Quail Hill Vineyard
Karen Schmautz
It was a thrilling moment when he realized that this captivating site of these gently rolling hills in the middle of an untouched woodland paradise would soon belong to him. It had a beauty like no other as he witnessed the sun cast bands of light across the vineyards, with the grand, ancient oak trees seeming to encircle the plot as longtime guards of this precious site. Then, as if out of a dream, a woman with long, flowing hair was examining some of his grapes on his vines, and he immediately realized that she did not materialize out of nothing… someone was trespassing on his property. He asked her why she was there and what she was doing with his grapes. “My name is Merry Edwards,” she said, “and these are the best grapes in the Russian River Valley.”
Quail Hill Estate
Karen Schmautz
Lynn Fritz was a visionary founder of an international logistics company and he had no intention of selling grapes. The property, Quail Hill Ranch and Vineyards, was mesmerizing and the minute he saw it, he knew this was where he wanted to spend his life. But even back in 1980, when Lynn first met her on that faithful day, Merry Edwards was already a rising wine star as the founding winemaker of Matanzas Creek Winery and she, with another star of the area, Tony Soter, at Etude Winery, greatly admired these Pinot Noir vines. This plot had some of the oldest in the Russian River Valley, still impressive with their longevity today, and their expression of sense of place, a.k.a. terroir, is unique and coveted by many looking for an Pinot Noir unofficial “Grand Cru” vineyard to make a wine to rival the greats of Burgundy.
And so, whether intended or not, Lynn was going to be a wine grape grower as he understood the importance of this vineyard and took the responsibility for becoming its custodian. He would make sure it wouldn’t fall into a conglomerate’s hands where it would get lost among a massive portfolio and not be treated with the reverence it deserves. And so, even though for a time he sold the grapes to superstar winemakers, he eventually started his own winery named Lynmar Estate.
Lynmar Estate
Anisya and Lynn Fritz
Lynmar Estate
Lynn ended up bringing on a key partner to establish and maintain core values, who would also become his partner in life – his wife, Anisya Fritz. Anisya has a remarkable background that is rooted in academia as she was a very successful professor of business with a focus on international humanitarian aid, and despite being a highly respected academic who earned tenure, she decided to step away from that life to become a founder with her husband of the Fritz Institute, a not-for-profit that assists with the logistics of delivering goods and aid to disaster areas worldwide. Also, the awareness that many of the small wine producers in the Russian River Valley, as well as the greater Sonoma County area, had very little entrepreneurship know-how and were at risk of not sustaining a viable business for their children and becoming vulnerable to larger companies that are preying on those families all the time, made her realized that her knowledge and skills were greatly needed within the community
So, she volunteered to teach entrepreneurship to those in the wine industry in Sonoma as she is not only committed to keeping her and her husband’s winery, Lynmar Estate, a thriving family business but she wants to keep that community of multigenerational families thriving as well – such as the children would have grown up with her son, and to make sure that her son’s generation will have even more opportunities for success.
Bigger Meaning For Sustainable
Lynmar Estate Hospitality Center
Karen Schmautz
Anisya talks with great pride about their conservation efforts such as buying contiguous properties to their main, legendary estate, Quail Hill Vineyard, that expands out to 100 acres with 45 acres planted to vines with 14 different Pinot Noir clones, with the remainder untouched woodland, which has been the home of a bald eagle for the past 20 years as well as having become an owl orphanage of sorts, as they work with a wildlife rescue organization that will place orphaned owls in monitored boxes where they will eventually be adopted by adults. But when it comes to having a sustainable business, she takes a tremendous amount of pride in making sure that they are able to provide for their employees, which includes a fulltime farming team to ensure that they have a good quality of life, which includes health insurance and 401(k) employer-sponsored retirement savings plans. And each year, they bring a couple of their employees on a trip to a renowned wine region to help educate them and provide wonderful experiences.
Lynmar Estate
Dawn Heumann
And part of the way that Anisya has ensured making their tiny winery viable is not only by growing the best fruit and retaining incredible winery and vineyard teams but creating an outstanding hospitality experience with a charming ambiance with wonderful cuisine by two chefs, a warm hospitality staff who live to make all visitors’ experiences ones they will always fondly remember and an absolutely enchanting guest house that offers the best of European charm with modern conveniences. Over time, they have added three other vineyards, four in total, that overlap three different appellations yet they still only produce 12,000 cases annually in total, tiny in the world of wine, and have no desire to get much larger as they want to keep their precision practices in the vineyards and winery such as picking block by block and using their gravity-flow facility to create 90 separate lots of wine in their cellar.
Every aspect is overseen by Anisya as she knows she always needs to reach for perfection in those experiences she is giving to her guests, as that is what makes a truly sustainable small business possible, allowing a better quality of life for her employees, which then circles back around with her employees wanting to do the best for Lynmar Estate.
Great Intimate Experiences Overshadow Legacy
Lynmar Estate and Quail Hill Vineyard
Karen Schmautz
As one can imagine, Lynmar has no issues selling every single bottle and having a devoted customer base, and so there has been no need to promote on a large scale the unofficial “Grand Cru” Pinot Noir vineyard, Quail Hill, that is so well-known by longtime locals as one of the best sites, as Merry Edwards had stated all those years ago.
And in that way, Quail Hill Vineyard is like how many of those iconic Pinot Noir vineyards in Burgundy used to be before they became widely known through sensational articles talking about the astronomical prices that these particular Burgundian Grand Cru vineyards would fetch at prestigious auction houses. Before their fame, these vineyards were quietly esteemed among the tight Burgundy community and among loyal Burgundy wine collectors, before prices became unattainable.
And so, although it is very easy to get swept away by the incredible hospitality and magnificence of the Lynmar Estate, when they are visiting, one should never forget how fortunate they are to be tasting wines from one of the legendary Pinot Noir vineyards of the Russian River Valley.
Lineup of Lynmar Estate wines
Cathrine Todd
2021 Lynmar Estate, Rosé de Blancs Sparkling Wine
Cathrine Todd
2021 Lynmar Estate, Rosé de Blancs Sparkling Wine, Susanna’s Vineyard, Sonoma Coast, California: 98% Chardonnay (Wente clone) and 2% Pinot Noir (Swan clone) all sourced from Lynmar’s Susanna’s Vineyard – named after Anisya’s grandmother. Susanna’s Vineyard sweeps across a cool pocket nestled within the Green Valley, Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast appellations. Made in the traditional Champagne method and showing brilliantly, with lovely notes of toasted almonds, strawberries and white flowers emanating from the glass with tiny, refined bubbles that caress the palate with a slightly creamy texture. Suggested retail price: $70. Only 501 cases made.
Lynmar Estate Chardonnay wines
Cathrine Todd
2023 Lynmar Estate “La Sereinité” Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California: A blend of estate vineyards: Susanna’s Vineyard, Quail Hill Vineyard and Adam’s Vineyard of 100% Chardonnay (Wente clone). Named after the Serein River in Chablis, as it showcases cool-climate Russian River Valley Chardonnay with an exciting tension and crisp acidity, with juicy nectarine fruit and a saline minerality that has a wonderful mid-palate weight and textural component that brings this elegant Chardonnay to the next level. Suggested retail price: $82. Only 476 cases made.
2021 Lynmar Estate, Quail Hill Vineyard, Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California: 100% Chardonnay from their legendary Quail Hill Vineyard, where it is located in the cooler pockets among the site’s undulating slopes with the old vine Rued clone and more recent plantings of Wente selections. A fantastic, incisive Chardonnay that articulates all its beauty and complexity with exquisite finesse with hints of river stones, orange oil and blossoming honeysuckles that has marked acidity and a long, sustained finish. Suggested retail price: $71. Only 466 cases made.
Lynmar Estate Pinot Noir wines
Cathrine Todd
2021 Lynmar Estate, Quail Hill Vineyard, Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California: 100% Pinot Noir from their legendary Quail Hill Vineyard that is a mixture of 14 different clones from 16 blocks and a variety of various soils and aspects along the undulating slopes. A powerful Pinot Noir that is multifaceted yet extremely elegant, with big, silky tannins and alluring dark fruit tinged with notes of rose petals and exotic spice, and a long, flavorful finish that is quite impressive. Suggested retail price: $79. Only 1,251 cases made.
2022 Lynmar Estate “Anisya’s Blend” Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, California: 100% Pinot Noir that is a selection of only Calera and Swan clones, as they are Anisya’s favorite, from Susanna’s Vineyard, which is a full ten degrees cooler than Quail Hill Vineyard. A stunningly lifted nose with violets, smoked tea, damask rose and wild red berries with an overall pure and seamless quality as the ultra-refined tannins create an impeccable texture that has an incredible depth while remaining nimble and bright with a long, perfumed finish. Suggested retail price: $95. Only 393 cases made.
2023 Lynmar Estate, Adam’s Vineyard, Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California: 100% Pinot Noir from Lynmar’s warmest estate, Adam’s Vineyard – named after Lynn and Anisya’s son, which sits above the fog line on a hillside in Forestville overlooking the Russian River Valley. A generously delectable wine with a delightful sense of place, as notes of forest floor and wildflowers waft from the glass with delicious flavors of black cherry and raspberry tarts knitted together with fine tannins. Suggested retail price: $79. Only 751 cases made.
Dining and Cooking