Gundlach Bundschu
Encyclopedia
Gundlach Bundschu is often credited to be California's oldest family-owned winery: it is still owned and operated by the founder's heirs and today led by the sixth generation, Jeff Bundschu. The winery's 320 acres (1.3 km²) estate vineyard, named Rhinefarm by Bavarian-born Jacob Gundlach in 1858, is located within the Sonoma Valley AVA
of Sonoma County
, at the crossroads of the Sonoma Valley, Los Carneros AVA
and Napa Valley AVA
, along the Mayacamas Mountains.
in San Francisco, California
and its headquarters nearby on Market Street
at Second. There was a New York branch as well. After Jacob’s death in 1894, the company was renamed Gundlach Bundschu. By the time of the great earthquake of 1906
the company was a major international wine producer, distributing over 250,000 cases of mostly fortified wine
per year.
The earthquake destroyed the winery's production facilities, one million gallons of wine, and even Charles Bundschu's home. The winery never regained its earlier stature as a major producer of bulk wine. Instead the company regrouped and moved operations to its vineyards in Sonoma County. The company suffered another setback during Prohibition
, when alcohol was made illegal in the United States. Unable to sell wine, the company let its grapevines die and raised cattle instead under Towle Bundschu, the grandson of the founder. Walter, of the fourth generation of Bundschus, replanted grapes after the repeal of prohibition, but the company did not begin producing wine again until the early 1970s.
Fifth-generation Jim Bundschu developed a plan to restore the family winery in 1969, with the first modern vintage in 1973. Unable to obtain premium prices for Sonoma County grapes at the time despite their high quality (and correspondingly lower yield), he decided that the only way to capitalize on the vineyards' value was to produce his own premium-level wine. Production was initially 70,000 bottles per year but dropped in the late 1990s, as the company focused on the quality of estate-grown Rhinefarm wines. In 1997, the Bundschu family acquired 140 acre (0.5665604 km²) of land adjacent to the existing historic Rhinefarm Vineyard. Jeff became president of the winery in 2000. Production was also decreased and is today around 40,000 cases per year.
slopes of Arrowhead Mountain, part of the Mayacamas. Rhinefarm Vineyard now has 320 acres (1.3 km²) under vine, farmed in more
than 50 distinct blocks. Linda Trotta has been winemaker since 1990, one year after joining Gundlach Bundschu Winery as enologist, Linda became winemaker in 1990. Trotta earned a bachelor’s degree from UC-Davis in Fermentation Science in 1986.
Sonoma Valley AVA
The Sonoma Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area in Sonoma County, California, USA which centers on the Sonoma Valley in the southern portion of the county...
of Sonoma County
Sonoma County, California
Sonoma County, located on the northern coast of the U.S. state of California, is the largest and northernmost of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. Its population at the 2010 census was 483,878. Its largest city and county seat is Santa Rosa....
, at the crossroads of the Sonoma Valley, Los Carneros AVA
Los Carneros AVA
Los Carneros AVA is an American Viticultural Area which includes parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties in California, U.S.A.. It is located north of San Pablo Bay. The proximity to the cool fog and breezes from the bay makes the climate in Los Carneros cooler and more moderate than the wine...
and Napa Valley AVA
Napa Valley AVA
Napa Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Napa County, California, United States. Napa Valley is considered one of the top wine regions in the United States...
, along the Mayacamas Mountains.
History
The company was founded by Jacob Gundlach in 1858. Charles Bundschu, from Mannheim, Germany, joined the company in 1868, and became part of the family when he married Jacob Gundlach’s daughter Francisca in 1875. J. Gundlach & Co. grew significantly over the next 30 years, distributing rhine wines from its factory at Second and Bryant in what is now the Soma DistrictSouth of Market, San Francisco, California
South of Market is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California, United States.-Name and location:Its boundaries are Market Street to the northwest, San Francisco Bay to the northeast, Mission Creek to the southeast, and Division Street, 13th Street and U.S. Route 101 to the southwest...
in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
and its headquarters nearby on Market Street
Market Street (San Francisco)
Market Street is an important thoroughfare in San Francisco, California. It begins at The Embarcadero in front of the Ferry Building at the northeastern edge of the city and runs southwest through downtown, passing the Civic Center and the Castro District, to the intersection with Corbett Avenue in...
at Second. There was a New York branch as well. After Jacob’s death in 1894, the company was renamed Gundlach Bundschu. By the time of the great earthquake of 1906
1906 San Francisco earthquake
The San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was a major earthquake that struck San Francisco, California, and the coast of Northern California at 5:12 a.m. on Wednesday, April 18, 1906. The most widely accepted estimate for the magnitude of the earthquake is a moment magnitude of 7.9; however, other...
the company was a major international wine producer, distributing over 250,000 cases of mostly fortified wine
Fortified wine
Fortified wine is wine to which a distilled beverage has been added. Fortified wine is distinguished from spirits made from wine in that spirits are produced by means of distillation, while fortified wine is simply wine that has had a spirit added to it...
per year.
The earthquake destroyed the winery's production facilities, one million gallons of wine, and even Charles Bundschu's home. The winery never regained its earlier stature as a major producer of bulk wine. Instead the company regrouped and moved operations to its vineyards in Sonoma County. The company suffered another setback during Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
, when alcohol was made illegal in the United States. Unable to sell wine, the company let its grapevines die and raised cattle instead under Towle Bundschu, the grandson of the founder. Walter, of the fourth generation of Bundschus, replanted grapes after the repeal of prohibition, but the company did not begin producing wine again until the early 1970s.
Fifth-generation Jim Bundschu developed a plan to restore the family winery in 1969, with the first modern vintage in 1973. Unable to obtain premium prices for Sonoma County grapes at the time despite their high quality (and correspondingly lower yield), he decided that the only way to capitalize on the vineyards' value was to produce his own premium-level wine. Production was initially 70,000 bottles per year but dropped in the late 1990s, as the company focused on the quality of estate-grown Rhinefarm wines. In 1997, the Bundschu family acquired 140 acre (0.5665604 km²) of land adjacent to the existing historic Rhinefarm Vineyard. Jeff became president of the winery in 2000. Production was also decreased and is today around 40,000 cases per year.
Winery & estate
Approximately 150 acre (0.607029 km²) of Rhinefarm estate have been planted over the last 10 years, including 25 acres (101,171.5 m²) of Pommard 5, Dijon 115, 667 and 777 clone Pinot Noir on the valley floor and 110 acre (0.4451546 km²) of Bordeaux varieties planted on the rockyslopes of Arrowhead Mountain, part of the Mayacamas. Rhinefarm Vineyard now has 320 acres (1.3 km²) under vine, farmed in more
than 50 distinct blocks. Linda Trotta has been winemaker since 1990, one year after joining Gundlach Bundschu Winery as enologist, Linda became winemaker in 1990. Trotta earned a bachelor’s degree from UC-Davis in Fermentation Science in 1986.
External links
- Gundlach Bundschu Official Website
- http://www.sonoma.winecountry.com/about/experience/2006/04/gundlachBundschuEarthquakeWalk.html
- http://www.gunbun.com/web/htdocs/our_story/history.html