Founded by vintner and entrepreneur Matthew Bonanno, Matthew Fritz is the companion wines to his Napa Valley flagship, BonAnno Cabernet Sauvignon.
Matthew Fritz was founded on a few simple principles. Seek out and source only from top North Coast vineyards. Let the fruit stand on its own through a pure, clean winemaking process. And ultimately, ensure every bottle of Matthew Fritz is a true representation of both the variety and appellation.
Founded in 2004, Bonanno Vintners is driven by a passion for producing high quality fruit-focused wines that are well made, varietally correct, and over-deliver for the price point. Founder Matt Bonanno grew up in Ohio and is third generation in the wine business. While early on in life he was packing trucks and working in the warehouse moving boxes for his father’s distribution business, it would be a fortuitous business trip to the Napa Valley in 1994 with his father Ardie that would fuel Matt’s desire to produce his own wines.
Matt and Ardie were meeting the legendary Dick Steltzner for lunch at Mustard’s Grill in Yountville. As one of the original grape growers in Napa and a true pioneer, Dick was larger than life. He had purchased his vineyard in the Stag’s Leap District in 1965 and had also gone on to help establish such famous wineries as Clod Du Val and Diamond Creek. Needless to say, spending an afternoon barrel tasting in the caves and hearing Dick’s stories lit a fire in Matt. The next day an overwhelming question started to take hold; “How was Matt going to produce wine in Napa Valley?” in 2004 BonAnno Vintners was born.
In 2009 Matt teamed up with one of his best friends, Fritz Stuhlmuller and started Matthew Fritz Wines. The approach was simple: combine their collective experience in winemaking, contacts with grape growers and wineries in the North Coast and produce wines of incredible value. The Matthew Fritz wines are produced out of Healdsburg in Sonoma, with most of the grapes coming from Sonoma and Mendocino counties. Again, the wines are meant to be authentic, clean and true to the varietal.