Chateau Montelena Winery

Chateau Montelena Winery, originally called A.L. Tubbs winery after its founder Alfred Tubbs, was constructed in 1888 and intended as a barrel-aging facility. The Chateau was unique in materials, plan, size, and style for its era. In nineteenth-century Napa Valley the majority of wineries were constructed of wood. Instead, the Chateau is made of stone with walls three to twelve feet thick, which provides natural insulation against outside heat or cold. Similarly, the structure built into a hillside, to further regulate temperature – something necessary for producing quality wines but uncommon at the time.

In 1976 a blind wine test was help in France comparing French and California Napa Valley wines (Judgement of Paris). Chateau Montelena Winery was one of the winners with their 1973 Chardonnay gaining international fame. Then in 2008 the movie “Bottle Shock” came out that featured some of the events leading up to this event in France in 1976.