History
Jerry and Joyce Cain bought the land, part of Henry McCormick's 2,600 acre nineteenth-century sheep ranch, in 1980 with the idea of a mountain vineyard for the five Bordeaux grapes; Cain Five debuted with the 1985 vintage. Jim and Nancy Meadlock became partners in 1986 and sole owners on the Cains' 1991 retirement, the year Chris Howell took direction of the estate he still runs. The September 2020 Glass Fire burned straight through the vineyard bowl, destroying the winery, most of the vines and the 2019 and 2020 vintages in barrel; replanting began at once, vineyard before winery, with a 2021 vintage marking the return. In late 2025 investment firm Third Leaf Partners acquired the Cain brand and inventory, with Howell staying on to make the wines while the mountain estate itself was sold separately in 2026 to a partnership led by Maya Dalla Valle, which plans to keep replanting the vineyard and to continue supplying the Cain label.
The Site
About 90 acres of vines before the 2020 fire, much of it replanted since, on a 550 acre property, terraced into a hillside amphitheater between roughly 1,400 and 2,100 feet, among the highest ground in the Spring Mountain District, looking east over the valley.
Vines and Blocks
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the full Bordeaux five, replanted in stages since the fire.
The Wines
Cain Five is the estate's flagship and one of California's original five-variety blends: savory, structured mountain wine that has kept its herbal, old-world accent through every era, now including its rebuilding.