Trefethen Family Vineyards

Trefethen Family Vineyards
In the heart of the Oak Knoll District, Trefethen Family Vineyards blends living history with three generations of family winemaking. At its center stands Eshcol, a striking wooden winery built in 1886 and designed by Hamden McIntyre, the architect behind several of Napa’s great 19th-century cellars. It’s the only 19th-century wooden gravity-flow winery still surviving in Napa County, a design that let grapes, juice and wine move gently downward from floor to floor. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places. When the 2014 South Napa earthquake badly damaged the building, the family spent more than two years lovingly restoring it to its former glory.

Gene and Katie Trefethen bought the estate in 1968 and released their first vintage in 1973. Just a few years later, Trefethen stunned the wine world: its 1976 Chardonnay was named the best in the world at the 1979 Gault Millau Wine Olympics in Paris. Today, the family is celebrated for elegant, estate-grown wines, especially its refined Cabernet Sauvignon, alongside Chardonnay, Merlot and Riesling. Visitors taste in the shadow of history, surrounded by vines and gardens, and enjoy a warm, unhurried welcome that feels like stepping onto a family farm.