Breggo sits on 203 acres of heaven, halfway between Boonville and Philo, in the heart of Anderson Valley. About 30% of the property constitutes what winegrowers might call "usable" ground: islands of open grassy slopes, on reasonably stable clay-loam soils, with gentle southeastern exposures.
The rest is wilderness.
We bought the property in 2000, with every intention of planting a vineyard. We built a pond, mowed and tilled, tore out old sheep fencing and bought new deer fencing, amended soils with lime and compost. We even put a deposit down for vines in early-2001, right about the time that the market for wine grapes slid into the abyss. Then we screeched to a halt. The bank stopped believing we could make it as farmers on the five-year plan. So we waited.
It will be ready to plant next spring.
In late-2004, with the grape market still in the doldrums, we decided to make another run at the winegrower business. A different bank warmed up to the idea of the two-year plan: to start a winery with someone else's fruit.
We called the owners of the most renowned vineyards in Anderson Valley, and soon landed fruit from Savoy, Ferrington, Donnelly Creek, and Wiley Vineyards. We built an impressive line-up of cold-climate whites: Sauvignon blanc and Gewürztraminer from Ferrington, Chardonnay from Savoy, and Pinot gris from Wiley Vineyard. Of course, we didn’t ignore the reds. We make more Pinot noir than all other varietals combined. We reside, after all, in Pinot heaven.
With these extraordinary fruit sources, we felt comfortable leaving most of our estate "vineyard" ground fallow, a place for deer, boar, and wild turkeys to forage under the watchful gaze of foxes, mountain lions, and the occasional armed and hungry homo-sapien.
Of course, every bottle purchased and consumed brings us one step closer to blanketing our hills with vines. In the summer of 2007, we started preparing the hill overlooking the highway and winery for vineyards. We ripped and drained, amended and smoothed again. We planted 200 pounds of seed per acre, installed frost protection, and turned the water on to establish it before winter rains. The plan includes seven vine-acres on 4’x3’ spacing — 3630 vines per acre, akin to the density found in Burgundy — on our steep and undulating slopes. Vines should arrive in the Spring of 2008. Join the Flock, and we'll carve your name on an end-post. No kidding. We love you people.