Chapter II
Our Winery Vision
PURSUING PASSION
Only the Best
My winery vision came to life when I purchased the St. Helena property that would become Marciano Estate. There were twenty acres of vines planted here. It was 2006, and in that first year, I tried to make the best wine that I could with the existing vineyard. It was a good wine, but it wasn’t an outstanding wine, it wasn’t the wine that I sought to make. I decided to pull out all the vines and replant with four different rootstocks better suited to the varied soil conditions of the property.
During that process, I replanted only ten acres out of the twenty, on only the best soil of the vineyard.
Our experienced Marciano Estate team shares the vision of creating wines that are the highest expression of this site. The team includes consulting winemakers Benoit Touquette, along with Bastien Lucas as Winemaker.
Sustainability
At Marciano Estate, we are dedicated stewards of this land, driven by a commitment to foster a healthy ecosystem and create a truly regenerative environment. Our 55-acre estate includes twenty carefully tended acres of vineyards and olive groves, while an additional twenty acres remain untouched forest, rich with wildlife and biodiversity.
In alignment with regenerative agricultural principles, we are continually evolving our vineyard and olive grove practices to strengthen the land’s vitality and resilience. Over sixty percent of our winery facilities now operate on renewable energy, and our sustainable wine practices include pollinator gardens, beehives, rainwater capture and reuse, managed sheep grazing, and bird and owl boxes to naturally manage pests. By farming organically and planting cover crops, each action we take helps enrich biodiversity and strengthen the land’s health.
Each of these steps brings us closer to a balanced ecosystem and enables us to create wines that reflect the unique character of this place, wines that are as much an expression of the land as they are a testament to our care for it.
Art Love
THE PROPERTY AS GALLERY
For me, great art is like great wine. Something to take pleasure in, to be passionate about. And above all, something to be shared. Marciano Estate has become a wonderful home for many of the pieces of contemporary art I’ve collected over the last 25 years. These sculptures and paintings, and the artists who created them, continually inspire me.
Ugo Rondinone, air/gets/into/everything/even/nothing, 2006, cast aluminum and white enamel
Marciano Estate Team
THE RIGHT PERSON FOR THE JOB
“If you want to make great wine, you cannot cut corners. That has always been my philosophy.”
When I started this project, I looked for like-minded people to help bring my dreams to fruition. People who were as single-mindedly obsessed with quality as me and that continues to be my philosophy today.
Maurice Marciano
Proprietor & Vintner
About Maurice
Maurice Marciano is a fashion industry legend, a leading patron of contemporary art, and now the founder of Marciano Estate winery. Raised in Marseille, France, he and his brothers moved to Los Angeles and created GUESS Inc., one of the most transformative fashion brands of the ‘80s and ’90s, famous for its trend-setting designs and boundary-pushing advertising. After years of co-managing the success of Guess, Maurice pulled back from day-to-day business operations. Maurice’s appreciation of Bordeaux’s great wine estates and his trips to Napa Valley shaped a dream of creating a winery to produce wines of the highest caliber. Resolved to work only with terroir capable of yielding the beautiful wines he endeavored to create, a long search culminated in acquiring a historic St. Helena property. By replanting the vineyards and building a state-of-the-art winery, he established Marciano Estate as a producer of exceptional, single vineyard wines that reflect the sensibilities of his native France and a style unique to Napa Valley. As Maurice says, “I am not interested in making a lot of wine; I am interested in making the best wine we can.” With the release of wines beginning in 2012, Marciano Estate is on track to be the latest success story in his life.
Bastien Lucas
Winemaker
About Bastien
Born and raised in France, Bastien’s passion for wine started at the young age of 14 during a summer job at Château Lynch-Bages, helping the winery prepare for harvest.
He returned to Lynch-Bages in 2008 to work an entire harvest. This is where Bastien was first acquainted with the in-depth and meticulous complexity of luxury winemaking and where he developed his passion.
Upon earning a Master of Science in Enology from the University of Bordeaux’s Institute of Vine and Wine Science (ISVV) in France, he was fortunate enough to secure internships and work harvests at both Monteverro in Tuscany and Alpha Omega in Napa under Jean Hoefliger’s tutelage. Returning to Alpha Omega in 2015, Bastien became Assistant Winemaker in 2017, where he grew and honed his winemaking skills. In 2020, Bastien joined Maxville Winery as a Winemaker.
During his career, Bastien had the great fortune to manage the winemaking of several iconic brands in Napa and Sonoma Valley, such as The Debate, AXR, V. Vineyards, Clark-Claudon, Denali Estate, Harbison Estate Wines, Michel Rolland Napa Valley, SVV, Narsai David Estates and more. With his versatile background, extensive knowledge, and passion, Bastien is uniquely positioned to drive Marciano Estate to achieve the finest quality wine possible.
Michael McMillan
General Manager
About Michael
After spending ten years as chef/owner of 3 high-end restaurants in Florida, Michael and his wife relocated to the Napa Valley in late 2010. He desired to apply his business acumen and high-level hospitality experience to the wine industry. Eventually, Michael became the general manager of a small family-owned winery called Seven Stones where he oversaw all aspects of the winery besides the actual winemaking. Michael stayed with Seven Stones for nine years until the family sold. At that time, wanting to stay with a small, family-owned, high-end winery, Michael accepted the position as General Manager with Marciano Estate with the goal to carry on the focus of quality in both the wines and the guests’ experience that a property like Marciano Estate can provide.
Rene Ramirez
Cellar Master
About Rene
Rene’s journey started in high school as a Harvest Intern for Alpha Omega. Seven years later, Rene had climbed through the ranks to the role of Cellar Master and learned everything about winery production operations from once the fruit had been picked to the finished product. Starting at Marciano Estate in 2021, Rene’s experience, passion, knowledge, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn and help wherever needed have made him an integral part of the Marciano team and a true reflection of the winery’s vision that has guided this property from the start.