Jun 6, 2023

Barnett Vineyards celebrates 40 years

As Barnett Vineyards celebrates its 40th anniversary, the northern California winery is starting a charitable donation program honoring brave firefighters who battled the stae’s devastating 2020 fires.

Founded in 1983, the Spring Mountain, California, Barnett Vineyards grows winegrapes in the Spring Mountain District American Viticultural Area, which is part of the Napa Valley AVA. The family-owned winery grows winegrapes on high elevation as well as steep hillside conditions in rocky, volcanic soil.

In honor of its 40th anniversary, Barnett Vineyards, known for its Spring Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon wines, started a donation program benefiting the St. Helena Fire Department in nearby St. Helena, California. The program is to recognize “the tremendous efforts made by the local fire department” in responding to the 2020 fires, according to a news release.

The donation is part of the Spring Mountain, California, winery’s commitment to supporting the local fire department and community that helped to save many of the Spring Mountain properties that were in harm’s way of the fire. The 2020 fires caused widespread destruction and displaced many families and businesses in Napa Valley and greater northern California.

Vineyards founders and proprietors Hal and Fiona Barnett plan to donate a percentage of the sales of the 2021 vintage of Cabernet Franc wine sales to the fire department. The funds will be used to support the firehouse’s ongoing efforts to keep the community safe and to help firefighters obtain the equipment and training they need to respond to future emergencies.

“We are deeply grateful to the firefighters who worked tirelessly to protect our community during the 2020 fires,” Hal Barnett said in the release. “We believe that supporting the local community is an essential part of our business and are committed to doing our part to make sure that everyone thrives after enduring such a hardship. We celebrate 40 years of our family winery this year, and we have had great opportunities and challenges along the way. This is our way of expressing gratitude for first responders and their selfless efforts.”

The donation is part of the winery’s ongoing commitment to supporting the local community. In addition to this donation, Barnett Vineyards has participated in numerous community events and supported many local charitable organizations. Fiona Barnett is active board member with Larkin Street Youth, a non-profit in San Francisco that helps to keep young people off the streets by providing healthcare, housing, employment and education services.

Barnett Vineyards’ founders maintained a vision, took risks and planted a vineyard on a series of hand-tilled terraces, slopes, forests and winding roads. Four decades later, the Barnetts continue their dream, living on the estate where the wines are grown and made. The rocky, volcanic soil on the Barnett estate, high elevation as well as steep hillside conditions, produces fruit of great intensity as well as complexity. Winemaker and general manager David Tate has worked alongside the Barnetts since 2007 and is credited with helping evolve production to up to 8,000 cases a year while maintaining quality and the artisanal winemaking that has made the award-winning wines popular, according to the release.