Weekend Wine Notes: Decoy Vineyard

Most of the line-up.

Dan and Margaret Duckhorn founded their eponymous Napa Valley winery in 1976. The winery’s luster and fame rest on several versions of merlots, especially the rare and highly allocated Three Palms Vineyard Merlot, and a bright, balanced yet scintillating sauvignon blanc. They branched out in 1985, starting the Decoy label to produce inexpensive varieties that would be widespread in appeal. The brand grew exponentially; in 2008, it got its own dedicated winery and in 2014 acquired a winemaking facility in Hopland, in Mendocino County. The Decoy wines receive a general California designation. In 2020, a higher tier of wines called Decoy Limited debuted. These wines are regional-designated, finished with dark navy-blue labels, and cost about $10 more than their Decoy stablemates.