Robert Kamen, Owner

Acquiring The Land
In 1980, Robert Kamen, the screenwriter of such films as “Taps”, “The Karate Kid” series, “The Fifth Element”, “A Walk in the Clouds” and the “Transporter” series purchased 280 acres of the southwestern slopes of the Mayacamas Range in Sonoma County. This mountainous property was rugged, overgrown, extremely rocky and very remote: virgin territory with no roads and no power. It was isolated, wild, beautiful and full of potential. From the beginning, Robert had a clear concept of what he intended for his property. First and foremost was the desire to plant the highest quality Cabernet Sauvignon.

Planting Vineyards
Viticulturist Phil Coturri was brought into the project to develop and oversee the master plan. He began by moving rocks, building roads and creating water systems. Fractured rock was everywhere. Vineyards were planted where there was the least amount of rock, along the contours of the hillsides where in some cases slopes exceeded 40%.

Robert and Phil shared the philosophy of preserving the wildness of the place with as little intervention as possible. This led to the commitment to organic farming, a rarity in those days. The result is that the soils at Kamen Estate vineyards have never been exposed to chemical fertilizer, pesticides or herbicides.

From Grape Grower To Wine Producer
With grapes in high demand, Kamen fruit was sold to premium Sonoma wineries for a number of years. Noting the superb quality of his fruit, Robert became interested in producing his own wine from the ranch and began making a few, small experimental lots. Then a devastating fire tore through the property destroying one third of the vines along with Robert's home. Where others would see this as a tremendous setback, Robert's credo, "Everything happens for a reason", held sway. The fire forced him to focus not on what he had lost, but on what he could now gain. His goal was to produce the best wine possible from an estate he had been building for more than a decade. A major replanting was begun as soon as the ground cooled. Improved techniques were employed, tighter spacings were designed, new selections of Cabernet clones were chosen, and different rootstocks were used. The vineyard became stronger and better than before.

Future
The first commercial release of wine – a Cabernet Sauvignon - was made in 1999. Kamen wines are served in fine dining restaurants and small specialty retail shops in key markets across the country. Kamen Estate Wines production is quite small due to rigorous viticultural practices that maintain low yields of its steep, rocky vineyard.