Austria
To know the history of Delectus Winery is to look back through a couple centuries of winemaking in Austria. Owner and winemaker Gerhard Reisacher has wine and viticulture in his blood - he's an eighth-generation winemaker who grew up in a small wine village south of Vienna. He first got his fingers dirty by working alongside his father in the vineyards as a boy, and subsequently attended Austria's premier winemaking college, graduating with four degrees, including winemaking and viticulture.

Napa Valley
Gerhard was first captivated by Napa Valley after tasting numerous wines from the region, which a college housemate had "liberated" from the family's cellar. For him, they were entirely unlike anything he'd tasted before in European wines. He sensed a raw, unlimited potential in these Napa Valley wines and soon thereafter, packed all his belongings, including twenty-nine bottles of self made wine, and began his journey to Napa Valley. He has not looked back since.

At first, Gerhard worked in the trenches at local and highly regarded Monticello Cellars, Far Niente, and Pine Ridge Winery. There, he spent long days in the cellar learning American production techniques and enhanced his winemaking skills. At night he honed his English speaking skills by watching reruns of Magnum P.I. As his English and winemaking skills progressed, he found himself working at Clos Du Val, where he was assistant winemaker and later viticulturist. During this time Linda Reisacher, who would later be introduced to Gerhard and soon after become his wife, was involved with the wine business in her own career.

Delectus Winery
Gerhard and Linda launched Delectus Winery in 1995 with a focus on making wines representing the terroir of each vineyard. It was during their first overseas trip together that Linda and Gerhard saw Michelangelo's David, which provided the initial spark of inspiration for starting their own winery based on single-minded, uncompromising pursuit of an ultimate ideal. For that reason, a sketch of David appears on the Delectus label.

Having established relationships with several of the best growers in the region, Gerhard and Linda set out to produce stellar wines they most enjoy: distinctive red wines that are big and bold without being overpowering. Each wine expresses a sense of place or terroir from carefully selected single-vineyard sources.