 On Friday, September 7, 2007, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the historic Buena Vista® winery tasting room, located at 18000 Old Winery Road in Sonoma, wine will flow, food will be feasted upon, and merriment will prevail in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Buena Vista’s founding—a landmark event for commercial winemaking in the New World. Festivities will include local artisan cuisine from select Sonoma restaurants, such as Carneros Bistro and El Dorado Kitchen, paired with Buena Vista Carneros™ wines, live music, and proclamations from local government officials in honor of Hungarian Count Agoston Haraszthy, who founded the winery in 1857. Tickets to this historic celebration are open to the public and cost $60 per person. A portion of the proceeds will go to benefit the Sonoma Valley Historical Society. Tickets may be purchased online beginning July 1, 2007 at www.buenavistacarneros.com or by calling (800) 325-2764.
The month of September was recently designated “California Wine Month” by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. "The 150th anniversary celebration at Buena Vista Carneros is a great way to kick off California Wine Month with a sense of both the history and the joy that comes with drinking world-class California wines,” says Nancy Light, Communications Director for the Wine Institute.
In recognition of Buena Vista’s founding as the first premium winery in California, and the subsequent importance of the California wine industry for both California’s economy and for wine lovers around the world, Mike Thompson (D-CA) and George Radanovich (D-CA), Co-Chairs of the U.S. Congressional Wine Caucus, are expected to attend the anniversary celebration. "The 150th anniversary of the winery's founding stands as an important date in history," said Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA), Co-chair of the Congressional Wine Caucus. "Moreover, I think it's important to recognize both founder Agoston Haraszthy's integral role in pioneering winemaking, and Buena Vista Carneros' continued contribution to California's reputation as the world's premier winegrowing region." Other local dignitaries, including Agoston Haraszthy’s descendents, will also be in attendance.
Known around the historic Buena Vista winery as simply "The Count," Agoston Haraszthy was an eccentric character and bon vivant who developed an elaborate and noteworthy résumé of accomplishments before falling in love with the landscape of the Sonoma Valley and dedicating himself to planting wine grapes he felt would one day rival the quality of wines in the Old World. The many feats he accomplished include founding the town of Sauk City, Wisconsin, serving as the first federal marshall and state representative of San Diego, and authoring the book Travels of North America, which triggered thousands of Hungarians, Swiss, Czechs and Poles to immigrate to the United States. In March 2007, Haraszthy was awarded the posthumous honor of being one of the very first inductees into the Culinary Institute of America’s Vintners Hall of Fame.
Buena Vista’s tasting room is designated a Historic Landmark and is open for tastings and tours year-round.
Today, Buena Vista owns 1,000 acres of vineyards in the Carneros appellation, which is located just south of Sonoma and is known for its cool climate expression in its wines. Buena Vista focuses on its Ramal Vineyard estate producing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Merlot and Syrah and has over 167 different vineyard lots matching the ideal clone and rootstock to the diverse soils of their Carneros estate vineyards. In 2005, Buena Vista was re-named Buena Vista Carneros to show the winery’s dedication to their estate vineyards in Carneros, with the tasting room remaining at the historic winery just off the plaza in town of Sonoma. Throughout the month of September, California Wine Month, every visitor to the tasting room will also receive a complimentary commemorative glass honoring the anniversary.
About Buena Vista Carneros
Founded in 1857 as California’s first premium winery, Buena Vista Carneros™, produces cool-climate Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Merlot and Syrah from its 1000 acre estate property in Carneros, and is the largest vineyard landholder in the Carneros appellation. Under the guidance of winemaker Jeff Stewart and viticulturist Craig Weaver, the winery will complete a total replant of its estate vineyards in 2010. Set along a breathtaking series of rolling south-facing hillsides overlooking the San Pablo Bay, Buena Vista Carneros is a leading quality wine producer from the Carneros region and is a part of Beam Wine Estates, Inc., the wine group of Beam Global Spirits & Wine, Inc. To learn more about the winery, please visit www.buenavistacarneros.com. |
