In the News We are honored to have our thoughts and wines be included in the following publications. Read on to learn more about Firetree Vineyards and our place in the Napa Valley and greater wine community.

One of the evening’s standout offerings featured an eight-day luxury South African experience, including safari adventures, wine tastings in Stellenbosch and 30 magnums of Napa Valley wine. Ricardo and Dayva Jimenez, owners of Firetree Family Vineyards in Carneros, won the package with a $110,000 bid.
Ricardo Jimenez said the vintners’ commitment to community fundraising inspired him. “It’s amazing. The activity, the charity, supporting that community? We love that. It’s absolutely something that really moves us.”
A $300,000 package from John Anthony included VIP BottleRock experiences and guitars signed by Stevie Nicks and Noah Kahan. Gargiulo, B Cellars and Silver Oak offered tickets to a private Sebastian Maniscalco performance and a dinner prepared by Chef Charlie Palmer for $5,000 each. Alpha Omega offered a 14-night voyage for four aboard the world’s largest privately owned residential megayacht that raised $160,000.
Other highlights included the two top wines in the historic Judgment of Paris tasting—the 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay and the 1973 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars S.L.V.—along with 60 additional bottles. That sold to an online bidder for $110,000.
Joy Lindsay, who has attended the auction for roughly two decades, captured the mood of the evening. “It’s the Super Bowl of wine,” she said.

Lily Berlin from El Molino and Kyle Butcher from Firetree sample the wines. (Marielle V. Chua)

When Ricardo and Dayva Jimenez purchased their Los Carneros property in April 2021, they were not just buying a vineyard—they were laying the foundation for a legacy. That year marked Firetree Vineyards' first harvest, and from the outset, the family charted a path that fused fine Chardonnay production with an ambitious commitment to the land.
Working alongside vineyard manager Ben Leachman and winemaker Julien Fayard, the Jimenez family has embraced organic and regenerative farming as a cornerstone of their approach. Firetree is Napa Green and Fish Friendly Farming certified, affirming practices that safeguard soil health, water resources, and vineyard biodiversity. The integration of a permanent herd of goats and Babydoll sheep reflects this philosophy, offering natural weed management and soil enrichment in place of mechanized solutions.
Beyond certification, Firetree is investing in forward-looking initiatives. The estate participates in the California Department of Food & Agriculture's Healthy Soils Program, designed to increase carbon capture and soil resilience. In partnership with the Napa County Resource Conservation District, Firetree has also introduced a native pollinator cover crop—featuring species such as California Poppy, Yellow Lupine, and Baby Blue Eyes—that not only enhances vineyard ecology but underscores a long-term vision for a resilient agricultural landscape.
That generational outlook extends to the family itself. Their son, Ricky, is involved in sales and marketing, while their daughter, Sophya, begins her studies in plant sciences at UC Davis this fall, inspired by her experience working among the vines.
From their estate bottlings—including the FIDEM Reserve and Bunny Hills Chardonnay—to the enduring silhouettes of the two trees that overlook their vineyard, Firetree is positioning itself as both steward and storyteller in Carneros. Sustainability, for the Jimenez family, is not a buzzword, but a foundation for the future.

At Firetree Family Vineyards, the discussion turned to alternatives to herbicides — like planting beneficial cover crops or letting sheep roam between the rows. Ricardo and Dayva Jimenez, who bought the 50-acre site in 2021 from Silverado Vineyards, have made sustainability a core mission. “It was a corporate vineyard. We wanted to give it that personal touch of taking care of the vines as part of the family,” Ricardo said. “We wanted to make it more green and sustainable.”

Rafael Ricardo Jimenez-Dan, proprietor of Firetree Vineyards, entrepreneur, and trained agricultural technician added, "For over 30 years, Firetree Vineyards has been recognized as a hidden gem in Napa Valley's Carneros region. Our family is excited to have the opportunity to steward this exceptional world-class Chardonnay site towards a more sustainable future through the implementation of organic and regenerative farming practices, certified by Napa Green and Fish Friendly Farming. This includes introducing our permanent herd of goats and babydoll sheep – which will be on display April 12 for Afternoon in the Vineyards - adding our experimental California native pollinator cover crop in partnership with the Napa County Resource Conservation District, and participating in the healthy soils program with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, which allows us to sequester carbon through the application of compost and get the added benefits of enhanced nutrient cycling, water conservation, and vineyard resiliency."

Rub elbows with star winemakers and representatives from some of Napa’s best known wineries, as well as some of the region’s small, family-owned labels such as Accendo Cellars, an elite brand of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc highlighting Napa Valley's terroir; Almacerro, Howell Mountain's most remote vineyard, originally owned by AVA co-founder Bill Smith and revived by Frank Scherkenbach); and Firetree Vineyards, the Chardonnay exclusive vineyard in Carneros now stewarded by a new-to-Napa Venezuelan family who split their time between Napa and Miami.

Winemaker Julian Fayard sourced Chardonnay grapes from the oldest vines growing in the Firetree Vineyard in the Los Carneros AVA to make this excellent bottle. After fermentation he aged the wine for 18 months in a combination of concrete eggs and new French oak barrels so as not to impart too much oak flavor to the finished wine. It is golden straw colored in the glass and leads with aromas of brown baking spices, tropical fruits, and honeydew melon. It makes a perfect match with linguine alle vongole because its flavors of lemon zest, chamomile flower, and Granny Smith apple cleanse your palate between each and every delicious, briny forkful.

Founders Ricardo and Davya Jimenez fell in love with wine through their travels. For many years, the Venezuelan-born couple who live in Florida, dreamed of owning a winery in California. In 2021, their dream came true, when they were able to purchase the Firetree Vineyard from Silverado Vineyards. It’s become a family affair. Along with their oldest daughter Sophya, an avid botany enthusiast, the brand produces two estate Chardonnays inspired by their travels to Burgundy.

Another new Chardonnay estate, Firetree Vineyards from the Jimenez family, is found in the rolling hills of Carneros. This stunning property, meticulously farmed, offers an impressive debut with the Chardonnay Napa Valley Los Carneros Fidem Single Vineyard 2021 (93, $95) and Chardonnay Napa Valley Los Carneros Bunny Hills Single Vineyard 2021 (90, $49). The Firetree bottlings were made by winemaker Julien Fayard, who also produces his own Chardonnays under multiple labels. This was my first time coming across these wines in my annual blind tastings, and they are well worth seeking out.

Best Dressed – At first glance, Ricardo Jimenez looked like he was dressed for a safari.
The 23-year-old co-vintner of Firetree Family Vineyard, located in the Carneros region, was wearing olive pants and a beige shirt with a pattern that resembled a tiger. But his outfit had a Latin twist — Jimenez was wearing Samba tennis shoes and a Panama hat, cut with black ribbon. Jimenez, who grew up in Venezuela, graduated from the University of Miami with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a focus on entrepreneurship.

“From a Venezuelan perspective, it is amazing to see the Latin representation here,” said Ricardo Jimenez Jr., whose Firetree Family Vineyards wines were among the 10 Latino-owned wineries throughout Napa Valley and Sonoma County offered at the festival.

The Jimenez family, which owns Firetree Family Vineyards in the Carneros region, is excited to dip its feet at the festival. Firetree's two Chardonnays, crafted by the local winemaker Julien Fayard, will only be available to invited VIPs and customers with a wristband. However, Ricardo Jimenez and his wife, Dayva Soto, are excited to be part of the festival as "it unites our passions: love for wine and Latin music," said Jimenez.

Complex and memorable, offering a seamless mix of tangerine, lemon curd, dried pineapple, perfumed lemon balm and salted butter shortbread notes, with a burnt sugar orange spice hint, all on a silky, smooth frame, while acidity weaves in and out. The finish is long and adds savory details of tarragon and sea salt. Drink now through 2035. —M.W.

Firetree Family Vineyards launches in Los Carneros The Jimenez family has as its motto Fidem et Futurum, or Faith and Future, believing that faith led it to the hills of Los Carneros to build something everlasting. In its case, Firetree Family Vineyards.