Winery and Ranch Operations

Winery and Ranch Operations. . The Picchetti family built this winery in 1896, enabling them to produce their own wine. Before then, they had sold their grapes to other local wineries. Theresa Picchetti advised her husband, Vincenzo, to withdraw their savings, which totaled about $8,000, from the Union Savings Bank in San Jose and invest in their own winery. This was an auspicious move because the bank failed soon after., The stables behind you held horses, which were crucial for work in the vineyards and orchards. Boarding horses on the ranch also provided an additional source of income for the Picchettis. For a time, one room on the north side of the stables was used as a bedroom for ranch workers. A bocce ball court that ran along the north end of the winery and fermentation building was a popular source of entertainment for the Picchettis, their guests, and their workers., The winery building underwent structural repairs in 1986. Between 1992 and 1993, the barn and blacksmith shop were restored using Proposition 70 grant funds from the California Wildlife, Coastal, and Park Lands Conservation Act of 1988. The Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989 led to stricter standards for masonry buildings in California. In response, the winery building was seismically retrofitted in 2006 with the help of grant funding from the California Heritage Fund through the Park Bond Act of 2000 and the Santa Clara County Historical Heritage Commission. This building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. , Inset Image Caption: The Picchetti family kept these old bottles from the original winery operation for generations. They are still stored on site today.