In this second of two articles on Northern California's next-generation successes, Drs. Lucia and John Gilbert share the generational-transition stories of six highly-regarded family-owned and operated Sonoma County wineries: A. Rafanelli Winery, Hafner Vineyard, Hawley Winery, J. Rochioli Vineyards and Winery, Nalle Winery, and Peterson Winery, offer insights and reflections, and a coda.
Pinot Noir is known as the heartbreak grape. A thin-skinned variety that easily succumbs to disease, it requires just the right climatic conditions to thrive: a cool climate with plenty of fruit-ripening sunshine. In places like California, where the weather can get extremely hot, the grape does well in cooler areas close to the Pacific Ocean. One place the grape has been able to shine is Sonoma County, a vast area whose topography includes more than 55 miles of breathtaking Pacific coastline.
