Bond
— About —
“BOND came into being almost in parallel with Harlan Estate as a consequence of the empirical knowledge we gained, through trial and error, working with many vineyards in Napa Valley. Over a 25-year period we collaborated with over 100 growers and gradually selected five properties that exhibited clear differentiation in terms of geography and expressed distinct and striking characters. BOND was conceived as a small domain of seven- to eight-acre sites, each Grand Cru in quality and having a single soil type one orientation to the sun, and one varietal, Cabernet Sauvignon”
Words by Bill Harlan, owner of Domain H. William Harlan during interview with Hedonism Wines
THE PHILOSOPHY
“BOND – A portfolio of wines that are diverse in their geographic representation and ‘Grand Cru’ in quality, all under the umbrella of one philosophy, one team, one mark. Sourced from select hillside estates, the Cabernet Sauvignon wines of BOND vividly demonstrate the range of Napa Valley’s finest terroirs.
From the more than eighty vineyards we have worked with over the past quarter century, we have slowly and vigilantly selected five sites. BOND became our covenant and shared commitment to produce only the best expression of the land.
By way of this valuable experience, we had the opportunity to identify select properties that we felt had the potential to define the ‘Grand Crus’ of Napa Valley. These small hillside Cabernet vineyards, ranging in size from 7 to 11 acres, became the basis for the wines of BOND” – Notes by BOND team
THE ORIGINS + CREATION
The concept and vision of BOND started as early as 1982 as Bill Harlan began working with a mosiac of vineyards across the Napa Valley. Understanding unique plots planted in hillside positions (this was very rare at the time as the majority of established vineyards were on the valley floor) and establishing strong relationships with these growers was the foundation of BOND.
This process has been ongoing, with the team at BOND working with over 100 differing sites before finding 5 definitive sites that had the potential to be as they define ‘Grand Cru’s of Napa over a 40 year period. In 1996 after this reseach BOND was founded and the first wines were released in 1999. The search for the 6th site continues.
A very important cornerstone of BOND is these vineyards are exclusively hillside plantings of which Cabernet Sauvignon is the only grape used.
THE WINERY
The BOND winery is in fact a former home of the Harlan family, situated in the western foothills of Napa Valley near Oakville. The winery construction was completed in 1997, built underneath the family home and an aging cellar created just next to the house inside the hillside the winery rests upon.
THE LABEL
The labels of BOND are as unique as each vineyard. The paper they are printed on is in fact the a similiar stock as historically used for the US dollar. Each wine has a specific colour that is exclusive to BOND, reflecting the character of the wine.
“After considerable study and research, we garnered an introduction to the American Bank Note Company, a firm that traces its roots to the earliest days of our nation and that printed American currency and postage stamps up to the time of the Civil War. We were ultimately granted the rare privilege of searching their extensive archives.
The name BOND is a surname on Mr. Harlan’s mother’s side of the family. Additionally, it also came to represent the common bond, or covenant, to produce the best expression of the land. Lastly, given our investment in bank note imagery and security-mindedness, we couldn’t resist fashioning the wine label after that most classic of financial debenture instruments – a 19th century bond certificate. We deftly assembled a number of diverse elements – an allegorical portrait, elaborate borders and scrollwork, type fonts, etc. – to create a new translation that upholds M. Delacroix’s apt description above” – Notes by BOND team