The Historic La Questa Vineyard | EST. 1883
E. H. Rixford displayed the growing confidence in California as a new wine-growing region as illustrated on the frontispiece to the title page of his book published in 1883, “The Wine Press and the Cellar” (San Francisco). Lady Liberty is popping a cork of wine while the state’s mascot, the California grizzly bear, holds a wine glass filled while leaning against a barrel with its head bearing the state seal.
Emmett H. Rixford, a practicing San Francisco attorney-at-law, established the La Questa Vineyard in 1883 by purchasing 40 acres on a hillside at Canada and Woodside Road in Woodside. Rixford's side passion was understanding the challenges associated with growing premium varietals and vintage wines in California. His passion led him to write "The Wine Press and the Cellar," an authoritative handbook on winemaking for the era published in 1883.
Rixford admired the Chateau Margaux vineyard and the wine it produced in France. Rixford traveled there before planting his first vineyard in 1884 to determine the exact proportions of their vineyard. He returned to California and planted Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, and Verdot grapes in their exact proportions.
By 1892, Rixford had imported 7,000 vines from France that covered the hillside in Woodside, growing some of the most prized California Cabernets. The La Questa Cabernet Sauvignon won a silver medal at the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition and a gold medal at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco.
In the early 1900s, the most expensive and sought-after California Cabernet came from Rixford's La Questa Vineyard in Woodside.
In the early 1900s, the most expensive and sought-after California Cabernet came from Rixford's La Questa Vineyard in Woodside.
Rixford hired Swiss stonemason Charles Rose in 1902 to build him a winery out of the stones he unearthed while preparing the land for planting the vineyards. The winery was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco; after that, with Rose's assistance, it was repaired and later converted to a private residence, which is still in use today.
The prohibition of alcohol in the 18th Amendment in 1920 essentially ended commercial wine production in the Santa Cruz Mountains and across the country. Notwithstanding a small provision permitting for 200 gallons of wine per year per household, there was still a demand for California winegrapes.
In 1902, Rixford hired a Swiss Stone Mason to build a winery using stones uncovered while planting the vineyard. The stone walls of the fermenting room and the vault exist today as a private residence.
During Prohibition, Rixford maintained the vineyard and harvested grapes, which he sold to residents who made their wine. It was more profitable for him to sell the grapes directly to the consumer than to produce wine.
E.H Rixford died in 1928, just five years before alcohol prohibition was repealed. The La Questa winery was the only one in the county to be reopened by Rixford's two sons, Allan and Halsey, but it was short-lived, releasing their last bottle of La Questa Cabernet Sauvignon in 1938.
The original La Questa vines planted in 1884 are still yielding fruit today, supplying Woodside Vineyard with grapes from the original grapevines to produce a rare and long-time prized California Cabernet with the rich terroir of the Santa Cruz Mountains Appellation.
Preserving the Historic Vineyards & Winemaking Heritage in the Santa Cruz Mountains
