A Legacy Poured Forward
Aimée Sunseri’s winemaking journey to New Clairvaux…
Walking into Aimée Sunseri’s office is like entering a world of alchemy. A wondrous place full of test tubes and mixers. A place where magic happens, a place where grapes enter and leave as the “nectar of the gods.”
Sunseri was named the 2017 and 2023 Best Woman Winemaker in the International Women’s Wine Competition. In 2020, her New Clairvaux Vineyard Petite Sirah was honored as the Best of the Best in the same competition with 99 points. In 2023 and 2024, she won Best of Show for white wine at the California State Fair. Sunseri is also the winemaker at the Nichelini Family Winery and won the top prize of Winery of the Year this year from the California State Fair.
Sunseri’s office in the New Clairvaux Vineyard in Vina is steeped in history. In 1846, it was a small vineyard owned by Peter Lassen. In 1881, Leland Stanford purchased the land, expanded it to more than 55,000 acres and created what was then the world’s largest wine operation. In 1955, 600 acres of the original Vina Ranch was purchased by Trappist-Cistercian Monks and became the Abbey of New Clairvaux.
While history was playing out in Vina, Sunseri’s great-great grandfather was building a wine operation in the Napa Valley. “Anton and Caterina Nichelini were my great-great-grandparents. They came to the Napa Valley in 1887 because of the Homestead Act. They came from Switzerland near the Italian border by Lake Como in a region that is just like what they found in Napa. I think it reminded them of home.” The Nichelini Family Winery is still operating, with Sunseri as the winemaker.
Sunseri is not a stranger to hard work. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara in 2001 with honors and a degree in biopsychology. “I grew up in Chico, and my father owned property and some cattle. When I was home from college for the summer, I would help out. I love working outside; the sunrises and sunsets, the watering, they were the best summers of my life. My father decided to put in a small vineyard on our property. He knew the Abbott at New Clairvaux Monastery and they talked about sharing equipment and expertise to put in experimental vineyards on their properties, and that’s where
it started.”
While she was home from school in the summer of 2000, her father volunteered her to help the monks get their vineyard started. “I was telling one of the monks about my family in Napa and how they’ve been making wine for 100 years. It had not occurred to me that this would be my career. He turned to me and said, ‘Why are you not propagating your family’s legacy?’ Such a simple thing; it struck me and just never left my head.” Sunseri talked to her family about pursuing a career as a winemaker and they were very supportive, so she went on to UC Davis and graduated with honors and degrees in both viticulture and enology.
It seems fate had a special plan for Sunseri.
Since that time, her father has bought full interest in the Nichelini Family Winery in the foothills of the Napa Valley. Sunseri is now the wine maker at both the Nichelini Family Winery and the New Clairvaux Winery in Vina. Though neither Peter Lassen nor Leland Stanford ever met Anton and Caterina Nichelini, they are now joined, five generations later, through Aimée Sunseri.
Talking about how much of wine making is science and how much is art, Sunseri says, “You have to make a stable product. That’s the science part of it. All of my final decisions in making a wine with a unique personality, the cherry on top, is all art. My style of winemaking is very fresh, youthful wines that are low in alcohol with good acidity and food friendly. When I’m doing a bench trial, there’s one of the glasses that just sings to me in my palate and my nose. And I know that’s what I want, that’s the one. I don’t know where that comes from, but I’m very confident in it.”
When asked about failure, Aimée said, “I actually like failure, because I’m an avid learner. Failure is one of those things you need to get better. It’s my catalyst to improve. Failure is a very welcome feature of my life. It shows me where to improve. Because I don’t know something today doesn’t mean I can’t know it tomorrow. I’m always striving for a perfect year. My ultimate goal is sensory perfection. I have a feeling by the time I hit my very last harvest I’ll have finally mastered a perfect year.”
Going between the vineyards in Napa and Vina “is hard. I’ve got two kids and it’s hard to balance,” Sunseri says. “My husband is amazing. He affords me the luxury of being able to work out of town. My mom and dad help out. I also have a great crew. You can’t do this alone.”
With Sunseri’s expertise as a winemaker and the success of the New Clairvaux wines, they decided it was time for another tasting room. “We were originally thinking about going to the Sacramento area. My husband, who is really good at the larger picture, suggested Redding.” In November 2023, the tasting room in downtown Redding opened with a blessing from the monks of the New Clairvaux Monastery. “Opening a tasting room in Redding was a great idea. We feel like the community has accepted us. We feel very blessed to be there.”
Their tasting room is now open seven days a week.
“My goal is to make really great wine and to have a lot of fun doing it. I count my blessings every day to be in the situation I’m in. It makes me work harder because of all the love I’ve received. This is my way to give love back.”•
New Clairvaux Vineyard Redding Tasting Room
newclairvauxvineyard.com
1551 Market St. #102, Redding • (530) 839-2200
Hours: Sunday 10am-7pm; Monday-Saturday 1-7pm
New Clairvaux Vineyard • 26240 7th St., Vina • (530) 839-2200
Hours: Daily 11am- 5pm
