Silversmith Vineyards

Silversmith Vineyards is a family winery located in Redwood Valley, CA—the heart of Mendocino County. Silversmith is named after our ancestor, Patrick Cunningham, who worked as a silversmith upon arrival in America in the 1840′s.

Then just fourteen years old, Patrick left the family farm in Sligo, Ireland for a better future. Upon arrival in Boston, he took a job as an apprentice silversmith. After many years spent mastering his craft, Patrick moved west.

In San Francisco, Patrick resumed his craft until he was able to save enough money to buy a farm on the Russian River in the wilds of Mendocino County. In 1873, Patrick and his family moved onto the new farm on the outskirts of what was then a small settlement called Ukiah.

The first member of our family to farm in Mendocino County, Patrick raised hay, hops and nine children. He taught his children to farm with the same values he’d been taught at the engraver’s bench – to love your work and take pride in the results.

For five generations this tradition of craftsmanship has been passed down through our family. Silversmith Vineyards was founded in 1998 on a piece of land not far from Patrick’s original farm.

We dedicate our wines to The Silversmith. We are privileged to pass the fruits of our labor on to you.

Who We Are

Tom Johnson – Founder
A member of the fourth generation of his family to farm in Mendocino County, Tom’s love for farming runs deep. He grew up on a ranch where his father raised hops, pears, grapes and horses a few miles south of where Silversmith Vineyards now stands. In addition to his grapes, Tom also grows several varieties of apples, peaches and nectarines on his Redwood Valley property.

Tom runs all operations for Silversmith Vineyards and pours wine in his new tasting room for visitors every weekend. He currently resides in Redwood Valley and has two grown children – Stephanie and Matt.

Matt Johnson - Director of Marketing & Sales
Matt helped bring the vineyard into full production from 1987-’93. He has spent the past 15 years working as brand strategist and planning director at some of the world’s premier advertising agencies, where he helped to create national campaigns for industry leading brands including; Constellation Wines (Robert Mondavi and Kim Crawford brands), adidas, Boost Mobile, Budweiser, Pepsi, and Microsoft.

Stephanie Johnson - Partner
Stephanie is a Realtor specializing in luxury residential sales in San Francisco, CA.  She has a strong background in web marketing and branding and acts as an advisor to Silversmith Vineyards.  Stephanie and her family live in San Francisco.

Our Vineyards

Silversmith Vineyards lies in the Northeast corner of Redwood Valley on the Sunset Bench facing southwest into the heat of the day. The soils of this region are shallow, red clay which restrict production, but which yield intensely flavorful berries from which we extract powerful and flavorful wines.

Redwood Valley was settled in the mid 1850′s and was the first region in Mendocino County to be planted in grapevines. The grapes of this area ripen later in the growing season and produce wines with higher acidity, tannin and color.