Kelham Vineyards is defined by a single stubborn practice: nothing is released until it is actually ready to drink, which can mean holding a wine the better part of a decade. That philosophy came from Rawson "Rory" Kelham, who ran Kelham Construction and believed Napa Cabernet only shows its character with time. He and Susanna Kelham took over a Zinfandel Lane property in 1997 — the former Shadow Brook Winery — and made their first Cabernet and Merlot from the 1998 vintage, while the family continued farming the Oakville benchland acreage it has held for decades. Susanna's sons Hamilton and Ron Nicholsen run the winemaking today, Ron having learned under Ric Forman and Cain's Chris Howell. Production stays near 4,000 cases, and current offerings routinely span more than twenty years of back vintages.