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Geek out with me for a minute. Millions of years ago a volcanic eruption carved an 86-acre bowl-like hillside into Sonoma, California. You can see it in the aerial shot below. With the minerals and nutrients provided by the volcanic soil, along with slopes creating 29 different micro-climates within this bowl, it became a great place for various crops to thrive. The land was settled in the 1860's as a small village called Wegnerville, and it became a hot spot (pun intended) for travelers to visit its hot springs. Then in 1906 an earthquake made residents abandon the village. That earthquake also agitated those hot springs, and they would become a source of cool water for the eventual vineyards that would be planted there. The land was vacant for about 50 years until a doctor bought the property in the 1970's and planted around 5-acres of Cabernet Sauvignon.
(This article was written for GrapeBunch, our weekly wine periodical. Click here to read the original!)
In 1973 Mike Benziger came to California, at first living in San Francisco from his Jeep. His father Bruno was a wine importer back in New York, so wine was already a big part of the Benziger family. By the end of the decade, Mike and his wife found that 86-acre bowl-like hillside, which at the time was just a run-down, beat-up farm. It looked like the perfect place for them to plant vines and start a winery! So they bought it off of the doctor in 1980, partnering with Bruno, and on Halloween day that year 13 members of the family moved to Sonoma to help with the new business. Their 1981 Sauvignon Blanc won first place at the Sonoma County Fair, and the 2nd runner-up was their Chardonnay!
In the early '90's they started realizing that the common viticulture practices for the time were damaging the beauty of the land. Songs from birds and buzzing of insects were rare. Wildlife and natural plant growth had vacated the area. So in 1994 they began the transition to Biodynamic farming, and in 2000 they became the first Demeter-certified Biodynamic winery in Sonoma!
Joey Casco
Beverage Marketer
Certified Specialist of Wine
Certified Specialist of Spirits
Visit our official website: LukesCapeCod.com
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