Monte Lago vineyards is a small family owned vineyard nestled in the hills between California's largest freshwater lake, Clear Lake, and the High Valley watershed. The hillside vineyard derives its name from the volcanic Mt. Konocti, "Monte", and the picturesque Clear Lake, "Lago".

Our North Slope plantings enjoy long ripening seasons with hot summer days and cool nights caressed by the cool gentle breezes of the lake. The ideal weather, temperatures, soils and the unique effects of the lake combine to produce the most intense and flavorful fruit.

Monte Lago wines are single vineyard wines made to represent this unique region. We believe we have captured the indescribable qualities of "terroir" in each bottle. Our hand crafted wines are truly the essence of the berries on the vine and should age beautifully in the cellar. As a family winery, we make only limited quantities. We hope you enjoy our wine.

Jacqueline Dharmapalan
(Proprietor)

Monte Lago Vineyards is situated on the 500-acre Dharmapalan Estate in Clearlake Oaks, California. The estate is nestled between California’s largest lake, Clearlake, and the High Valley watershed. The estate and the vineyards overlook the lake and Mount Konocti to the south and High Valley with its distant mountain ranges to the north.

View of Monte Lago Vineyards looking South towards Clearlake

The Vineyards

The vineyards are 130 acres of the finest hillside plantings in Lake County. The vineyards are immaculately planned and developed to the highest standards of modern viticulture. All of the plantings straddle the high ridge and take advantage of the desirable north and south facing slopes. The vineyards are irrigated by a fully load-balanced drip system. The system is fed by several wells on the property. The soil and drainage conditions have shown to be conducive to the highest quality grape production. The long growing season with warm summer days and cool breezy nights make this a special appellation.



The Estate

The remainder of the Dharmapalan estate, approximately 370 acres, is maintained as a nature preserve suitable for the bountiful wild life in Clearlake Oaks. All development of the estate has been conducted in an environmentally sensitive manner preserving flora, fauna and the natural beauty of the surroundings. Sightings of deer, black bear, wild turkey and various other wildlife are not uncommon.

Natural Habitat

The estate is maintained in its natural state and is hospitable to the wild life that lives on the property. The property incorporates several deer crossings to accommodate their natural migration habits. The grass savannah and blue oak savannah are preserved in an effort to encourage natural habitat.

Monte Lago – Grass Savannah	Monte Lago – Blue Oak Savannah

The Vines

Our hillside plantings enjoy long ripening seasons with hot summer days and cool nights caressed by the gentle breezes of the lake. The ideal weather, temperatures, soils and the unique effects of the lake combine to produce the most intense and flavorful fruit. We maintain low yields to ensure the highest quality of fruit.

We have planted highly sought after varietals to suite each particular block on the vineyard. The North facing slopes are primarily Bordeaux varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petite Verdot. The South facing slopes are dedicated to Rhone varieties of Syrah, Petite Syrah, Grenache and Mouvedre. Due to the unique climate characteristics of the location we have also found that our Tempranillo, Zinfandel and Sauvignon Blanc varieties thrive. Root stock and clones have been carefully matched to the site, soil, weather and variety.

Elevation

The vineyards are planted at elevations of between 2000 feet and 2400 feet above sea level. The hillside plantings take advantage of full sun exposure and thrive on the long warm days of summer. We have paid special attention to vineyard orientation and row direction to maximize sun and wind exposure. The unique geographical location of the vineyard benefits from the cooling breezes of the lake in the late summer afternoons. In the winter and the early spring these same breezes help protect the vines from frost.