California’s wine industry began in 1769 when Father Junipero Serra planted the first vineyards. The industry faced threats from pests and prohibition but recovered in the 1960s with new technologies. Today, California produces wine in four main regions, with Chardonnay being the predominant wine.
With the current popularity and quality of California wines, it’s hard to imagine they haven’t been around forever. Father Junipero Serra, a Franciscan missionary, planted California’s first vineyards at the San Diego Mission around 1769. The black-skinned grapes produced from these early vines are appropriately called Mission grapes. Vineyards were later planted at the other California missions, where the wines produced were used both in the sacrament and for everyday purposes. Until the late 1800s, the Mission grape was instrumental in the production of Californian wines.
However, in 1833, Jean-Louis Vignes, a Frenchman, planted some imported vines. Vignes was followed by a Hungarian, Agoston Harazsthy, who introduced some 300 grape varieties from European vines. Since Harazsthy founded California’s first winery, Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma Valley, he is known as the founder of the California Wine Industry. During the mid-1800s, the gold rush brought an influx of prospectors, which, in turn, caused a push into grape plantings to keep up with California’s growing demand for wine.
Over time, the California wine industry has faced two major threats. In the 1890s many of the imported European vines were destroyed by a destructive pest, phylloxera. Then, in the 1920s and early 1930s, prohibition also threatened the California wine industry. Following the repeal of the ban, the California wine market has managed to recover slowly. It was not an easy task; the cellars were closed, the equipment was in poor condition and the grapes grown during Prohibition were not of high quality.
In the 1960s most Californian wines were made from Thompson seedless or Carignan grapes. With the development of new technologies, several quality wineries have been established in the region. The first international success for the Californian wineries was the result of participating in a tasting event in Paris in 1976. Due to the taste-blind way of judging, the whole world, especially the French judges, were quite shocked when two wines from the Napa Valley beat their French counterparts.
The wines are produced in four main regions of California, with the Central Valley being the largest region, approximately 300 miles (483 km) long; it is also the most productive area. The North Shore region, north of San Francisco Bay, contains the familiar Napa Valley and Sonoma County. Napa Valley’s first trading company is located on St. Helena. Chardonnay is the predominant wine produced in California.
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