In the Napa Valley, county government officials shot down a massive proposed winery near St. Helena last week after years of planning on the part of winery developers. The Vida Valiente estate, as proposed, would reportedly have boasted an 18,000-square-foot winery and 14,000-square-foot wine cave on an 18-acre plot along Crystal Springs Road, producing up to 30,000 gallons of wine a year and hosting around 120 visitors a week. But last Wednesday, after months of delaying their decision on the project, the county’s planning commissioners blocked it from moving forward with a 2-1 vote. This milestone moment happened after a contentious, two-and-a-half-hour meeting that raked in 350 pages worth of public comments. Commissioners argued they “couldn’t support having a winery with visitors along a narrow, subpar road with blind spots in a wildfire-prone area,” according to the Napa Valley Register. Another citizen at the meeting also reportedly spoke out about how “Bell Canyon Creek near the project site is an important stream for Napa Valley and its fish” and how he didn’t think the water analysis completed for the winery project was legit enough. In the weeks leading up to the meeting, an industry mag called Wine Spectator ran the latest trend piece — in a long line of similar pieces, including a recent one in the U.K.’s biggest tabloid, the Daily Mail — about a “growing number of Napa winemakers” who are reportedly “confused and frustrated at county officials who won’t let them do business — even when they follow the rules.” Vida Valiente starred as the story’s central example. From Wine Spectator: “Hayes Drumwright, founder of Vida Valiente and Memento Mori wineries, has been in a five-year battle with the county over building a winery home for Vida Valiente in rural St. Helena. Drumwright says he’s fulfilled all the required criteria, abided by all the rules and passed every necessary environmental survey, traffic study and more. He’s even received a thumbs-up from a public works official and fire marshal. Yet in a December 2023 hearing, he was still not approved to begin construction. ‘I know other wineries are going through the same thing,’ said Drumwright. ‘Save me my time and money if following these rules doesn’t matter.'” And he said all that BEFORE the actual “No” vote came down last week. County leaders, aware of this building narrative, have been arguing that their position “isn’t about being pro- or anti-agriculture,” the Register reports. Instead, they insist they’re trying to weigh each new vineyard and winery proposal individually, and make the right decision for both the valley’s local industry/economy and its long-term safety and sustainability. For what it’s worth, the county did announce with much fanfare that the “second-ever micro-winery use permit” in the Napa Valley was issued a couple of weeks ago, for the Chaix Family Micro-Winery in Rutherford. Which likely isn’t much of a consolation for the team behind the grandiose Vida Valiente pipe dream. (Source: Napa Valley Register & Wine Spectator & Press Democrat & Napa County Government)
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