Makers' Stories
Jaime Araujo
— We do our best to produce exceptional wines at more accessible price points, to try and share the excellence of Napa Valley with a larger audience.
What's your all-time favorite food and wine pairing?
So many! A couple that I really love are toro (tuna) and Cabernet Sauvignon, and fresh goat cheese and Sauvignon Blanc.
What does "cultivating excellence" as a Napa Valley vintner mean to you?
We do everything we can to cultivate excellence in the vineyard and the winery, but for us, it's also essential to cultivate excellence with and for our teams and our community. We want to continue to be a vector for change and ensure that Napa Valley is excellent for everyone.
If you weren't a Napa Valley vintner, what would you be doing?
I'd probably be an actor, a carpenter, or a dive instructor.
How did you get started in the wine business?
Although my first real wine job was an amazing internship at Joseph Phelps Vineyards, as an adult, I fell into a job at Moet Hennessy (LVMH) and was hooked!
What is your winemaking philosophy?
The most essential component of our winemaking philosophy at Trois Noix is curiosity – in everything we do.
Name a Napa Valley vintner who has influenced you and briefly explain why.
I stand on the shoulders of everyone before me! There are so many people to whom I owe an enormous debt, but I'd say Barbara and Milt Eisele were the most influential vintners who shaped my vision of Napa Valley.
If you could open a bottle of your wine and share it with any three people (living or not), who would they be?
Barbara Eisele, Meryl Streep/Elizabeth Taylor/Katherine Hepburn (I can't decide!), Eleanor of Aquitaine
What is your favorite memory as a vintner working in Napa Valley?
I love the smell of the valley in the fall, with all the fermentations bubbling away – I just roll the windows down and take in the sweet smell of all those possibilities.
What’s the strangest word you’ve used to describe the smell or taste of wine?
I once had a really old vintage Champagne that tasted exactly like milk chocolate and wild strawberries … weird, but delicious.
What's one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
I've got four higher degrees, including a Masters Degree in Medieval Studies.
Tell us about your first Napa Valley harvest…
My first harvest for Trois Noix was so exciting – up in the wee hours of the morning, in the cold and the dark with a small, amazingly skilled team – you could feel the energy!
Est. 2016
Trois Noix
03
The Makers