Napa Valley’s Firefighting Brew: How Wine Survived the Flames
When flames consumed Napa Valley’s historic vineyards, the region’s identity as a wine destination faced its toughest test yet. The Glass Fire, which scorched the northern part of the valley in 2020, didn’t just destroy crops—it gutted centuries of tradition. For wineries like Tofanelli Family Vineyard, the loss of their 1929-built homestead felt like a death blow to “Old Napa Valley.” Yet amid the ash and smoke, a resilient spirit emerged. Wineries across the region are racing to salvage the 2020 vintage, even as smoke taint rendered entire harvests unusable. “We’ve never skipped a vintage since 1989,” said Fiona Barnett…