The historic Trubody Ranch, a prominent and historic Napa Valley vineyard property that has supplied premium producers for decades, has changed hands for the first time in over a century and will now be the main source for a wine venture by some of the region’s most notable restaurateurs.
KHK Wines — short for Keller Hall Keller — was founded as a vineyard partnership among celebrity chef Thomas Keller of The French Laundry, the Hall family of Hall’s Chophouse, and fourth-generation Napa grape grower Lindsay Keller and her real estate investor husband, Jim Keller.
Keller family entities purchased the ranch Jan. 15 in a deal recorded at $11 million but ultimately totaling $13 million with financing, according to Jim Keller. The property went on the market for the first time in September 2024 for $29.5 million.
Frank Deras photo
Undated photo of the 144-acre Trubody Ranch property in the Oak Knoll appellation in Napa Valley. The Trubody family purchased the first acreage there in the 1860s with money from the Gold Rush. The Page family received the property in a will from the Trubody family in the 1960s and planted the first grapes in 1970. The property had over 122 acres of planted grape vines when it went on the market in September 2024. (Frank Deras photo)
Frank Deras photo
Undated photo of the 144-acre Trubody Ranch property in the Oak Knoll appellation in Napa Valley. The Trubody family purchased the first acreage there in the 1860s with money from the Gold Rush. The Page family received the property in a will from the Trubody family in the 1960s and planted the first grapes in 1970. The property had over 122 acres of planted grape vines when it went on the market in September 2024. (Frank Deras photo)
Frank Deras photo
Undated photo of the 144-acre Trubody Ranch property in the Oak Knoll appellation in Napa Valley. The Trubody family purchased the first acreage there in the 1860s with money from the Gold Rush. The Page family received the property in a will from the Trubody family in the 1960s and planted the first grapes in 1970. The property had over 122 acres of planted grape vines when it went on the market in September 2024. (Frank Deras photo)
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Frank Deras photo
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Undated photo of the 144-acre Trubody Ranch property in the Oak Knoll appellation in Napa Valley. The Trubody family purchased the first acreage there in the 1860s with money from the Gold Rush. The Page family received the property in a will from the Trubody family in the 1960s and planted the first grapes in 1970. The property had over 122 acres of planted grape vines when it went on the market in September 2024. (Frank Deras photo)
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The Page family, which owned the property prior to the sale, had farmed in Napa Valley for 134 years. The ranch, located in the Oak Knoll District appellation between Yountville and Napa, includes nearly 123 planted acres and has sold fruit to producers including Duckhorn, Groth, Krug and The Prisoner. Other features are a three-bedroom Victorian farmhouse built around 1872, along with a water tower, guest house and orchard.
In announcing the acquisition on KHK’s Instagram feed Jan. 16, Jim Keller said the property aligns with the winery’s long-term strategy.
“KHK has scored the perfect long term Cabernet source for our flagship wine,” he wrote. “This is such a perfect time to be entering into the wine business. Making moves in this vineyard real estate economy allows us to deliver on today’s Napa quality at yesterday’s prices for a premium Cabernet.”
KHK’s flagship label is nicknamed “the restaurant wine” and has a suggested retail price of $79 a bottle. The small-scale direct-to-consumer Cab label, called Hillside, retails for $125. Renowned consulting winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown makes the main wine at Cardinale and Hillside at Mending Wall Winery.
But Trubody Ranch will need some help to become that new source for grapes, Keller said.
“We have a bit of work to do in the vineyard,” he said.
Only about 15 acres is currently planted for Cabernet Sauvignon. Other than Sauvignon Blanc acreage currently under grape contract, vines for other varietal fruit will be removed.
The brand has just signed up with wholesaler Massanois for distribution in all 50 states. Currently, The Restaurant Wine is sold to steakhouses and other high-end restaurants in California, Texas, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Grape sourcing has grown with the labels. Fruit for Hillside comes from Shifflett Ranch, owned by Lindsay Keller’s family. After the Keller family’s 36-acre vineyard at Yountville Cross and State Lane was sold to Silver Oak Cellars in 2023, fruit for the restaurant wine came from Bettinelli Vineyards, which now is consulting on Trubody Ranch replanting.
Jeff Quackenbush joined North Bay Business Journal in May 1999. He covers primarily wine, construction and real estate. Reach him at jeff@nbbj.news or 707-521-4256.
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