Pym-Rae | Our vision

Pym-Rae, un autre monde, un autre vin, une autre vibration.

Et pourtant une même communauté d’esprits qu’à Pontet-Canet : Notre famille et nos équipes réaffirment ici leur vision. Celle d’une quête sans cesse réinterprétée de l’équilibre.

Nous avons emprunté les mêmes chemins pour émouvoir et créer le rare. Nous avons nourri notre foi, forgé nos résolutions, fortifié notre sagesse. Nous avons appris de nos doutes et encore plus de nos obstinations.

Nous nous sommes souvenus qu’un terroir se révèle doucement, qu’un lieu possède ses secrets, ses fulgurances, ses illuminations, que la Nature s’observe patiemment, que la vigne réserve le meilleur à ceux qui savent l’accompagner, qu’un grand vin reste la plus juste expression d’un terroir.

Nous avons voulu que Pym-Rae vous révèle la force de ses sols, la couleur de ses ciels, le soyeux de ses brumes providentielles, qu’il entretienne cette familiarité avec le rêve, qu’il propage ses ondes de bonheur au point de ne se laisser jamais oublier, car c’est l’émotion, et elle seule, qui consacre un grand vin.

The Encounter of a winemaking family and a singular terroir

For a family owning vineyards of exceptional quality, a place of great reputation and potential was necessary.

An obvious choice was Napa in California. But not just anywhere in the Valley.
The climate’s generous nature needed to be moderated by locally cool conditions: this meant a high-altitude vineyard.
To produce deep and balanced wines, sedimentary soils were needed with historic marine deposits gradually evolved over millions of years. The Mount Veeder region provided all of this.

The vineyard had to be planted with Bordeaux varieties, the same that the family had experience with at Pontet-Canet.
Finally, the vines had to be mature as only older plants have established a deep root system, allowing them to extract the terroir’s purest expression and minerality which will yield full and complex wines.

It is not the easiest land to cultivate, because certain areas are steep and precipitous, resulting in only a modest crop of grapes.
It is a remote location, like an island of nature, in the middle of nowhere.
And to reach it requires a determined effort.

Yet this is the land that chose us.

The Name

In January 2016, the Tesseron family became the owners of Villa Sorriso (Villa of Smiles), the former property of the actor Robin Williams.

The actor christened the vineyard with the middle names of his children “PYM” and “RAE”. Due to this touching story and in respect to the previous owners, the Tesserons have chosen to continue this name for the domain’s wine.

The Perpetual Quest for Balance…

We are in the hands of nature, with each cycle leading to the next: this is how we view our mission in the vineyard.

The vineyard cycle is gentle, and our team remains constant, unchanged from season to season.
Our association with the domain and its land is absolute.

A daily challenge is to constantly seek a balance in all we do.

“What matters most to us are your memories.”

The Team

ALFRED TESSERON « Pym-Rae is the realization of a dream: a family investment in another exceptional terroir where Cabernets are also the major grape variety, in a country which has taught and given me so much.»

JUSTINE TESSERON «We are writing a new story, going beyond the codes of classic grape growing by bringing our Bordeaux expertise and adapting it to the terroir and climate of Napa Valley.»

NOÉ TESSERON «My role is to participate in Pym-Rae’s worldwide launch with my family. It’s an exciting project which is synergistic with our aims at Pontet-Canet. The goal is to effectively communicate our unique philosophy through this wine, to transmit our passion for this new project, and to establish it for the long term.»

JÉRÔME LEDIT – ESTATE MANAGER « There is one unique objective: to create a wine which is the reflection of a singular approach on every level. »

MICHEL ROLLAND – OENOLOGIST-CONSULTANT «In the life of a widely-travelling consultant, one visits those ethereal, magic places which make a lasting impression. Pym-Rae is one of them. This wine will be the heart and soul of a very special place.»