Laird Family Estate

Ken Laird bought his first land in Napa Valley in 1970. The property was an abandoned prune orchard located adjacent to Tubbs Lane in Calistoga. The original plantings of Gamay and Cabernet Sauvignon were undertaken with Robert Mondavi as a partner. In 1983, Ken and his wife Gail moved from New York to the Carneros region where they had bought several vineyard properties. He sold grapes to numerous premium wineries including Cakebread, Merryvale, Far Niente, Joseph Phelps, Duckhorn, Ravenswood, Chateau St. Jean, and Kendall Jackson.

The Laird Family Estate winery and production facility was built in 1998. Many renowned winemakers and wineries produced and cellared their wines at Laird including Bob Egelhoff, Mia Klein, Paul Hobbs, Steve Test, Mark Aubert, Colgin, Selene, Cornerstone and Crichton Hall among others.

The Laird family now oversees multiple vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, nearly 2,000 acres. Bayview Vineyards, the Laird's vineyard management company, farms the vineyards and serves over 40 wineries.

The consulting winemaker for Laird Family Estate is Paul Hobbs who sources nine different vineyard sites for Laird Family Estate wines. The red wines include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Noir. Ghost Ranch is a parcel within Cold Creek Ranch in Carneros and supplies the Pinot Noir grapes. The story behind the name Ghost Ranch comes from Laird's vineyard employees who say they sometimes see people in the rows between the vines, but the figures disappear when approached.

The wines are sold on the website. The 2007 Ghost Ranch Carneros Pinot Noir was highly recommended by the Wine Spectator.