Gold and Wine in the Golden State
California’s Ironstone Vineyards.
At California’s Ironstone Vineyards, there’s a glittering reminder of the origins of the state’s wine industry during the California Gold Rush.
At California’s Ironstone Vineyards, there’s a glittering reminder of the origins of the state’s wine industry during the California Gold Rush.
The architecture of California wine country has become synonymous with the “modern farmhouse” style popularized by Bay Area architect Howard Backen. But in recent years, a new generation of architects have arrived on the scene, drawing on their diverse backgrounds and their clients’ creative visions to break the farmhouse mould.
The Napa Valley has always been lauded as North America’s premier wine region, and this summer new openings, renovations and education-centric activities will be enticing for both novice and advanced oenophiles.
For decades, many distinguished wineries have pitched their high-end wines as sourced from a single vineyard and even from selected parcels of vines from a particular vineyard. This has contributed to the mantra that their wines have a “sense of place,” already a hackneyed phrase in wine marketing. The thinking seems to be that the smaller the area grapes are sourced from, the better the wine they produce.