the long experience of the family in winemaking.​